Have fun learning the art of comedy!

LEVEL 1 PRACTICE MODE is an official Arcade Academy improv practice group. This two-hour weekly practice is an opportunity for new improv students to review the games and principles found in our IMPROV 101: Foundations class before they move on to our IMPROV 102: Scenework class in Session 3. This practice group is also a fun option for any improviser looking to get back to basics, work with a new coach, or meet and play with new community members and Arcade Academy students! LEVEL 1 PRACTICE MODE will be coached by Alyssa Tomasella.

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Have you ever wanted to try stand-up comedy but weren’t sure where to start? This class is for you! You’ll learn exercises, tools, and techniques for generating ideas and writing jokes. This class explores the wide variety of styles of stand-up, extracting lessons that can be incorporated into your act in a supportive and fun environment. As you prepare your act and learn how to analyze and improve your performance, you’ll cover on-stage mechanics and comedy community etiquette. After discovering and developing your personal comedy voice, this eight-week course culminates in a class show

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This eight-week course focuses on one of the most critical elements of great improv comedy, which is scenework. And trusting yourself, as well as your scene partner, is the first step. Building on the skills learned in IMPROV 101: Foundations, you’ll focus on starting scenes with decisive initiations and confident stage presence. Concepts like agreement and group mind will be taken to the next level as you explore character development and emotional investment within games and scenes. IMPROV 102: Scenework concludes with a class show where you’ll get the chance to show off your newfound skills in building strong comedic scenes.

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Whether you’re a beginner looking to explore improv comedy for the first time, an adventurer looking for new skills to acquire, or someone just looking to get out of their own head, this class is for you! Learning new skills through improvisational comedy games & exercises, you’ll focus on agreement and extension (“Yes, And”), group mind, give and take, and basic environment and object work in a supportive, playful environment. IMPROV 101: Foundations culminates with a class show performance for your friends and family!

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This eight week advanced comedy course is a brand new offering from Arcade Academy! ACCENTS AND DIALECTS (UK) is the first in a series of accent and dialect technique classes starting with voices from the United Kingdom. Improv comedy students and sketch comedy actors will learn the fundamentals of voice and speech from four distinct UK regions: Standard British (Received Pronunciation), Traditional London or East End (Cockney), Irish, and Scottish. Students will have the opportunity to work on both scripted and unscripted scenes and monologues that highlight these unique vocal performance styles. ACCENTS + DIALECTS (UK) culminates in a class show filled with long form improv, short form improv, and scripted comedy, all with a UK twist.

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Have you ever wanted to try writing sketch comedy but weren’t sure how to start? Whether you’re a beginning writer, a seasoned writer looking to learn a new form, or just want to refocus your writing in an encouraging, collaborative atmosphere, this class is for you. SKETCH 101 focuses on the fundamentals of sketch writing, including idea generation, brainstorming, comic premises and sketch structure. On the last night of class, students will work with a sketch comedy director as their new sketches are performed by a cast of local actors and comedians. We recommend you bring a notebook or laptop for in-class exercises and writing assignments.

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This six-week advanced comedy course is a brand new offering from Arcade Academy! ORGANIC IMPROV is a thrilling performance style that allows you to invent less, surprise yourself more, and get big belly laughs from the audience. This class will help advanced improvisers focus less on pulling premise from an opening and more on being deeply in-tune with other players in the moment. ORGANIC IMPROV will teach you how to better trust your own intuition, find inspiration on the stage, and get reps utilizing the organic style scenes. This course will culminate in a class show hosted by instructor Brian Gray.

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This eight-week advanced comedy course is a brand new offering from Arcade Academy! Based on the popularity of our five-week CHARACTER WORK class, our new ADVANCED CHARACTER WORK challenges you to stretch your creativity even further. In addition to learning more character-creation techniques, you’ll get to combine your own original scripted and unscripted character material into a unique character showcase. This class will include a work-in-progress night where you’ll perform for a small invited audience and receive instructor feedback on your work, as well as a final class show open to the public, both hosted by instructor Sara Kantner.

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This eight-week course focuses on The Harold, the gold standard of improvisational storytelling. The Harold provides improvisors an opportunity to learn and practice all the basic building blocks commonly used in long-form improv: openings, edits, games, group scenes, and callbacks. This class will give you the tools to forge group mind and build a spontaneous and evocative piece of improvised theater, and culminates in a class show hosted by instructor Greg Gillotti.

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This eight-week course focuses on one of the most critical elements of great improv comedy, which is scenework. And trusting yourself, as well as your scene partner, is the first step. Building on the skills learned in IMPROV 101: Foundations, you’ll focus on starting scenes with decisive initiations and confident stage presence. Concepts like agreement and group mind will be taken to the next level as you explore character development and emotional investment within games and scenes. IMPROV 102: Scenework concludes with a class show where you’ll get the chance to show off your newfound skills in building strong comedic scenes.

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This six-week comedy course is a brand new offering from Arcade Academy! Have you ever wanted to create a character and operate a puppet in your sketch, stand-up, or improv comedy show? Maybe you want to know what it feels like to be a human sharing a scene with a puppet? The new Sunday evening class EVERYBODY LOVES PUPPETS is the place for you! You’ll recieve information on the fundamentals of mouth and hand synchronization, puppet design and manipulation using a variety of materials, as well as character creation and performance styles. This course will culminate in a class show hosted by instructor Frank McDade.

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