Simple question: How do you make good improv scenes?
How do you raise the stakes and drama in your improv scenes? (And don’t forget, drama applies to comedy as well)
How do you make good scenes that aren’t just made up of actors ‘Yes Anding’ each other in a boring way. How do you take that ‘Yes And’ to the next level?
We’ve talked about how ‘Yes And’ is essential to improv, but does not necessarily create good scenes. Read that article here.
In my last article I talked about how to upgrade your storytelling by Making Something Important. Read here.
My next tip is take that ‘Something Important’ to the next level.
But first…
Drama is Not Real life
In real life, most people usually trying to avoid confrontations. There are exceptions of course, but by and large, we try to avoid ‘making scenes’. Simply put, it often our nature or first impulse to try to avoid drama in real life.
We seek stasis. We maintian balance.
Think about it this way. Someone starts crying. What’s the first thing you might say?
Maybe you say, “It’s going to be alright,” or ‘take a breath,” or “it’s not that bad” or “there are plenty of fish in the sea.”
We try to get them back to emotional stasis, back to balance.
Someone is angry. We tell them “calm down”, or “lower your voice” or “don’t take that tone with me.”
Again, our first impulse is often to try to get them back to emotional stasis and balance.
Even when someone’s too excited or happy we do this! “Settle down” or “someone’s getting too big for their britches”.
Dramatic situations tip us out of stasis. Dramatic situations upset the balance. In real life we don’t like it. But ONSTAGE or on FILM, its GOLD!
So how do you do it in improv scenes?
(Here is the video of this article on youtube for you!)
Fan the Flames
I learned this terminology from my classes at the Groundlings in Los Angeles. And I love the phrase.
The phrase is ‘Fan the Flames’.
‘Fan the Flames’ simply reminds us to help amplify whatever emotion or drama emerges instead of taking it back to stasis and balance.
The ‘flames’ are the fire caused by a negative emotion or situation.
‘Fan the Flames’ simply reminds us to help amplify whatever emotion or drama emerges instead of taking it back to stasis and balance.
Why do people fan a fire in real life?
People fan the flames of a fire to add more fuel (oxygen) to make the fire burn more brightly and to spread. That’s exactly why we fan the flames in an improv scene! To make the emotion burn more brightly, and to spread!
But it can be hard. Why?
Retrain Your Instincts
In Improv our first Instinct is to do the same thing we do in life: smooth things over, return them to stasis.
But if we do it the same way we do in real life, its BORING!
Imagine if movies had no drama. We wouldn’t watch them. What would be the point? Improv scenes are pretty much the same way.
When your scene partner gives you an offer of a heightened emotion, this is gold! So help them amplify it! MAKE IT WORSE for them.
It heightens the drama, and its FUNNY!
It requires practice and training to look for the flames to be fanning, and to fan them!
Examples of ‘Fanning the Flames
Here are some very simple examples to illustrate the point.
Example 1: Going to Stasis
PLAYER A: My wife wants a divorce.
PLAYER B: That’s ok. Don’t worry. You’ll find someone else.
Player B is ignoring and even negating the drama, and smoothing it out.
Example 2: Fanning the Flames
PLAYER A: My wife wants a divorce.
PLAYER B: Oh no! You’ll never find love again!
See the difference between these 2 examples?
We’d all prefer a friend to treat us like in example 1. But onstage, example 2 is much better. It’s dramatic. It’s more funny.
“Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames.” – Rumi
Fan the Flames = Yes Anding the Emotion
Fanning the Flames is a deeper use of ‘Yes And’.
When you’re fanning the flames, you’re ‘Yes Anding’ the emotion your scene partner has taken on . If they’re sad about something… you ‘Yes And’ that emotion by giving them more to be sad about. It’s funny and it amps up the storytelling and drama.
It may even look on the surface like you’d want to calm them down. They may even ask you to calm them down. But get some mileage out of fanning the flames first.
Example 1: “Yes Anding’ the Surface request
PLAYER A: I’m so sad about not getting the scholarship. Cheer me up.
PLAYER B: You’re so smart. You don’t need that scholarship. You’ll find another way!
Sound like a good mom consoling their child. Not terrible. But also much less dramatic and much less funny than it deserves to be.
So now let’s amp up the Fanning of the Flames. Now the ‘Yes And’ is focussed on ‘Yes Anding’ the emotion, and not the literal request of Player A to “Cheer me up”.
Example 2: ‘Yes Anding’ the emotion by fanning the flames
PLAYER A: I’m so sad about not getting the scholarship. Cheer me up.
PLAYER B: Yes, you need cheering up, your life is basically over now! You’ve based your whole life on getting that scholarship. I can’t imagine how terrible you must feel.
PLAYER A: (now sobbing) I can’t go on!
The ‘Yes And’ continues, but in support of the underlying emotional pivot point. That’s ‘Fanning the Flames’.
Fan the Flames = Make things Worse
Fanning the Flames is EASY
Just allow yourself to MAKE THINGS WORSE for your scene partner!
Making things worse often means making things more funny!
Making things worse often means making things more funny!
Try it with Us!
Here’s a short Play-Along video clip from our online improv course “Become an Improv Wizard”.
We cover this concept and many, many more along with several Play-Along videos to practice with.
In this video sample, we’ll give you a short prompt, and you play along like your our scene partner, and FAN THOSE FLAMES! Make things worse!
You’ll have 30 seconds for each response. Don’t be nice, don’t polite, really make it hurt!
If you’d like to really take it to the next level, our online improv course “Become an Improv Wizard” has many Play-Along videos, including Starting Scenes, Getting Specific, Get Emotional, Character Creating Videos, and many more.
If you want more storytelling prompts in deluxe play-along video format, check out our course “Yes And Yourself” for hours of play-along prompts for stories and practice getting specific with things.
Take Our Online Improv Course at home!
Learn, practice, and Play-Along with our revolutionary new Online Improv Training Course!
"Become an Improv Wizard" is a PROVEN STEP-BY-STEP ONLINE IMPROV COURSE to Build CONFIDENCE, UNLEASH CREATIVITY, and BECOME FEARLESS through Improvisation
Lincoln Hoppe is an actor, writer, director, and father of 5. He is the the Co-Founder of Improv Wizards training school and Online Courses and Co-Director of the Society Comedy Troupe.