IN-PERSON
Improv 1: Intro | Advanced-Level | Retreat
ONLINE
Improv 1: Intro | Improv II: Art of Improv | Combo: Improv I & 2 | Improv III: Scenes | Improv IV: Theater | Master Classes
IN-PERSON CLASSES ARE BACK AND OUR ONLINE CLASSES ARE HERE TO STAY
Synergy Theater’s School of Improvisation provides world-class training and education in the art of improvisational theater. Our classes are taught by Synergy Theater company members including Artistic Director Kenn Adams, author of the book How to Improvise a Full-Length Play: The Art of Spontaneous Theater. With a full progression of classes, we have something for everyone. So, whether you’re looking for a friendly place to have some fun or a professional training program with an eye towards performance, Synergy Theater’s School of Improvisation is the place for you.
All class times are listed in USA Pacific Time.
IN-PERSON ADVANCED-LEVEL: WELCOME BACK!
Welcome back to in-person improv classes!
In this advanced-level class, we’ll dive deep into the necessary skills of the Improviser (with a capital I): improvisation, acting, directing and playwriting. Then, we’ll put it all together as we introduce various short, mid and long-form performance structures. We’ll focus on tapping into our “core spontaneity”, intense partner connection via the Meisner acting technique, complete character development and truthful emotions. This is the class that will empower you to stop “doing improv” and start improvising theater! Classes take place at Shotgun Studios, 1201 University Avenue, Berkeley CA.
Instructors: Kenn Adams / $250 for 6 3-hour classes / Proof of vaccination required, two shots plus the booster!
IMPROV I: INTRO TO IMPROV
IMPROV I is offered both in-person and online! Get creative, make new friends, and have a blast with Synergy Theater’s introductory improv class. You’ll learn our Three Rules of Improvisation—be spontaneous, make your partner look good, and build on your partner’s idea—and, in no time flat, you’ll be making up stories, creating outrageous characters and improvising your way through hysterical scenes, sagas and sketches. This class will tickle your funny bone, spark your imagination and inspire your creativity. Take it once, on your way to our next-level class, or stick around and enjoy it as long as you like!
Instructors: Arastoo Darakhshan and Griffen Davis Bier
ONLINE IMPROV I & II TOGETHER!
Get creative, make new friends, and just have a blast with Synergy Theater’s introductory improv class. You’ll learn our patented Three Rules of Improvisation – be spontaneous, make your partner look good, and build on your partner’s idea – and, in no time flat, you’ll be making up stories, creating outrageous characters and improvising your way through hysterical scenes, sagas and sketches. Through a fun and exciting series of theater-games, improv exercises and classic “short-form” scene-structures, this class will tickle your funny bone, spark your imagination and inspire your creativity.
In the second half of class, we explore improvisation as more than just a means for personal growth, a social activity, or a tool for the actor. We explore improvisation as a performing art; the art of spontaneous theater. We continue to deepen and expand our application of the Three Rules of Improvisation. Plus, we begin to focus on the basics of acting such as diction, vocal projection, stage presence and stagecraft; the basics of directing such as stage movement and visual storytelling, and the basics of playwriting such as scene structure and story structure.
Instructors: Griffen Davis Bier, Arastoo Darakhshan / $150 for six 3-hour classes
ONLINE IMPROV II: THE ART OF IMPROVISATION
At the very least, you are an improviser, actor, director and playwright. In IMPROV II, we explore improvisation as more than just a means for personal growth, a social activity, or a tool for the actor. We explore improvisation as a performing art; the art of spontaneous theater. We continue to deepen and expand our application of the Three Rules of Improvisation: be spontaneous, make your partner look good and build on your partner’s idea. Plus, we focus on the basics of acting: diction, vocal projection, stage presence and stagecraft; the basics of stage movement and visual storytelling, and of playwriting such as scene structure and story structure. For those who have taken and enjoyed IMPROV I and are ready for something more.
Instructors: Griffen Davis Bier, Arastoo Darakhshan / $80 for six 90-min classes
ONLINE IMPROV III: SCENE STUDY
The heart of improvisation is the solid, two-person scene. What Synergy Theater refers to as the “substantial scene.” In IMPROV III we break it apart and rebuild it from the bottom up. We focus on:
- Scene structure
- Building and using the environment
- Character development
- Character relationship
The work in this class comes directly from Artistic Director Kenn Adams’ book, How to Improvise a Full-Length Play: The Art of Spontaneous Theater.
