"Who's Line is it Anyway?" was originally a British tv show comprised of 4 improvisers and one host, performing improvisational acting games for the delight of a live audience. An American version of this show was created in the 1990's. Since the improvisers have the advantage of years of improv training, it is a great model for our 8th grade improvisation students to see the concepts we have been learning about in class in action. (And it's good for some hearty laughs at the end of the school day!)
Students: Please construct a thoughtful response to the following question in response to our viewing of "Who's Line is it Anyway?" in class. Feel free to comment on other students' ideas!
Name one improv technique that we have discussed in class that you saw well executed in the show. Give a specific, detailed example of how you saw it demonstrated and discuss how that impacted the other players on stage, the scene's quality, and/or the audience's reaction.
Shannon
// Apr 11, 2010 at 8:36 pm
One technique that we were talking about in class was to not block. They always accepted each other's ideas. But also, they know each other so well that when they do block they know exactly how the other person is going to still move the story foward.
Marco 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 9, 2010 at 7:48 am
Who's line is it anyways is perfect example of improv. They would block each other, but at the same time they would know exactly what to say, because they all know each other enough to do that.
Andy 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 10:01 pm
The actors did a really good job of not only saying yes to the others ideas, but they also reacted quickly and added on to the story. This type of teamwork, helped move the scene along, helped the actors to do a good job and also made the audience laugh.
Adam Eggert
// Apr 8, 2010 at 9:47 pm
In the show, Who's Line Is It Anyways, the actors used a group mind. In the songs that were performed by Wayde and Brad, the actors had to think as one and agree with each other. They also had to quickly think of new ideas if their partner did not go down the path that they want them to.
Krista M 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 9:23 pm
I definitely saw Group Mind being well executed throughout the show, especially in the game where they would sing a love song to one of the audience members. I think that group mind played a big part in this game because the two guys had to come up with a song on the spot for this girl they don't even know and the song could head in any direction at any given time. On time when they played this game I noticed that even though the song was improvised both singers would sing the same thing at the same time giving the scene a cool affect of togetherness even when a part. This affected the other actors because when a line was sung together it gave each actor time to come up with the next line for the song. For me, as an audience I thought that when both actors were in singing in harmony it was amazing! I was very surprised to witness two improvisers singing the same line and I think this was all because of a great group mind the actors had.
Kristina K. 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 8:25 pm
I would just like to say that all the actors did an amazing job by using "group mind" (does that make sense?) The four mens' acting seemed like it was scripted and thought out because everything made sense, but really everything was improv! They all had an idea of what was coming at them, but at the same time, they knew that something can change in a split second but they came up with statements and ideas very quickly.
Sean Y 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 7:56 pm
When it was the part where you had to sing about a random person in the audience, the person on stage tried to do something even though the person's name was McRoshi. He didn't freak or stutter or just suddenly stop singing. He went on and in the end it was funny and worth it.
amanda 98.253.34.177 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 7:53 pm
During the one scene when the two men were fishing, the cheater started the scene well by shooting at the fish. It was a good initiation. Also, no matter which styles they had to do for this scene, they both had to go along with whatever the theme was.
Niko 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 5:14 pm
One thing that they showed very well was agreeing with each other. Like in the movie theme game when they did a disaster scene one of the guys said "we need to run side to side" and they other people did that with him.
Marion L. 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 4:58 pm
I felt that the actors did a very good job of not blocking. They always "yes-anded" whatever idea was previously presented. This made for an exciting scene that could go anywhere. I remember one specific example when 2 of the characters (I think Collin and Ryan, but I'm not sure) were on a boat and they had to act out whatever genre was called out. There was disaster, horror, tragedy and others. Ryan pretended to be shooting the fish, and Collin was able to recognize that and keep it a common topic throughout the scene. This made it funny and believable that Ryan was actually shooting the fish with a gun because of what Collin did to support him.
sungd 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 3:05 pm
In the "Let's Make A Date" improv, all the members had a group mind. They worked together to make sense. The date person had a very different personality and the bachelor stayed in characters & interacted with other bachelors while staying in character.
Michelle O 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:58 pm
When Collin and Ryan played the game where Drew would yell out movie styles and then they would do something for the scene. When Ryan said something kind of crazy about being on a beach, Collin didn't block him but he came up with a more crazy idea and it made everyone laugh even more. I pointed this out because we talked NOT blocking each other in class.
Geri 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:56 pm
In the "Moving People" segment, it reminded me of the time in Drama class when we were receiving and giving in "Improv". We would receive a person's idea and then say "and" for a transition to give another idea. The difference between us and them was well, their knowledgeable experience.
Adam S. 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:55 pm
After viewing “Who’s Line Is It Anyway?” I witnessed many improvisation techniques we have been learning about in class executed superbly. One technique is not blocking. The people on the show never seem to block and always accept their partners ideas as well as adding to the scene. This makes the scene “go in the right direction” and become fast paced and exciting to watch. A great example of accepting the ideas presented is the beginning of almost every “game”. One player starts by either an action and/or statement, which the other players respond to immediately. Like when they sing the songs to an audience member. Wayne took the initiative and started swaying ad snapping his fingers along with scatting. This was able to start-off the song with energy and helped let them find lyrics that fit and worked wonderfully with the theme.
Noah M 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:54 pm
I feel that how the improvisers didn't waffle at all in "Whose line is it anyway?" is very impressive. Throughout the whole show, everyone was giving out new ideas to continue the scene. A good example of this is when Brad sang his improv song to Niroshi. Since nothing really rhymes with Niroshi, he still kept on going through the song and it turned out to be a really funny song.
