Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual

by Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, Matt Walsh

The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual is a comprehensive guide to the UCB style of long form comedy improvisation. Written by UCB founding members Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, and Matt Walsh, the manual covers everything from the basics of two person scene work (with a heavy emphasis on finding "the game" of the scene), to the complexities of working within an ensemble to perform long form structures, such as "The Harold" and "The Movie". A practical "how to" book, the guide provides exercises throughout to help the reader master each new concept and technique introduced. While the manual is written to be understood by beginners with no previous exposure to improvisational comedy, experienced improvisors will find it to be an excellent resource for honing their skills, clarifying concepts, and generally taking their work to a higher level.

Genres: Comedy, Nonfiction, Humor, Theatre, Writing, Self Help, Reference

372 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Keith Moser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Took me six & a half weeks but I finally finished this... More of a review to (eventually) follow...

[This "more of a review" is being written over a year after reading the book--totally forgot to come back and write it]

Picked this book up at UCB during the Del Close Marathon last year a few weeks before it was officially released. Of course, DCM15 wasn't meant to read improv manuals, it was meant to watch a ton of improv. So I started the manual as I sat in line for shows, but didn't get far as 50+ hours of improv was too much of a distraction for me.

But I did read the novel over the next month and a half and found it interesting. I've since completed UCB 101, 201 & 301 but at the time I was in between 101 & 201. I knew about Game and the Harold and bunch of other topics taught in this Manual, but I still hadn't learned the Movie and it's always good to read and relearn the basics.

This is probably the best improv teaching book that I've read. There are great illustrations and all the basics are described with plenty of examples. Matt Besser, Matt Walsh, & Ian Roberts created a fantastic curriculum here and they don't ever get distracted with nostalgic stories of days gone by or petty arguments about which school of improv is the best. Obviously, the think the UCB style is best because it's worked for them for so long, and the present how they understand and teach it.

[Dianne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm currently learning this form through practical training so it was a good supplement to that.

A pity its poor written, repetitive and written by 3 straight, white men who wouldn't know diversity or inclusivity if it smacked them in the face with a wet fish. There's no need to include fat people jokes in your examples. Also, believe it or not, a woman can do more than play 'the problematic girlfriend.'

I feel like this book deserves a bloody good rewrite.

[Tristan Alaba · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book, really great in audiobook format, as the examples are done live. Anyone into creative practices can enjoy this - as a musician, I learnt a lot to inform music jamming, unexpectedly. Also, the idea of “the game” being the funny thing which we can make funnier could inform songwriting too.

I was already keen to do improv, now with this book as an aid, I’m willing to start an ensemble. The manual and the method is so comprehensive, it’s impressive and inspiring. I feel excited for the kinds of skills one might develop doing improv, and to build “group mind” through deep active listening, and the ethos of support, along with many mental exercises, would likely create positive habit patterns of value in daily life.

The performance of the book is mostly fun and engaging, with rotating narrators. I can’t imagine the examples only written - however as a manual I’m sure it’s worth having a written copy for practical reference, which audiobook cannot do so well. Seems best to listen, then re-read.

I enjoyed improv before, but now I’m really curious to watch more and I think I’ll get more from it - like watching a sport, then learning the rules, it probably makes more sense. The final step is being a player, which brings it all together.

The fact that UCB have codified their method feels profoundly valuable for anyone wishing to get a group going - simply send your friends this audiobook and ask them to send it to their friends, and perhaps in 3-6 months you could have a community forming, all on the same page, with the theory of a course that could probably take over a year to cover in a class. The difference is that in a class, the theory goes slow and comes in balance with practice - listening to the book is a fairly big download, but it helps to get the full picture, right to the end chapters, which talks of practice and performance tips, ensemble culture, and the long form structures which encompass a show as a coherent piece, which ideally feels written (and by this point, you understand how a long improvised piece could be funny, feel easy, and have multiple unrelated scenes that naturally come together at the end).

Probably would recommend it only to people leaning towards doing improv/theatre sports/comedy, however those merely interested or fans could certainly get something from it too. You don’t need to know anything about UCB, or long-form, or comedy really - it’s pretty much all explained, and it pretty much all makes sense.

Bravo UCB 👏

[Beau · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a comprehensive guide to the UCB style of longform improv. It's extremely informative, but it's put together in a rather dull way. It's basically a textbook which makes it feel like a chore to read over longer periods. It also feels needlessly fattened up with quite a bit of unnecessary repetition.

It does work well as an introduction for someone wanting to practice improv without taking any classes. I've been taking classes and I noticed a lot of reaffirmation of what I've been learning, which is nice. Though I feel like this book could have been way shorter and put together in a more interesting way.