For those with an eye towards performance, this class is an invaluable next step.
Instructor: Kenn Adams / $150 for six 2-hour classes
ONLINE IMPROV IV: IMPROVISING THEATER
In this advanced-level class, we’ll dive deep into the necessary skills of the Improviser (with a capital I): improvisation, acting, directing and playwriting. Then, we’ll put it all together as we introduce various mid and long-form performance structures such as The Harold, The Montage, and the Mono-scene. we’ll focus on:
- Tapping into our “core spontaneity” and living “in the zone”
- Intense partner connection via the Meisner acting technique
- Complete character development and truthful emotions
This is the class that will empower you to stop “doing improv” and start improvising theater.
Instructor: Kenn Adams / $150 for six 2-hour classes
ONLINE MASTER CLASSES & WORKSHOPS
AUDIO ONLY IMPROV!
Offered on Mondays at 9:00 am PT
Lean into intensive listening, heightened partner-connection, verbal character creation, descriptive scene painting, and a sharpened imagination in our brand-new Audio-Only Improv class! We turn off our videos, close our eyes and improvise fantastically vivid scenes, montages and radio-style plays. Taught by Kenn Adams, this class is limited to eight students with a minimum of one year of improvisation training or performance experience. Instructor: Kenn Adams / $200 for six 2-hour classes / 8 student max
CREATING CHARACTERS
Offered on Wednesdays at 9:00 am PT
Learn to create living, breathing three-dimensional characters with unique physicality, truthful behavior, and emotional depth; characters with a psychology, morality and world-view that guide their actions; and characters with needs that serve the story and build off the other characters in the scene. Taught by Kenn Adams, the class is limited to eight students with a minimum of one year of improvisation training or performance experience. Instructor: Kenn Adams / $200 for six 2-hour classes / 8 student max
LONGFORM TRIO
INSTRUCTOR: CAMILA FRAUSTO, OFFERED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH INTROVERTED IMPROVISER
Offered on Wednesdays at 9:00 am PT
Level up your listening, your relationships, and your heightening offers by practicing longer scene work in the gorgeous dynamic of trio. Instructor: Camila Frausto / $150 for six 2-hour classes / 6 student max
FLEX AND REPS
INSTRUCTOR: CAMILA FRAUSTO, OFFERED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH INTROVERTED IMPROVISER
Offered on Wednesdays at 11:00 am PT
If you’ve been needing to mix up your practice, are feeling a little down on your improv, or want to get back to stage warm and ready for anything, it’s time to let go! Get vulnerable with all new exercises and be inspired to find the fun in every offer. “30 Second Fart” is the new 5 Things, and “ZKQRTX” is the new montage. Small class size FOR REPS! Instructor: Camila Frausto / $140 for four 2-hour classes / 6 student max
FOGHORN!! UNAPOLOGETIC PLAY FOR WOMEN
INSTRUCTOR: CAMILA FRAUSTO, OFFERED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH INTROVERTED IMPROVISERS
Offered on Thursdays at 11:00 am PT
If you feel lost in the mist of second guessing your choices, avoiding center stage or protagonist roles, or comparing your abilities to “advanced” players, this 6 week course will help you find the confidence to blast, “Yes, I KNOW, and here’s why!” This audio-video hybrid course is designed to introduce new techniques in audio to remove performance inhibition and enhance listening, with the option to greet and play second rounds on camera. Instructor: Camila Frausto / $150 for six 2-hour classes
IMPROVISING THE HERO’S JOURNEY
Offered on Fridays at 9:00 am PT
Explore the power of myth! Based on Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey” derived from his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces, we’ll dive deep into this famous storytelling model, explore the Jungian archetypes at the heart of the stories, have a blast creating new mythologies, and apply what we learn to contemporary scenes. Instructor: Kenn Adams / $170 for five 2-hour classes / 8 student max
AWESOME IMPROV RETREAT
The point of the weekend is to have a blast while exploring the art of improvisation on a deeper level than the standard improv class allows. We’ll start with enough of the basics to make sure that everybody is on the same page and ready to move forward together. Then, we’ll dive deep into various elements of the art of improvisation. In the past, we’ve focused on large areas such as ensemble building, scene structure and deep-spontaneity, as well as more specific skills such as character development, gibberish, and spontaneous writing.
Due to Covid-19 our Fall 2020 Awesome Improv Retreat has been postponed until further notice.
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