Using people you know to create characters

• Two improvisers should take the stage.
• Each improviser should take on the mannerisms of someone they know well. Specifically, they should think about how this person moves, behaves, etc. Focus on using behavior, not biographical history, as the inspiration for each character. The improvisers should then say a few lines of dialogue in character to the rest of the group in order to display their character choices.
• Next, the improvisers will get a one-word suggestion from someone else in the group to inspire a scene using these characters. Biographical information from the real person’s life should not complicate the scene. For example, if the character in the scene is labeled a doctor, it should not be a point of confusion if the person inspiring this character is not a doctor in real life.
  While the improvisers will start the scene with characters, they will still have to define the relationship between the characters to fully establish the Who of the scene. Note that one of the two specific characters can still function as a straight man in this scene, even though the improviser may be behaving very differently from his or her true self.

Purpose