[Rob Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Upright Citizens Brigade is the top improv school in America. Period. Many other great institutions have had their heyday (Second City, IO, The Groundlings), but if you want to know improv now you should study long form, and you should study with the masters. This book was years in the making and gives a detailed explanation of their take on the art. Buy it, and then, if you are lucky enough to live nearby, go take some classes and put your ego on the line. Also read Truth in Comedy and the Second City Almanac.

[Eva Rondon · Rating 4 out of 5]

listened to this. great supplement to class and performance. loved the live examples and hearing Amy Poehler’s voice ❤️ suggestion for future editions: let’s get some non-male writers in the room pls

[Fab · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book on improvisational comedy. One I’d recommend to anyone looking to reinforce what they're learning in improv classes and to better understand how to play in the UCB "game" style. Great explanation of the basics but also covers a wide range of topics related to the art form.

[Rob Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have admittedly not read a lot about improv, mainly learned from classes and performing over the past six years. I would have to say, though, that I found this to be an enjoyable, clear, and comprehensive text on how to do longform improvisation. I have heard that the UCB "style" of focus on finding games in scenes is particular to the theater and that there are alternate approaches, but I found the mechanics of UCB's style to be extremely digestible and a helpful way to frame improv. I think if I had picked this up on my first week of improvisation I would likely be a bit more skeptical of it and overwhelmed by the information, but as I read through the text over the past couple weeks I found little I disagreed with, a lot I nodded my head vigorously to, and more than a few gems of new techniques, exercises, or approaches I want to take to my improv team. There are likely other texts out there that do a good job of this, too, but I could certainly see designing a series of improv courses based on this manual and would highly recommend it to anyone trying to become a better improviser.

[Adam Lauver · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ethical Improviser

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book anesthetized me by brick

[Julie Evans]

There is nothing as magnificent as participating in improv except maybe watching it and now reading about it inspires me to continue with my improv group. This is a must read for those that find human nature as hysterical as I do.

[Alejandro Sanoja · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are doing Improv, and want to get better, you must read this book. Period.

It's a great reminder of the fundamentals and will help you figure out which are the areas/skills that you should be working on to get better. I postponed reading this because the "Manual" in the name made me think it was kind of a textbook-type book.

You'll get a LOT of exercises and ideas for drills that you can do to work on specific skills.

Flow: 4/5, sometimes it feels a bit overwhelming so it might take a 2-3 weeks to finish. It is definitely not a book that you should read in one sitting.

Actionability: 5/5, lots of specific steps and drills are recommended

Mindset: 4/5, even if you've done improv classes this will still help you think about some improv elements in a different way and solidify your grasp of the fundamentals

Some Of My Highlights:

"Improvisers are always agreeing; characters are not."

"Playing at the top of your intelligence means responding the way a real person would in a given situation."

"Ironic detachment means consciously not committing to the reality of the scene in order to get a laugh. This is also referred to as commenting."

"Commitment allows your audience to suspend disbelief and fully experience a fictional reality."

"Do not get seduced by those easy laughs and make object work the only funny aspect of your scene."

[Jagan K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely useful for anyone interested in improv formats, technique and performance.

[Akhil Jain · Rating 5 out of 5]

My learnings:

Scene setup:
• Establish base reality quickly – normal reality
• Then, Comedy starts when you find the first unusual thing in the scene
• If you want to paint blue, you cant start with a blue canvas. The base reality needs to be in contrast to the unusual thing/the interesting bit.
• Your very first sentence aka initiation should start in the middle of a scene, like “Ok, let me tie the balloons to your wrist, honey”
• Base reality should be normal and simple, if you choose having pizza in a spacerocket, then the unusual thing has to be even more heightened
• Part of Yes-And: Agree with the physical space your partner may be projecting. If he is shivering, then you also shiver acknowledging that it is cold. Not that you say its summer. OR. If they are ashing dishes, you can start drying them. Namely 3 things:
o Activity: Who are the characters
o Location: Where are they
o Environment: What are they doing


• Object work: Brings theatrics and life to the scene. It gives you chance to think about why the audience laughed and how you can further build on it, while giving audience something to watch- your character. E.g. a mechanic could go about fixing air in the 4 tyres or open the hood and check engine oil. Audience will have patience for the character.


• Games:
o Practice Talk About Something Else: When folding laundry you are unlikely talking about laundry.
o Cocktail party: Take a word like gun and 3 groups in a cocktail party. One by one they hold conversations on different types of gun, Guns & Roses, video game gun. Spotlight keep shifting time to time based on natural pauses, time lapse; picks up in the middle as if conversation had continued in a mimed way. Variation: Slowly make connection between the groups conversation
• Video tape yourself so see the authenticity of your reactions- would you have really responded to such a statement by the other character in this way in real life? Were you performing in some way?

