Harold Class, Week 3 (11/2/22) and 4 (11/9/22) Recaps

Hey Spread! Please see below for a Week 3 and 4 recap.

Week 3

Our main focus in Week 3 was continuing to work on second beats. We focused specifically on how we can walk on, tag, or do a tag run in the second beats. We also worked on these skills in general.

Walk Ons

Walk ons should be used to heighten a game or to give context / clarity to a scene.

Generally, when someone walks on, they should join “team fool” (the unusual character) or “team voice of reason.” It’s often more fun to join team fool, but that’s not a hard and fast rule and either option works.

For example, if there’s a scene between characters and one character is microwaving fish in the break room and the other character is say that’s gross and asking that they not do that, someone might walk on and choose to love the smell of microwaved fish. They’re joining team fool. Even a quick walk on and off (also known as a Canadian cross) saying “wow, Jerry, microwaved salmon again?! It smells incredible!” then walking off is great. (Maybe we see multiple walk ons expressing this same thing. Or microwaving fish themselves.)

The most important thing for walk ons is that they continue to help play and heighten the game. The focus should still be on the improvisers who started the scene and are playing their game, with the walk ons supporting this and making it more absurd.

Alternatively, if the two improvisers who started the scene are peas in a pod absurd characters, then a walk on might be a voice of reason or setting the context to highlight what’s unusual (again, they may even do this quickly then walk off).

Tags

When we tag, we have two options: (1) a quick tag and then going back to the original scene or (2) a tag run (which should be 3 (or more) tags). Once someone is tagged out, they should be on the side ready to tag back in if the rest of the team doesn’t start a tag run.

Tags should be used to play a character’s game in another context. Same game, new setting.

We can do a quick tag to see a character in another setting then go back to the original scene.

Tag Runs

Remember: rule of threes. If there are two tags, always do a third. Each should heighten the stakes/game. We must play the same game in all the tags; we shouldn’t switch games halfway through.

If in the original scene there is someone who is ignoring a fire alarm while he is in school, we might label the game as being that the character is too chill and doesn’t respond to dangerous situations as they should.

Perhaps the first tag might be the too-chill character crossing a street leisurely when the light is about to change and the cars are about to come at them. The second tag should heighten, perhaps the too-chill character in a bull fight ring and they are not scared of the bull or even moving out of the way of the bull. The third tag might be the too-chill character being abducted by aliens and being super chill about it.

Note: other tags could be in there before that last alien abduction tag. If we’re having fun and want to do more, maybe there’s a tag where a house is on fire and the firefighter is telling the too-chill character to leave and he still doesn’t.

Final Thoughts

Good job working on second beats, tags, and walk ons! Tags, tag runs, walk ons, and side support are all great to help heighten and play game in the second beats.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Week 4

This week we focused on (verbal) group games and running a set in order to prepare you for your first show (where you all DID AN ENTIRE HAROLD, which is stupidly impressive).

Group Games

There are two main categories of group games: (1) verbal initiation group games and (2) nonverbal initiation group games. This week we focused solely on verbal initiation group games.

As we discussed, the key to group games is hardcore agreement and jumping on patterns early. Group games are 90% “yes” and 10% “and.” Follow simple patterns, no need to make it complicated. (Remember “The Game We’ve Always Played”; you might not know what’s happening initially, but support each other hardcore and find and follow patterns to play.)

Group games are the part of the show that can serve as a palate cleanser. Have fun with your team. Have a blast being ridiculous. Do this by hardcore agreement and jumping on patterns quickly and just playing with those simple patterns. Group games are also a chance to raise the energy of the show if you feel it’s needed.

In a Harold, oftentimes the group games are pulled directly from the suggestion. So, for example, if your suggestion was “pizza,” you might do a group game directly related to pizza. Maybe you initiate an “all at once” group game (discussed below) with “all us pizza toppings want better treatment!” or an inanimate object monologue group game (discussed below) with “I am pepperoni and I’m popular because you simply can’t beat the classics” or with a eulogy group game (discussed below) with “here lies pizza,” or any other number of group games.

As a reminder, group games should have a maximum of two points of view. Your options for group games, regarding point of view, is to:

• (1) have one shared point of view and everyone is similar and mirroring one another (though you can have different ideas, they will be in the same vein (for example, if we are all bringing gross food to a buffet, then one person can offer their own gross food that they bring, but you know you will also be bringing a gross food)),
• (2) have two points of view where it’s all against one (this is usually the most fun with all unusual/absurd characters against the voice of reason, but you can also play it as all voice of reasons against the unusual character), or
• (3) have two points of view but not all against one. This can be half and half or any other combination.

