The Bechdel Test

August 15 – August 17, 2019
Bayfront Theater, San Francisco

Class Time/Dates: Thursday, Friday, Saturday, August 15, 16, 17, 10am – 5pm each day
Schedule: 10am – 1pm, lunch from 1-2pm, 2-5pm
Two performances: Sunday, August 18, 5pm and 7pm
Class size: 14 students maximum: 10 women and 4 men
Class length: 18 hours total of instruction
Tuition: $399 (Early Registration $379)
Prerequisite: Advanced players with significant performance experience.  Approval from the dean is required before registration. Contact dave@improv.org for questions about eligibility and requests to enroll.

The Bechdel Test is a lens we can use to look at how women show up in works of fiction.  Named for cartoonist Alison Bechdel, it asks the question, “Is there a scene between two women talking to each other about something other than a man?”

The remarkably low percentage of films and stories that pass this test points to the fact that we all have grown accustomed to creating and seeing stories centering around men.  And as story creators we often perpetuate that pattern. 

Debuting on the main stage at BATS in August 2016, the Bechdel test format aims to explore the complexities, relationships, and stories of women.  Simply deciding to make stories whose main characters are women – good, bad, likeable and not – is a departure from the stories that we often consume and create!

This format includes both men and women – it is not a female-only class, as this is not a female-only issue! The class is for a experienced improvisors with performance experience.