This class is limited to 16 students.

Technique (Sharpen The Knives)

After Level 1, you will have learned all the basic tools you need to do musical improv. Level 2 will delve more deeply into technique to fine tune your skills. We'll be going deep into effective scene work, strategic gifting, complex song structures, confident characters, rapping and rhyming, nailing genre, improved musicality, and polished choreography. This class will push you to grow and prepare you for higher quality shows, all while having tons of silly fun. 

This class culminates in a performance for the public.

Prerequisite: Completion of BCC Level 1 Musical Improv (no exceptions). Our musical improv classes move at a faster pace compared to most other theaters' programs. Level 1 is an advanced class, so we do not allow skipping to Musical Improv 2.

7-Week Class: Thursdays, 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM, October 22nd - December 11th, 2026

• Please note: This class may end between 9:30 - 10:00 PM depending on the number of enrollments.

• This class skips November 26 for Thanksgiving.

You will receive a welcome email with your room assignment. Our classes meet at BCC Pig Pen or BCC DogHouse in East Williamsburg.

Class Show: Class Show: Tuesday, December 15th. 7:00pm. Eris MainStage (167 Graham Ave.)

Teacher: Artistic Director, Philip Markle

Accompanist: TBD

Bio:

Philip Markle is the Founder and Artistic Director of The Brooklyn Comedy Collective. Philip trained in improv in Chicago at The Annoyance, iO, and Second City before moving to NYC in 2013 to launch The Annoyance Theater NY, where he acted as its Director for four years before founding the BCC. He was named “Top 5 Queer Business Leaders” by Time Out NY in 2023 and a “Power Player in Arts in Culture” by AMNY in 2024. The New York Times wrote, “Philip Markle, who founded [the BCC] in 2018, has done creative work building an audience around a dizzying array of shows.” He has taught thousands of students of all ages internationally, from Bali to Berlin, for over 15 years. Performance highlights include musically improvising with Baby Wants Candy in Chicago and BLANK: The Musical Off-Broadway. As a storyteller, he has performed at The Moth and The Paper Machete - and is a writer on Medium.com with 400k+ reads. He executive produced, wrote, and acted in the digital shorts series "The Annoyance Presents" on IFC's Comedy Crib. Philip first performed his show SPARKLE HOUR to rave reviews in the 2013 NY International Fringe Festival and has regularly produced it since, including multiple runs at Joe's Pub and as part of the 2021-2023 NY Comedy Festivals. You can listen to his queer comedy songs on your favorite streaming music platform under the name “Philip Sparkle.”

Testimonials:

“I dropped in on a workshop taught by Philip Markle, the artistic director. Took his workshop -- the guy is visionary.”

“Philip brings the passion and energy to take you by the collar and shake the improv out of you. Players who are often timid were leaping on stage in a frenzy. All the while, we hit the marks for a good understanding of improv.”

“Phillip is an amazing teacher. He's certain of himself and the material and was able to convey that certainty in his craft so well to the class. I was worried about taking this class, how I would respond to the challenges, but his knowledge and honesty (not sugar coating critiques) were crucial in helping me grow as a performer.”

“Philip did a great job of getting to know each of our improv styles personally. He is so fun and has such a joy about improv that it feels easy to enjoy myself in class. He is insanely intelligent and talented and I always felt like I was learning a new skill. I was never not having fun, I always looked forward to class!”

“Philip knows so much about improv and was able to impart a wide variety of different ways to think and perform in a clear and digestible way.”

If this class is sold out, sign-up for the wait list here.