Charna Halpern

The content itself was really good - quite helpful. I didn't care so much for the actual delivery, however. I am *not* a fan of SNL, and don't really see the 'genius' of Chris Farley and other SNL cast members (maybe in improv he was better? Definitely what I've seen of Tina Fey doing improv vs. sketch comedy supports that possibility). So in that sense it felt like a great offering at the altar of Lorne Michaels. And that name dropping really detracted from the experience of the book such that I found myself having to just remind myself of the value of the content even when the examples of *why* the content was good had just the opposite effect on me.… (mehr)

This book lays out the various improv concepts of Second City and ImprovOlympic (IO Theater) and describes the synthesis of the long form format "the Harold".

It lays out the principal concepts of improv scene work and lays the stage for concepts to build on top of one another for comedic performance.

There is a good amount of praise for the author's teachings from various Hollywood comics including SNL cast members Mike Myers, Chris Farley and Tina Fey. The book being 15 years old means some of the anecdotes are a bit dated, but the principles laid out remain staples of improv teachings to this day.

There is also a good deal of discussion of improv guru / legend / zen master Del Close. For those who do not know the name, he is a legend Chicago improv, and by extension, the UCB, who branched out to NYC and LA. While many people don't know him, they know many of his students.

The book (not unlike this review) lacks a bit of focus, but (unlike this review) is enjoyable to read. It's got a good pace and I learned a lot reading it. I'll definitely go back to this often.… (mehr)