Where are we?

Improv Encyclopedia Home Page

Improv Encyclopedia Home Page

Welcome to the Improv Encyclopedia! Here you will find tons of stuff related to improvisation theatre. Look for improv games, handles, concentration exercises, drama techniques, character exercises, warm-ups, long form Improv formats, improvised show formats, tips for improv workshops and much more.

If you came here from another page on the site that had a totally different layout, please note that the whole site had a major upgrade on August 28; the page you came from was probably an old page from a previous version. We intend to keep our old pages alive for a while, as hundreds of other sites link to these pages and we do not want to break these links. If you link to Improv Encyclopedia please update your links.

What's New?

• 30 September 2004 - 1.4.3 - New section added: Music : in this section we'll post free downloadable midi files and piano sheet music for improv musicians. Check back in the next couple of days as we'll be adding tons of stuff there.
• 29 September 2004 - 1.4.2 - New book added: Musical Improv Comedy. Also, parts of the site were down yesterday due to a quirk at our ISP. We were not amused.
• 28 September 2004 - 1.4.1 - Bug fix in the game index; some links referred to the old site. Also fixed bunch of style sheet errors.
• 28 August 2004 - 1.4.0 - Major overhaul of the site. We now have over 400 games and a comprehensive Glossary section. We also feature ads now to support the site. Our pdf version has not been updated yet - check back in a week or 2 for that.
• 04 May 2004 - 1.3.11 - More games! More fortunes!
• 26 March 2004 - 1.3.10 - More stuff in general.
• 04 December 2003 - 1.3.9 - More stuff, mainly in Look and Listen as well as more links.
• 17 October 2003 - 1.3.8 - More stuff, more links.
• 3 June 2003 - 1.3.7 - More stuff, mainly in the Long Form section.
• 10 May 2003 - 1.3.6 - More stuff, more links, more typos fixed.
• 6 May 2003 - 1.3.5 - More stuff. More links. Split the Ask-for page in 2 pages so it is complete again and renders correctly in the pdf version.

This site is organized in 4 large chunks:

• Games : a collection of improv games, handles, exercises and warm-ups. Each of these belongs in one or more Categories . On the games pages you will find a list of all games, with a link to each game.
• Some games are known by different names. Hence, the games page also provides a list of synonyms for game names.
• You will find a page for each game. If known, the origin of the game is provided. Next to each game description you will find a list of all categories the game is listed in.
• Categories : categories for games, handles, exercises and warm-ups. Most games are in more than one category, so the whole is a big spiderweb of references. On the categories page you will find links to all categories.
• For each category, a short description is given, along with the list of all games in that category.
• Glossary : this is a list of improv terms and basic concepts. These are referenced in the game/category descriptions.
• References : this is a list of interesting/useful people, troupes, books, articles, websites and other stuff that did not fit anywhere else. Most of these are referred to in the game/category descriptions.

The whole Improv Encyclopedia consists of about 500 html pages. If you'd like to download a copy of the whole encyclopedia, go to the download page. If you want to know how this site was built, check out the FAQ page. You can even download all the sources used to build this site.

Feel free to report any mistakes, omissions, additions, comments or kudos here . Enjoy!

A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are built for. --- Admiral Grace Murray Hopper