FUN & DUMB Workshops ‘26
Workshops taught by veteran guest improvisers like Susan Messing & John Lehr, Chris Gethard, Anthony Atamanuik & BCC instructors!
Scroll down the page to sign-up!
If a class is sold out, sign-up for the wait list.
Saturday, July 11th
Start w/ Nothing, Leave w/ Something
Natasha Vaynblat
11:30AM - 2:00PM
Do you love standup but have a hard time sitting down and putting pen to paper? This workshop is for you! Do you have a stand up set but are having a hard time extending it? This workshop is for you! Through a series of exercises students will learn how to generate standup material through improvisation. This class is a hybrid of writing and performing-- we will jump back and forth from being up on our feet to sitting down in front of the page. Beginners welcome!
Prep: Come with jokes or come with nothing, just bring yourself and a willingness to get messy (metaphorically speaking).
Intro to Clown
Tallie Medel
11:30AM - 2:00PM
Do you want to try out one single clown class? Have you been wondering what this joyful world is all about? Come to the drop-in class! In each class students will practice exercises from some of the greats (Lecoq, Conway, Johnstone) while working on taming their ego and bringing out their true inner clown. Come to just one class, come to all of them, do what your heart desires. This is the perfect place to get your feet wet and learn from the incomparable Tallie Medel.
All experience levels welcome.
Breaking the Fourth Wall
Tej Khanna
11:30AM-2:00PM
This workshop will focus on the art of tastefully breaking the fourth wall and playing games with the audience while doing improv. We will focus on incorporating elements of clown and physical comedy to make the most of playing with a live audience in the room.
Prerequisite: Completion of BCC Level 1 Improv or equivalent at any major comedy theater.
Marrying Game & Deal
Philip Markle & Akmal Tajihan
2:15PM-4:45PM
Combine multiple philosophies to become a better improviser! Giving yourself a well-rounded improv education by taking classes at different institutions is critical in growing your talent, education, and joy. But sometimes it is difficult to figure out how to combine these philosophies together into a successful scene. That is what this class is all about!
Learn to bring the superpowers of different schools into one powerful set. We will focus on pairing the BCC’s f*ck it / love it philosophy and playing from a deal with a game-based approach to finding and playing with the unusual thing. We will cover core BCC concepts like managing surprise + believability & byways and highways with game-based methodology of “the voice of reason” and mapping beats out over a long-form show. The class will culminate in a simplified longform Harold. Learn to play fearlessly from a deal while honing the game of the scene - and keeping it all loose and fun.
Prerequisite: Completion of both UCB 201 and BCC Level 2 improv (no exceptions)
Where the Hell Are We?
John Lehr
2:15PM - 4:45PM
Tired of standing on stage in the middle of nowhere? Or randomly making up a location because that’s what you are supposed to do? This workshop reinvigorates your muscles to find the “where” in a completely organic way. Afterwards, we take location into the stratosphere and discover how discovering our “where” leads to connectivity, character and relationships!
Fix It or Make it Worse
Susan Messing
2:15p - 4:45pm
It is time to finally get answers to those questions and problems with improvisation that you have thought about forever and just can’t crack the code. This class is pretty self explanatory. Part lecture, part get up and go, no question too stupid. Let’s break improv wide open, take rules out of the picture, and celebrate comedy again. If you’re in your head, this’ll rip it out. Perfect for people who have studied too much and learned to little. All levels.
(Free BIPOC Workshop) Use Your Voice
Kenny Park Yi & Noelle Gonzalez
5:00p - 7:30p
This workshop will focus on using your voice and creating space for yourself on stage, while staying attuned to the audience and your scene partners. We will work on ways of bringing your whole self into scenes that celebrates you and your experiences. Expect coached scene-work and plenty of performance reps!
This class is completely free for BIPOC Improvisers, sign up while there’s still room.
Make Shortform Improv Easy
Taylor Gonzalez
5:00PM - 7:30PM
Improvisers who don't respect shortform are hack! This workshop will dive into some of the more advanced games, exploring skills and strategies specific to the shortform improv genre that are also very helpful for upping the quality of your longform. Shortform is back, baby!