Nikki 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:50 pm
"Moving people" is an example of not blocking and accepting all the ideas, because they are being positioned by 2 women and have to make sense of "their movements".
hongr 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:47 pm
In the show "Who line is it Anyway?" is a good show to learn improvising. The show shows that they always agree with each other and they also make statements. They also don't show them wimping, waffling, and talking heads in the shows. So they did a great jobs showing how they improvise.
Jamie S 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:46 pm
The improv technique I saw executed well was the their pantomiming techniques. Which would be an example of not doing "talking heads." For example on the dating game the players had to sometimes pantomime their different identities. When Ryan had to have an alien inside him, their obviously wasn't a real alien they could use as a prop. Ryan used his hand and pretended that his hand was the alien coming out. Even though their wasn't an alien in the scene it still seemed realistic because instead of making sounds of an alien coming out, Ryan used his hands instead. This gave the audience a good laugh because Ryan was so believable you didn't even need a prop.
Adam 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:44 pm
A improvisation technique that I saw in the show was to "make the other person look like a genius." I saw this in the scene where the 2 people from the group couldn't move. One topic that they had to portray was a "western" theme. In the western theme they both added new topics and they accepted each others ideas. The western theme was lead to a showdown of the 2 characters. They both controlled the situation well and when one person said showdown on the count to 3 and the other person said how about one to make it shorter. This is another example of when the improvisors made each other look like a genius.
Moe 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:44 pm
Whoa look at that elephant over there!
(points to the elephant)
Noah M 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:43 pm
Hey guys, Godzilla was at the grocery store looking for some pears.
skoknan 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:42 pm
Group mind was really good in "Who's line is it anyway." It looked like they had planned everything and really they didn't it was all improvised. When it was there turn to speak they had something in there mine and ready to go but some of us take our time for like 2 minutes until we have a topic.
Moe 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:42 pm
One of the improv techniques that they used was group mind. They used it tons of times, but the one that stuck out to me was the dating game. When one man was a bird one was a in a dentist chair and one was an amish guy. for example when the guy was in pain in the dentist chair the amish guy looked like he was trying to help him. And the guy in the dentist chair stuck out for the man who was pretending to be a parrot to use. Group mind is everyone thinking alike and helping each other and that is exactly what these people did.
hartzelh 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:40 pm
The players on "Whose Line is it Anyway" did a great job of following the improv technique, "Once spoken- it's law." They followed this technique by ACCEPTING everything- no matter how ridiculous it is.
campbelt 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:39 pm
I noticed a lot of spontaneity when Brad had to sing the song about Niroshi
chois 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:38 pm
Group mind was presented very well on stage in "Who's line is it anyway?". It seemed like they planned out everything, but it was all improvised. Since they worked as one, it really made the scene make sense and it made the audience accept their ideas more. When the audience accepts their ideas, it gives the people on stage more confidence to make more ideas.
Drew 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:28 pm
I noticed a lot of spontaneous actions on the show by wayne and brad during the songs for the audience members. Most people think that improv is difficult but improv and singing and rhyming at the same time is 3 times harder!
Danny H. 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:25 pm
Well the members of whose line is it anyways definitely did a great job of making statements and not questions. For example when 2 of the members were doing a skit about going fishing they both accepted each others ideas every single time. This really showed that they had experience improvising, and they did a great job to!
Elizabeth S. 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:25 pm
All of the players did an excellent job of using "group-mind." There was a part where all of them sang together and Colin sang something which didn't make sense. He tried to make it make sense but he got stuck, so Wayne came in with another line to help him out, and then gave Colin a chance to correct his mistake.
Olivia 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:25 pm
I really enjoyed watching this show. I think that agreeing with every idea that was thrown out there was really good. All of the characters accepted the idea and did not block. I think at the end of one of the shows when some of the players had to come up with a story line by starting off every sentence with the next letter of the alphabet was great! They were listening and paying attention to what each other were saying. If one of the actors wasn't paying attention, then it would've screwed up the whole scene because they wouldn't know what letter to start with. All in all, the actors on this show are great improvisers!
Matt 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:21 pm
I believe it made the scene much funnier and the audience loved it.
William L 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:57 pm
I agree.
Zach 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:20 pm
One great example of a technique that I saw in "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" is spontaneity, which was employed in the newscaster scene. I specifically saw this in Colin's character, "the kid who is trying to show off." Colin spontaneously started to mimic what the other "newscaster" said, and employed the bunny sign. It was a great example of what funny improv should be.
Hannah 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:12 pm
I think that the people from Who's Line Is It Anyway? did really good with always agreeing with each other. Sometimes it's really hard to agree when you don't like the idea, but they all accepted each other's ideas no matter how ridiculous they were.
Hannah 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:24 pm
I think this was very well executed in the first game in the first episode, where each person got a different personality on "The Dating Game," and instead of disagreeing with what Brad (the 'girl') said, or not acting out what was on their cards, they agreed and did not block.
Matt 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:03 pm
Hey Paul lets go into the drama room and shoot some flying disks with my shotgun!
William L 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:45 pm
Group mind is one technique that the improvisers on the 'Who's Line is it Anyway' display very well. Such as when 2 or more improvisers have to sing a song together. Being able to know when to start singing and when to add sound effects is very hard to do, and the improvisers displayed this very well. Since they had such good group mind, there is hardly a pause, and this keeps us as an audience entertained.
Moe 192.168.32.18 not found // Apr 8, 2010 at 2:59 pm
I agree!! I think they were able to do that by eye contact instinct and not being afraid of messing up!!