Shortform: (usually on Fridays)
fun and fast-paced improvised theatre, filled with scenes, songs, games, and lots of audience participation and suggestions.


Read more about Improv »
Longform: (usually on Saturdays)
full-length, narrative, genre-driven, completely improvised stories based on audience suggestions.


Read more about Improv »

In-Person: Foundation 4.5 in Palo Alto with Derek Yee (#22-09-3678) – CLASS IN PROGRESS, Signups Still Available!

In-Person: Foundation 4.5 in Palo Alto with Derek Yee Tuesdays, 7:00 – 10:00 pm PST

September 27 – November 1
Cubberley Community Center

Class Time/Dates: Tuesdays, September 27 and October 4, 11, 18, 25, and November 1 | 7:00-10:00pm PST

Class size: 16 students maximum

Class length: 3 hours (18 hours total instruction)

Tuition: $349

Prerequisites: Foundation 3 or 4 equivalent

*Email bats@improv.org for eligibility and access*

A unique mixture of F4 and F5, suitable for students who want to take F4, are repeating F4, or who are eligible for F5.

In Foundation 4.5, students will learn and work on:

Identifying the basic information of the scene. Who are these characters, how do they know each other, where are they and why are they there?

How to effectively start scenes, build them in the middle, and successfully “land the plane.”

How to embody the basic information of the scene. How can we as actors, shift our body, face, voice and imagination to establish and support the world we are creating.

Basic acting skills that lend themselves to believeable storytelling.

The basic structure of a traditional narrative.

How to identify and create the beginning, middle, and end of a longer story so it feels satisfying and cohesive.

Identifying the protagonist, raising the stakes, the circle of possibilities, leaning into consequences and supporting a fleshed out improvised reality in which to create a world with its own logic and consistency. Students will also explore the concepts through the specific lens of genre and start to tell stories in different styles.

All of these skills contribute to improvising rich stories that can cover all tones, from comedy to tragedy and everything in between.

Posted in