Foundation 2

Schedule: 6 sessions; once a week for six weeks
Tuition: $269
Class size: 14 students maximum
Class length: 3 hours (18 hours total)
Prerequisite: Foundation 1 (you must attend at least five of the six F1 classes to be eligible for F2)
(Click here for a schedule of class dates and times)

This six-session workshop helps you refine your improv knowledge and focuses on performance skills. You use the tools you developed in Foundation 1 as you learn more games and explore your own style of play.

While the emphasis is still on fun, course content also explores more conceptual and technical information and helps you build the skills you need to perform improvisational theatre in front of an audience.

Over the six-week course, Foundation 2 introduces the following concepts:

• Teamwork
• Stage Skills
• Status
• CROWE (character, relationship, objective, where, emotion)
• Narrative
• Scene work

Games and excercises will show students how to:

• Follow and serve the narrative of the scene
• Project vocally
• Move with flexibility and comfort on stage
• Use stage picture to enhance scenes
• Enrich your "space object" and "where"’ work
• Develop professional theatre behavior
• Display flexibility when dealing with fellow players
• Play a variety of believable human characters
• Support the context of the scene
• Explore styles and genres
• Say YES!
• Make your partner look good
• Be in the moment
• Get yourself/your partner in trouble
• Take your time
• Keep your promises
• Move into the future
• Fail good naturedly

Students in Foundation 2 are required to read one of the definitive texts on improv: IMPRO by Keith Johnstone. Johnstone invented Theatresports, the main improv format we play at BATS. BATS sells the book for $20; it is also available from a variety of retail outlets. When enrolling, please indicate whether or not you would like to purchase the book from BATS. If so, you can pay for it at time of registration and pick up their book on your first day of class.

At the conclusion, everyone “passes” and can move on to Foundation 3, but you can also take Foundation 2 as many times as you would like and can continue to work on your performance skills. (And since each session is different, it's likely that you'll get a whole new take on the experience from a new teacher and new classmates.)

For the next Foundation 2 series, go to the calendar.