Comedic entry
• Framing: When you find the partner has said something unusual, frame it in context and point the unusual
• You can question it in a big way if that’s what you would do in real life aka at the top of your intelligence. E.g.
o P1: “I want to jump off the ledge” P2: “No, don’t jump, why?”
o P1: Its 3am, this one night stand feels like too long. P2: What? We just finished sex.
• Status: In real-life, you would react to any situation based on your status vs other’s.
• In long form where audience shares a story and you pick interesting premises, state your premise upfront in short.
o Say this: “Ok, everybody Welcome to Names Class. Hopefully the end of this semester you can remember your own names.”
o Not this: “Ok, take your seats and I will do a roll call.”
• Yes-Anding should be done after initiation is done by Player 1 properly. Give the player 2-3 lines at least. Esp if you don’t know where he is going with it. Don’t try to butt in something interesting and unusual
• Keep logic close to reality/ If there is an elephant at your house as an initiation:
o Say: “The zoo got full, so they transferred to the zoo keeper’s house”
o Not: “A magical genie gave me.”
• Heightening the absurd is good. But explore and heighten- repeat. Instead of heighten and heighten



• View sketch comedy:
o Sat night Live
o Monty Python
o The kids in the Hall
o Mr Show
o Upright Citizens Brigade
• Character play:
o Playing a normal lifeguard is boring. Be a lifeguard who is a Vietnam vet, shouts around using terms like “tours of duty” with the urgency of a base camp on fire.
o Games:
 Take up a belief: Each player comes up and shares a belief e.g. “Never read the ending of the book first” and some one else takes this up as his character belief and plays with if this is true, what else might my character think- “Live in the moment”, “Bad at chess because he cant think 3 moves ahead.”
 Take up a physical body part to lead the body with while walking: Now think of a character who would do this. E.g. leading with head could be a toddler or an old man. Play a scene continuing with that physicality
 Take up different status:
• First all are high status
• Then people born Jan-June are high, others low.
• Then all low.
• Then 2 players do a scene – one has high, other low status. Then reverse status and do the same lines. E.g high status butler, low status president
 Inspiration from real characters around you: Play the doctor or businessman you know.

o Peas in a pod: If your partner makes a strong character choice like “I don’t need oxygen to live, whats the big deal.” You could match him and say “Ya they were making such a big deal at the party last night, breathing it in and out. Fish don’t need air, and we are superior.”

 Game: Chameleon: One player stays and mimics the character choice of other players who step in and out one by one.
• Make the absurd believable for heightening to work well:
•
 
Heightening example:
• Tag-out run: Quick succession of tagouts by the backline which heighten the game of the scene
• Swinging Doors
• Pattern Game: Practice building new ideas on top of previous, yet looping back to original:
o Add colour, opinion, emotion to the words instead of just something connecting – perform the word! E.g. If the word is fork, and it reminds you of your childhood cafeteria lady you didn’t like, say it with disdain. Others for next words, can then build on the emotional energy you infused instead of saying it neutrally.

o Point is to find premises and then start riffing on the premise. But stop at 3 suggestions- rule of threes helps to not overdo it.

• Warm up games:
o The MIND: Improvisers close their eyes and huddle up. They have to count till 20 without two or more counting the same number
o TWO WORDS MIND-MELD: Two improvisers think of a word say “dog” and “street”, then another two improvisers raise their hand with a word that’s common to both these e.g. “Walk”, “curb”. Then group thinks of a word common to these, till both improvisers say the same word
o RHYME: Next person adds a line where last word rhymes. “I went to the pet store and got a cat”. “”It was hot so I put on my hat”

[Rina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book as a requirement for Improv101 at UCB. Lives up to its name as a manual—it reads well but is not meant to be consumed cover to cover, rather, it should be explored and re-explored over time.

[Lizzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything you could ever want in an improv textbook. Great design, straightforward language, helpful examples and diagrams. A must have for your comedy library.

[Alexandra Davis]

Read for the improv 101 class I'm taking at the UCB, it's such an interesting read, very helpful, and doesn't feel textbook like at all. The cartoons and diagrams we're s'cute :)

[Carmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's weird trying to boil something like improv down to a science, but these folks do it well. Highly recommended to any performers and artists, especially those pursuing careers in the field.

[Todd H. McCauley · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest, this was no easy read. it had its interesting sections but it was also confusing in sections. I'm glad I read it once, I would not like to read it again.

[Dita N · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good and useful not only if you do improvisation, but also if you do sketch writing.

