Improvisational theater, often called improv, is a performance style that is unplanned or unscripted, created on-the-fly spontaneously by the performers. In its purest form, everything is created collaboratively by its participants as the improvisation unfolds in present time, without use of a pre-written script.
Improv is a style that works extremely well in Space Station 13. Many people's "gimmicks" are an unconscious, instinctive attempt at improv, and when it doesn't go anywhere it's often because others are unconsciously and instinctively breaking the basic rules of improv without even knowing it - in order for a scene to be successful, the improvisers involved must work responsively with each other. Of course by necessity this requires a certain willingness: people who are open to letting loose and diving into the spontaneity that this creates, whether it be a single friend with a knack for this kind of entertaining stupidity or a whole department of adventurous explorers thirsty for a bit of action.
This guide is mostly intended for entertainment roles such as Clowns, but it's a recommended read for any job. I guarantee you, you will start to enjoy the game more if you apply at least some of these rules, they will make people start to notice you more, and they are a great cure for the "must win" syndrome.
At the beginning of a scene, somebody makes an offer of...
This is the most important aspect of improv: playing along. Whatever you find yourself in, if you just say "No, fuck off", any motion is immediately destroyed and everyone else finds themselves in a silent and tense shuffle.
Make it a good habit to go along with other people's suggestions. It's the easiest way to start a scene, the easiest way to continue a scene, and it will lead you to all kinds of memorable situations. Generally: It's more impressive to be bold than to be funny.
ASSISTANT: Clown! Let's go mug someone!
If you just say "No, we'll get in trouble", the scene is over before it's even really begun and there's almost no room for a story to grow here.
If you AGREE, not only you contribute to something happening, but you'll be in a perfect spot to see it happen as well...
Entertaining someone's offer is best accompanied afterwards by adding a new offer or building on the earlier one, typically done with a simple utterance of...
It's said that teamwork makes the dream work and it's extra true here: an improv story can't be done single-handedly. Pro gamer tip: this is not meant to be taken literally, but it's instead meant to signify the mindset of collaborating and building upon other's ideas - the key word being “and”. It's like tacitly telling your partner “I'm with you no matter what bro”, instead of a “but” mindset of trying to negotiate and steer things into a specific direction.
The power of improv is its flow, so keep it moving forward! Every new piece of information keeps the story moving forward - don't just agree, but throw your own bit into the pot as well. The more flavor you can cram in: the better. You don't always have to come up with something on the spot, but it's a good habit if there's room to.
ASSISTANT: Do you like my gun? -ASSISTANT shows a mop-
If you go “but” and say "That's not a gun", you've shut down the gimmick and the initiative falls back to the Assistant to come up with a new idea.
If you say "Yes" and nothing else, then the initiative of the story has shifted back to the Assistant and it risks stagnating (unless the Assistant is witty enough to salvage the story and keep it going).
But if you say...
CLOWN: Yes! We could totally mug someone with that!
... you have AGREED, you have contributed the theory that you CAN mug someone with that, the scene moves forward, and best case scenario the Assistant will AGREE with you!
As the scenes develop, you and the other improvisers will establish a mental "base" or "shared vision" for the story - without explicit questioning or communication involved. "If (this is true/can be used for this purpose), then (what else can also be true/used?)"
CLOWN'S IMAGINATION: If a mop can be a weapon, then what else could also be used as one…?
Starting something with a 20% nugget of an idea is great, but going in with a full 100% roadmap? That’s a death trap. Be prepared to change your direction (and sometimes your whole idea) at the drop of a hat, depending on how your scenario develops. Asking a direct question about something, especially an open-ended question, slows down the flow and forces your partner to answer them for you. Besides, the more unknown there is, the more wiggle there is for the other people to make some shit up for a joke, or for someone to get away with doing something in a creative manner. (Rhetorical questions are fine, since they're basically a disguised statement.)
CLOWN: Alright - check out my knife! -CLOWN pulls out a bar of soap-
Of course, you will have to wiggle your way around this somewhat if you're in a role "important to the station". But try to sometimes be a little more bold and dull your instincts of caution around people you know are up to something. An interrogation of a spy would normally be prosaic and mundane, unless you boastingly declare to them some outlandish theory of what their plan must be; similarly a medical procedure, unless you describe to them in rather queasy detail about drilling through the skull...
One of the easiest ways to make statements is not by speaking, but simply to...
Listen - really listen to the individual words, since you might find something that you can use. Listening is crucial in any style of acting, and it’s especially important when there’s no script, since here if you’re not listening to the people around you, you’re missing most of the game.
