I’m still trying to get my starting a scene toolkit down to the shortest, most effective advice possible. This is my latest attempt. I’m calling it the five:two protocol because it makes it sounds like something you’d find in a New York Times Bestseller about business.

  1. Start in the middle of scenes, when the action is already in full swing, and KNOW each other. BONUS points if you not only know each other but have a point of view about them. And DOUBLE BONUS POINTS if that POV is emotional - you love them, you want to be them, you are suspicious of them etc.
  2. Stay in the present moment as much as possible. Don’t get pulled into the future - this means going into admin/ planning mode and it kills scenes. The exception to this rule is stating a want or dream - as long as this isn’t about the logistics of doing it then it merely reveals something about your character in the present. Similarly, if you stray into the past then have that reveal something about your character too. If the past/ future becomes all you are talking about - jump into a flashback/ leap forwards and make it the present.
  3. Make assumptions. In improv, almost every question can be rephrased as a (more useful) statement. Do this by making assumptions. Assumptions are bad in real life but in improv they are the building blocks of a scene. An assumption almost immediately gets transfigured into a fact because there is no objective reality in improv scenes. Therefore wild assumptions (as long as your partner accepts and builds on them) are incredibly useful (and help you avoid questions).
  4. You don’t need to know what a scene is about to start - ideally go on with an intention, an otherwise blank mind and a simple curiosity about your partner. If you’re pulling from a suggestion, know that the whole scene doesn’t have to revolve around that thing. For instance fire can mean warmth, destruction, light in the darkness, a place to tell stories, the family hearth, home, someone who is doing great etc. Use it to find your intention. You don’t need to physically set everything on fire immediately.
  5. Don’t try and fix it. If a character is acting in a heightened manner - they are angry, worried, buzzing etc - don’t try and calm them down or level them off - that’s going to leave your scene partner with nothing to play. Try and help (you want to still bring humanity to the stage after all ) but in trying to help, ultimately make it worse.

Finally and most important than any of the first five are these two:

  1. Have fun. If nothing else, strive to delight your scene partner (first), the audience (second) and yourself (third). That order isn’t set in stone (except maybe scene partner first) but the main thing is have the best time. Everything else is secondary to being playful and delighted in your scene work.
  2. Keep going. Know that all this stuff becomes automatic over time. And I mean a long time, like 20-30 years. My best advice is to focus on ONE thing that you’re going to try and do in a show. And give yourself props if you do it. Don’t attempt to do everything perfectly, that will be a disaster. Give yourself the gift of a single focus for the show. I’m going to be present OR I’m going to have a POV OR I’m going to start in the middle of scenes. That is MORE than enough.

<aside> 💡 Hey, my name’s Chris Mead. I write an article about improv almost every week. You can get the latest in your inbox by subscribing to my newsletter. Or check out the archive.

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