Learn. Grow. Do Improv.

VIIF is proud to present workshops in improvisation from some of the best instructors that the improv world has to offer. Workshops will take place Saturday, October 1 and Sunday, October 2 at Performance Works (Charna) the Instant Shop (all others) and are available as a package only. There is a 15 person maximum to the workshops, and they do sell out, so don’t delay!

It’s only $129 for all four workshops!

SOLD OUT! SORRY.

To be added to our waiting list, click here.

*Please note that the paid workshops are for improvisers with some performance experience (that is, shows, not just a backyard make–em–up). If you have minimal performance experience, please consider our FREE public workshop. If you are unsure whether your experience is sufficient, please send an email to Alistair Cook at vancouverimprovfest@gmail.com BEFORE buying your workshop package. Thank you.

Masterclass with Charna Halpern
Saturday, October 1, 10:30am – 12:30pm
Performance Works

A unique and rare opportunity to work with one of the most celebrated and well-known improv directors in the world.

Charna Halpern is a co-founder of the ImprovOlympic, now known as The iO. She was born and raised on the North Side of Chicago. In 1984, with partner Del Close, she began teaching The Harold to many students in the Chicago theatre community. She and Close co-authored the book Truth in Comedy: The Manual of Improvisationwith editor Kim “Howard” Johnson in 1994.

Charna Halpern has been teaching performers how to work together for more than 25 years. Halpern’s theaters are the meccas of training in the art of improvisation and act as a recruiting stop for television shows like Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, The Daily Show, The Colbert Report and MADtv, supplying Hollywood with writers and performers. She is also the author of the improv training manual Art By Committee.

Improvise Naked with Annie and Levin (Now)
Saturday, October 1, 2pm – 5pm
Instant Shop

You look uncomfortable. Let’s get you out of all those itchy improv rules and into something less confining. Oh wow, you have a really beautiful body. You should really think about maybe wearing… nothing at all…

Find yourself on the sides stuck in your head? Know you need to edit and start a scene but you don’t know what to do? Find yourself struggling to be on the same page with your scene partner? In two hours we will help you to put the playfulness, spontaneity, fearlessness and inspiration back into you work. No matter what form you are doing or your experience level this workshop will help you. Set yourself free and play like a hippie in a field!

Annie and Levin met in 2005 as cast members of the iO West house team The Jungle and quickly recognized in each other a deep passion for improv. They spent the next five years performing together in a variety of shows including the Del Close Award winning USS Rock N Roll, teaching classes, workshops and challenging each other to grow as performers, teachers, coaches and people. These days they are touring the nation with their show Now? and teaching workshops at theaters, festivals and schools from coast to coast.

Organic Connections with Keisha and Sasheer (Doppelganger)
Sunday, October 1, 11am – 1pm
Instant Shop

Keisha and Sasheer will teach you how to organically connect with your scene partner (the Doppelganger way). Using a free form structure, you will learn how to flow from one scene to the next, changing worlds while remaining on the same page.

Sasheer Zamata and Keisha Zollar are 2/3 of the powerhouse group Doppelganger. The group met and trained at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York City. They have been a part of a plethora of festivals throughout the US and Canada, and now have a weekly run at UCB.

Improv to Sketch to Web with Andrew Bush (Picnicface)
Sunday, October 2, 2pm – 5pm
Instant Shop

There is no hard and fast rule on how to make sketch comedy, but in this course, Andrew Bush will try and impart what he’s learned over the past few years shooting and editing Picnicface’s videos. Participants will learn how to take scenes they have improvised and rework them into a sketch format. They’ll also work on pre existing sketch premises and improvise around them with the ultimate goal of making the scene work in front of a camera. Shooting an improvised scene, basic lighting and editing techniques will also be covered. Think of it as a crash course on how to take what you do on stage and put it in a camera.

Andrew Bush is a Halifax based writer/actor/director. He’s written for THIS HOUR HAS 22 MINUTES, STREET CENTS, ROBSON ARMS and CANADIAN IDOL. As an actor he’s performed on MADE IN CANADA, REGENISIS, and the THE DRUNK AND ON DRUGS HAPPY FUNTIME HOUR. His latest project is the feature film, Roller Town, which he directed and co-wrote and should see a theatrical release sometime in the fall of 2011. Andrew also plays too many video games.

SOLD OUT! SORRY.

FREE! INTRO TO IMPROV WORKSHOP
SATURDAY, October 1

11am-1pm
Instant Shop

Always wanted to learn improvisational theatre? Now’s your chance! Join veteran improviser Kaitlin Fontana for a two hour workshop exploring the basics of improv. Sign up at the VIIF Box Office. Spots limited! Sign up soon!