Make a mental list of all the items on the tables and other props in the area, especially things that aren't usually there, and then look through the people in the room, coming up with gags or ideas that use these items, utilizing the overall mood of the environment... maybe some outlandish idea of what must have happened for an item to end up there. A body bag on the medical table means someone must have died! But who...?
CLOWN: I've been keeping this for a special moment… -CLOWN grabs cleaner grenade from theater backstage-
You're not always going to come up with something amazing, or even something very good, or anything at all, but it's a good habit to consider your environment as a source of interesting-ness. It can be as simple as remembering fire extinguishers exist!
ASSISTANT: Whoa there - now you've got some weapons of mass slippage…
Of course, in regards to all this interesting-ness, remember that...
You don't personally need to be the star of every show! In this collective story, your impact is multiplied with the impact of everyone else around you. If your partner makes a mistake, that's a golden opportunity to turn the mistake into something funny! Or at the very least, do the exact same mistake to make it look intentional - If your partner slips on their own banana, you slip right on top of them and demonstrate to everyone else how much they are a genius.
CLOWN: -CLOWN slips on bar of soap-
ASSISTANT: Now observe the power of our weapons!
Anytime your partner does something, you should always be in a position to do a follow-up (or just some kind of background action) that will accentuate what they did somehow, as...
Funny is good, but the ultimate goal of roleplaying is to end up in interesting situations. The kind of stuff that you know is going into someone's 4chan greentext. Oftentimes these won't be funny. They'll just be bold, or surprising, or story-telling genius, or just something normal for your character but simply doing it at the right moment.
SECURITY OFFICER: Hey! Stop right there, muggers!
Bottom line is: Not everything is a joke, but everything is a play for you to build off of. In fact...
If you're at a loss for what to do, one of the easiest suggestions is to simply do the opposite, especially when someone is desperately telling you to not do something. Trying too hard to be funny or clever can sometimes make people feel on-the-spot and freeze up instead. Doing the opposite and instead being obvious or serious allows everyone to relax and be in the present moment and discover things line by line, moment by moment. What’s obvious to you is oftentimes massively creative to someone else, because they don’t see the world through your eyes.
ASSISTANT: Stop, I surrender…
CLOWN: You'll never take me alive, copper!! -CLOWN unholsters bar of soap-
This is better when you have to...
Don't second-guess yourself. If you have a great idea, you might miss your chance to be a part of the show if you hesitate. It's better to be confidently wrong than to uhhhhhhh... and drag on a problem for way too long. The more you're busy thinking what the right thing to say is, the more you miss. The more you judge yourself or others, the more you miss. The more you think about the really funny grenade that someone threw at the security officer last party... the more you miss!
ASSISTANT: Hey, wait! Don't!
Don't take more than a couple seconds to decide anything, and don't try too hard to make the right choice either. Be spontaneous, trust your imagination, and keep going forwards. You need to expect to bomb. There’s no such thing as a scenario without a single joke that falls flat. Inevitably, you’ll add something to the scene that sounded funnier in your head than out loud (or maybe just doesn’t resonate with the players around you). Don’t get hung up on it: just keep going and trust that you’ll find the flow as you go. Did you fuck it up? Good, now keep going.
There are certain things people just don't like doing, like dying. That's because they would be out of the round. Leave the round before it's over? I would never! By that rationale, any strong action: dying, arresting, killing, or otherwise removing someone from the round is likely to be avoided as much as possible. The stereotype of roleplaying is that this kind of conflict is something to be avoided, but that is not reality. As long as you escalate and keep the story moving forward, then they can be the classic devastation that any spaceman is familiar with.
You're told one of you has to die. Minutes go by and people are making veiled threats. Hours pass. Night falls. Everyone is alive. Just get it over with, man. Sometimes you just have to take a strong action. It may seem like drawing out a drama gives people more time to contribute, but after a certain point it adds nothing but talking, because you're not resolving the unknown factor. Taking a strong stand does add drama, because you're resolving the unknown factor once and for all. Just hurry up and bite the bullet, literally, so we can all find out how it plays out.
CLOWN: -CLOWN gets Julius Caesar'd by the security officers' batons-
ASSISTANT: Damn, why did you have to do that!
Like all good things, this too must come to an end, but how you conclude is as important as how you begin. Maybe it’s a dramatic reveal, a punchline, or simply a peaceful resolution to your characters’ journey. A good ending simply leaves everyone with a sense of accomplishment.