Intro to the Improvised Play
Nicole Asava
5:00pm-7:30pm
Improvise: to make, invent, or arrange offhand.
Play: The stage representation of an action or story.
In long form improvisation we often have only a couple minutes to get to know and share our characters with an audience, leaving no time for subtlety or nuance. In plays they have tons of time, some might say too much time. In this Introduction to The Improvised Play workshop, inspired by the class first developed by Brandon Gardner at UCB NY, we’ll combine the two, exploring the pivotal first scene that lays the groundwork for the rest of the improvised play. Whether you’re a trained actor who wants to explore slower improvisation, or an experienced improviser who wants to develop your acting skills, or both! Welcome to The Improvised Play!
SUNDAY, JULY 12th
Improv to Sketch
Devin Bockrath
12:00PM - 2:30PM
In this Improv-to-Sketch/Character workshop, students will be given a crash-course in the fundamentals of developing a sketch or solo character through the process of improvisation. From ideating a premise to improvising that premise to honing and editing that premise based on feedback and instinct, students can expect to leave with a firm understanding of the joys of developing an idea through the lens of improvisation.
Accepting the Moment: Using Improv in Clown
Julian Hernandez
12:00PM - 2:30PM
*This is a workshop for folks who’ve taken at least 1 clown class AND 1 improv class.*
Why does clown feel so hard? When you’re improvising, you’re flying free. You’re working with your scene partner to make your team laugh and have no trouble discovering games. But now you’re preparing a clown bit, and for some reason, it’s not hitting like it was when you dreamt it up in your bedroom.
In this workshop we’ll implement improv techniques to play directly with the audience and react to every moment in real time. We’ll uncover how to treat the audience like your scene partner so you can effortlessly make them laugh and ditch the rigid plan. Once we slow down, we can start soaring all over again.
Intro to Musical Improv
Ali Reed
12:00pm - 2:30pm
Do you sing in the shower? Do you irritate your pets and loved ones with silly lil songs? If you said yes, then this is the workshop for you! During this 2.5 hour crash course, musical improv veteran Ali Reed (Baby Wants Candy) will teach you to nail song structure, choreograph effective stage pictures, and apply improv fundamentals like yes-anding, game recognition and pattern building to MUSIC. Students will leave with the ability to improvise fully realized musical numbers and take center stage with unhinged New York CONFIDENCE, baby! Class is delivered in a high-energy, zero-pressure environment where all levels are welcome and no musical experience is required.
What Are You Trying to Say: Setting Intentions in Improv
Anthony Atamanuik
3:00PM - 5:30PM
In this workshop with veteran improviser, Anthony Atamanuik, you’ll slow scene work down and discuss how to set intentions with each line. How do you feel about your scene partner? How do you feel about the scene? Everything your character says should clarify these questions, adding nuance and meaning to the scene. Expect side coaching in order to “stress test” the scene.
Prerequisite: Completion of Level 1 Improv at any Major Comedy Theater
Make Yourself Laugh
Ladies Who Ranch
3:00PM - 5:30PM
Believe it or not, laughter is medicine, perhaps even the best. A surefire way to make your audience laugh (and in doing so heal their wounds) is to make yourself and your teammates laugh! Improv should be fun, and in this workshop we’ll explore pushing fun to its fullest potential. You will learn how to invest in your own sense of humor, hone in on specifics and idiosyncrasies, and how to approach improv as a form of play. Be ready to go silly mode, and cure the common cold.
Performing Narrative Improv
Help Me I’m Drowning
3:00PM - 5:30PM
In this workshop, we’ll explore the craft of longform narrative improv, with a focus on using genre-based tropes and simple story structure as a foundation for developing strong characters and scenework, building dynamic relationships, and spinning a plot that is easy to understand yet hilariously engaging for the audience.
Improvisers will leave this workshop with the tools they need to confidently tell an interesting, coherent, and – above all – funny story over the course of an hour-long improv show.