Group games are usually ~1–1.5 minutes long. Have fun, agree, find and play the pattern, then get out. Better to end on a high note than let it linger and lose energy. Better to edit too early. Also, if you blow out the fun thing in the scene super quickly and it feels called for, the scene can be 10 seconds long.

The first group game and the second group game in the Harold are not related to one another. They are not like the first beat and second beat, which are connected via analogous, time dash, or tangential second beats. The group games do not relate to one another.

Verbal Initiation Group Games

In general, there are two types of verbal initiation group games: (1) “all at once” or (2) “add on.”

All At Once Group Games

“All at once” group games means everyone on the team is on stage and starts together on stage in the group game. Once someone initiates, everyone steps out to play the game.

Some examples of all at once initiations: “gentlemen, we need to discuss ideas for the work holiday party” or “we are protesting the destruction of this wildlife preservation and we’re not leaving until you agree to preserve it!”

Some types of group games that fall into the “all at once” category include “everyone get in here” group games and eulogy group games.

Add On Group Games

“Add on” group games are when one or two improvisers start on stage and the team joins them usually one by one from off stage until the entire team is also on stage with them.

Some examples of add on initiations: “I wonder who the next guest will be at this party; the wrong people always seem to show up” or “if you’ll take a seat Mr. Smith, we need to plan the company holiday party.”

Inanimate object monologues are an example of add on group games.

Eulogy Group Game

The eulogy group game is when someone initiates with “here lies [insert word here (it may be the suggestion)].” The entire team then assembles in a half circle downstage as if they are addressing the coffin containing this inanimate object (or even abstract concept). This will never be a human. It might be “here lies pizza,” or “here lies sports,” or “here lies education.” From there, the rest of the team then each gives a line relating to the object/concept that is being eulogized. These lines do not need to be related. If someone names the object as something from their childhood, it does not have to be that for you as well. Some examples of what one might say for “here lies pizza” might include “you will never be forgotten, I still can’t get your grease stains out of my white blouse,” or “I’ll miss finding your crumbs in my bed.” If we find a pattern, great, jump on it. But we don’t always easily find patterns in this type of group game.

If possible, match each other in tone and use that as a theme throughout the eulogy. You all did excellent at this!

Everyone Get In Here Group Game

As we discussed, these do not need to be initiated by literally saying “all astronauts get in here!” You can initiate with anything that indicates that everyone should join you in the scene and indicating what you all as a group are. For example: “us chickens want bigger cages on this farm!”

These group games often go one of two ways.

One way is that there might be that the initiator is more or less “directing” the scene. They are often the voice of reason or odd person out in a way. Someone might initiate with “models get in here!” (or something along those lines) and then everyone became models and we discussed the models’ diets with the models following one belief and the initiator following another belief.

The second way to play everyone get in here group games is to have there be no director. We are all equal and no one is directing. I love watching these.

An example of this could be if everyone becomes doctors and keeps chiming in calling each other “doctor” while working around an operating table (which was insane and hilarious to see eleven doctors around ONE operating table trying to do their job) and then periodically calling out “scalpel” and while others rush to hand over their scalpels. Great, we’re all just being doctors trying to operate around one operating table and clearly being incompetent/inefficient because we don’t know what doctor is being referred to/called on and we’re passing around scalpels constantly. I know sometimes there is an impulse to be the voice of reason (in general in improv, a good instinct) mid-scene and call out that this was an Operation game and that the patient is flatlining; here, I encourage people to all mirror and hold those ideas in their heads as a button or final line in the scene. How funny is it to see this whole scene of doctors on the same page and then the button being “aw, well the patient flatlined… onto the next!” or “this game of Operation got way to intense!” Edit. Have fun being these hilariously inefficient doctors together. Squeeze every ounce of fun out of playing this crazy thing together.

Inanimate Object Monologue

Inanimate Object Monologues are “add on” group games. One person steps forward with a clear initiation of what they are and their point of view. For example, “I am a Babe Ruth candy bar and I’m so important they named a baseball player after me.” Then another improviser steps forward with an object in the same category and a point of view that follows what they think the pattern is. For example “I am a Milkyway and I’m so important that they named an entire part of space after me.” Then the third improviser steps out and says their line, which solidifies the pattern. For example, “I am a Snicker and I’m so important they named a type of laugh after me.” Great, we know we’re all going to be candy and that we’re going to say why we think we’re important.

If we run out of ideas for objects/items in the category try to slightly expand the category (after everyone else who has thought of one has gone). For example, if it starts as candy bars, then move more broadly to candy, then to desserts, then to foods, etc.

Final Thoughts

Great job! This is hard stuff. The Harold is a beast to learn and you’re all doing great. I’m proud of the work you’ve done so far and I look forward to the weeks ahead. As always, if you have any questions, please reach out to me.