I recently completed the Summer 5 Day Intensive (August 11th – 15th, 2025) at the IO Theater in Chicago, IL. I was teamed up with 11 other improv people from around the world (yep, international students as well) and wow, what an experience! Our instructor was Clayton (and my fault, I didn’t record his last name) and he was terrific! I’ve had good and bad improv instructors and this guy was just so damn skillful!

I learned tons and tons of things about the art of improv and how to hone my personal craft. But this post is about 5 things I learned about myself.

1 – I’m pretty good

I’m not great, I’m not going to headline at Annoyance or Second City…but I do have a sense of humor and don’t hurt any show I’m in. The reason this is on the list is I spent a week around 11 other people doing the same stuff I was doing (some who were much more skillful than me) as well as watching shows at night (where I was constantly wow’d by how good everyone is). Friday I woke up with a strong case of imposter syndrome, but I got over myself and…well, I was pretty good!

2 – I have room to improve

So much room to improve! But I don’t mean that in a negative way, but instead just seeing what people do and thinking ‘wow, that is a great move!’. And although I do enjoy reading about improv, live practice is the way.

3 – 5 Days is a long time

As an introvert (someone who is recharged by time alone), being on stage, learning, hanging out, for 5 days straight was straining. I would do it again, but I would be careful to manage my energy as well!

4 – Zoom is a fine vehicle but…

I have taken a lot of Zoom classes as well as done improv on Zoom online sessions, and those a skill. But it is a different animal than in person by far. I know that improv went ‘online’ with Covid and that has a place but for me, interacting with an entire person in person is a favored skillset.

5 – I get to/need to be me!

In our group, we had a few people who had solid powerful surgical lines; others who were Big Energy; others who had other mixes and skills. And we were all doing it ‘right’. I am one of the big energy people and I don’t need to change that. Play into my strength instead of trying to be someone else.

Party Guest is an improv game where one or more players act as guests at a party, each embodying distinct characters or characteristics. The host then tries to guess those characteristics or quirks. The scene typically involves:

• A host who facilitates or interacts with the guests.
• Each guest bringing a unique persona, quirks, or agenda, as suggested (in secret from the host) by the audience.
• Interactions between the guest might reveal conflicts, secrets, or humorous situations.

As stated above, the goal, when played as a game, is that the host is trying to guess each character or trait.

BUT here is a key part. Sometimes the “host” just doesn’t know. Either they don’t pick up on the clues or a specific character game eludes them. That is where the other players have to help out.

This clip, from the Shoot from the Hip, is a great example of how sometimes the host can forget a common character (Bugs Bunny) and the other ‘guest’ can assist him.