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's slightly hard to rate this, because in order to rate it properly, I would have to be an expert at improv, and then wouldn't need? want? to read this book.

On the other hand, I have done a fair amount of improv, and the philosophy and teaching in this book align with what has increasingly come to be my view of how improv should be done, and includes a lot of exercises that will be useful and practical to help with teaching and development as an improviser.

The book's layout is not perfect. There tends to be rather more extraneous design work than there needs to be, which can make the textblock unattractively narrow. Additionally, at least one paragraph in the book was in a different font to the others, which was frankly bizarre.

Of the books of improv I have read, this has been my favourite. I would add the caveat that it does aim to teach probably the most difficult form of improv, so it may put off beginners.

[Noah Marcus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I had the confidence to start taking classes, I took a very studious approach to improv comedy. I consulted as much 'text' on performing because I ironically wanted to be as prepared as possible before stepping foot in an improvisational 101 class. This book is a monster of a manual, able to pull the curtain of this seemingly 'magical' artform. Matt Besser, Matt Walsh, and Ian Roberts doing an absolutely terrific job at making some of the most abstract concepts completely digestible. I cannot recommend this book more to someone who wants to learn more about the technical side of improv. All of this being said, this book will only get you about 10% of they way there: go out and get on stage.

[Joseph Dinas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly read this book cover to cover. And it was very helpful for giving me perspective for being a comedy/acting improviser in the future. But it would not have been as helpful if I wasnt taking classes at the same. Which is, lets be honest, what every text is supposed to do. I do think the explanation of "The Harold" could have been stronger but they still gave a good enough version. I suggest not reading this book or getting into improv in any way if you r a shy person, or in some way not open to the many aspects of this world 🌎. This book taught me best that in order to do improv you have to be energetic, resourceful in your behaviors, and open to every aspect of your body and mind. But that's all mostly this book mixed with life experience.

[Gábor Pintér · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been doing improv for 5 years and I’ve read various books on the subject.

The one that I found most useful is this one. It’s a book with great structure, plenty of examples, and funny illustrations. It will make you understand better, which scenes work the best and why.

One of the reasons I loved it so much is that it introduced me to new, easy-to-remember improv terms. These terms are very expressive and help to explain certain aspects of improv, such as “the game”, “framing” or “base reality”.

If you are looking for a book, that gives you a bunch of ideas on how to improve your improv performances and does it so well, you actually remember what you read, this is your book.

[Marie Fouhey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amy Poehler suggested reading this book in her memoir "Yes Please" which I liked. I didn't realize there were "rules" for creating improvizational comedy, but this book provides techniques that the authors suggest for successful improv. They also repeatedly stress that improvization is a group effort and its important to listen to your fellow performers. They offer examples of both good and bad attempts to use their techniques. The good examples are really funny. I think you have to be a sort of genius to excel at this.

[Alan]

I Picked this up in a free book bin and it grabbed my attention. I was briefly on an improv team in high school and sure enough, I didn’t know much about what went into it. I do love when experts breakdown the process and terminology of their craft, and this book goes deep into what makes the format succeed or fail which is what kept me hooked.

But given the amount of learning required to do improv well, it’s a sobering reminder of the work involved, and that it’s not just fun and games. In other words, I’m not itching to revisit this particular craft

[Noah Talon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for anyone attempting comedic improv of any kind and especially longform. This tome is densely packed full of critical strategies, guidelines, and techniques by which to achieve the highest levels of improv fluency.

I found the book works best if you already have some experience with improv and/or are currently practicing several times a week. Otherwise, give it a quick glance, pull the exercises, practice with friends, and then really dive in. Enjoy!

[Jason Luna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is only really for people who are performing improv or are coaching improv. It's far too repetitive and drill based to really work for a casual fan of UCB or improv in general.

That being said, it's a very thoughtful and helpful book that works through all the steps of performing improv comedy. As a performer going through training simultaneously, I thought it did a good job capturing the process and inspiring thought in me of the improv.

A must have for any performer.

[Daniel Te · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the first books that I read when going into improv, and it is bar none, the greatest guide on improvisation out there right now. So comprehensive, colorfully drawn, and from the experts at UCB, it is well-designed and insightful into the mindsets behind improv. I found that a lot of the mindsets that I cultivated in this book still influence me in everyday life. I would even recommend this as a casual read for non-improvisers, but a must-read for every improv actor.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good use of multiple examples to illustrate different elements of performance. I especially appreciated the breakdowns of heightening vs exploring in scenes.

Nitpick unrelated to content: hopefully future editions will be printed on paper with coated surface that is less reflective. That is some shiny shiny paper that is hard to read under overhead lights of any kind.