The Painhole
(note: Archived Painhole essays can be found at the bottom of this
page)
How Yinz Doin'?
As usual, some notes to begin:
Well enough ass-kissing. On to the HOLE (I've secretly always wanted to slip that combination of words by some folks without them realizing my incredibly sick undertines!)......
In my continuing series about the finer points of improving, I am striving to show each of you how to make your experience on stage a really enjoyable experience. Some of you are starting to figure out that improving really isn't as easy as it looks. Its kind of like figure skating or gymnastics, only it isn't done on ice or in a gym, it doesn't require amazing athletic ability (as evidenced by the stunning array of body shapes the men of improvs display), and it doesn't delay the onset of puberty among its pre-pubescent participants (Hey, that's an onomatopoeia! Cool!). But it is hard and it requires a lot of attention to detail and practice (I only wish it required short skating skirts or tight body-suits). So this week, we are going to speak of the triple lutz of improving: creating a character.
FIRST: WHY IS IT SO DAMN IMPORTANT?
Being able to create a character is vital to your becoming a better improver. It is also very hard. Its kind of like when they said to me that passing the bar exam was vital to my becoming a lawyer but its pretty damn near impossible. Well I passed the bar. I am a lawyer. I have a license and everything. Don't laugh. I'm serious. I could get you out of jail and stuff. Straight up dude. Quit laughing, man. How would you like it if I came into your house and laughed at what you do. Don't think I don't know you stand naked in front of you mirror and do nude oiled-up pose downs against nobody while the musak version of Muskrat Love is blaring through your boombox with the slide out turntable. Oh wait. That's me. Sorry. I should really erase that but come on, you have to admit its a pretty interesting way to wind down from a tough day at the office (Plus, you're a little turned on. Aren't ya? Come on! You are. Ok be that way.). Anyway, what the hell was I talking about? Oh yeah creating a character. You might think that all of that crap I just said was just me being silly, but guess what. I fooled you. I just created a character. Tell me you wouldn't want to see a scene about a mild-mannered attorney by day and a stark-raving nut at night. It would be pretty funny. and that's the point. Characters make an improv scene go from pretty funny to brilliant. Instead of just some normal person up on stage spouting one-liners, you actually create the potential for a truly hysterical scene when you add the comedic potential of a wacky character. Plus it is vital to playing certain games to be able to create a character (see: Surprise Party, Poets, Story Telling, Panel of Experts, Story Die, and probably several others that I can't think of). It is just as vital, though, for you to be able to create a character in a game that doesn't necessarily call for it (like Freeze, World's Worst, Emotion Game, Genre Jump, and other scene games) because you will find that a character will hold the audience's interest a lot longer than you as yourself. And it will be funnier. Guaranteed.
SO HOW IN THE NAME OF CHARLES NELSON RILEY (LORD OF THE MATCH GAME) AM I SUPPOSED TO DO IT?
1. Here's what I do. First I find a kind of person that I am pretty good at playing (in my case a little kid or a dumb guy). Next I study the mannerisms of that kind of person. We all know them. Watch them. If you're trying to play dumb, watch a dumb person for a while. How do they carry themselves physically? How do they walk? What kinds of facial expressions do they make? How is their posture? Do they cock their head to one side when trying to understand something (as if sliding their brain over a couple of degrees to the right or left might connect a couple of missing synapses)? Now take what you have observed and study yourself in the mirror for a while and try to imitate that person's mannerisms for a while (a hint: don't do this with your roommate around or in the nude with your favorite Captain and Tenile CD playing. It could cause some mental discomfort). Now when you've got that down, work on the voice. How does that person talk? Does he/she make every statement into a question by stressing the last few words of every sentence? Do they lisp? Do they have an accent? Is their voice high or low-pitched? Now when you've got that down, make your character funny. How do you do this? I don't really know. A good hint though, is to do a little secret I do. Take everything you know and expect about the kind of person you would expect your character would be and turn it around 180 degrees. If you are playing a little kid, make him/her really worldly and use a lot of big words. If you are playing a dummy, give him/her the ability to get out of a tough spot or mentally challenging situation better than any smart person would be able to. The element of an unexpected character twist always has huge potential for comedic situations. If all of this seems really hard read on.
2. Another way to create a good character is simply to use an accent.
Using an accent well automatically calls to the audience's minds everything
they know (or think they know) about the kind of person who talks like that.
Now use what I mentioned above about turning the stereotypical expectations
of the audiece around on them. Do the unexpected. ie If you are playing
a Frenchman, be really nice to tourists. That kind of thing. Using an accent,
though, automatically gives the person you are playing some depth to the
audience. If you can't do accents, try an interesting physical quirk. Make
yourself pigeon-toed. Walk with a limp. Slack your jaw. Just do something
to let the audience know that you are putting out some serious effort to
keep them watching because they'll never know what you'll do or who you'll
be next.
If all of this seems really hard and confusing, good. Now you are starting to get the fact that improving is an art form that takes skill, patience, and a lot of work. You won't be great until you start to work on the little things. So lets make it a challenge. Lets see some folks really trying to do some characters this week. I'll be watching (like always).
Comments or questions? As usual, you can write directly to me by clicking
on my name or you can post a message in the HOT RIM. If you write to me,
though, I'll write back.
I'm going to go stare
in the mirror for a
while now so if you
hear some bad
seventies music ignore it,
Ben
Producer
FNI
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