How to Be the Best at Improv with Jimmy Carrane
Jimmy Carrane is a veteran of the Chicago improv scene. He shared with me the Do's and Don’ts of improvised comedy.
Jimmy Carrane is a veteran of the Chicago improv scene. He’s been performing, teaching and writing about improvised comedy for decades, and is considered an authority on this style. A style which involves making creative decisions in the moment. Improv can be like stand-up; but for Jimmy, think sketch comedy without a script.
In a relaxed 35-minute interview (audio below,) I talked to him about the method behind the magic.
*Audio below the article
What made you fall in love with improv?
I was eighteen years old; I didn’t go to college and I was lost. I’m from Chicago, so I’d seen Second City [improvised theatre troupe] in high school. I thought “That looks like something I could do”, so I took a class in improv and that’s really when I fell in love with it. Everything I’d been punished for as a kid in school; because I was kind of a smart-ass, I was now being rewarded for in improv. People there were a little older than I was and it was just like-minded people, and I was like “Man, I’m home”.
You’re the third improv comic I’ve spoken to. I think it attracts a more open-minded person, so I’ve enjoyed it and I can imagine that common sentiment in classes.
What can new students expect from your classes?
I teach “slow improv” and I’ve been doing that for almost thirty years. I think “Okay, let’s just slow down” because I see so many people come in and they’re like “I’ve got to get to the funny, I’ve got to get to the funny”. By slowing down I mean, we look at each other for a few seconds at the start. We make this emotional connection. I think then, and I’m passionate about this, you’ll start improvising one or two lines at a time. So, a lot of times people will come in and they’ll run their mouth doing a monologue, and then it’s hard for other improvisers to respond. So, by doing one or two lines at a time it gives people time to respond to the last thing that was said. It's basic, but it’s something many today forget.
It sounds like a good idea to me. I think there are a lot of great sitcoms that are slower - like awkward sitcoms with long pauses, so it’s not a bad thing in comedy to slow down.
What makes you a good teacher?
I think what makes me a good teacher, and it’s taken me a long time to get there, is that I improvise with the class. So, when I first started, I would write a syllabus and regardless of what the class was doing, I tried to get through my agenda. Now I’m more open to what’s happening in the classroom, and I go “Well, y’know what? They’re low energy, so we’ll have to forget what I wanted to do right now, and we’ll have to build that energy up.” Then maybe we can go back to what I wanted to do, or maybe, I’m just going to keep following them. That’s been a huge difference in my teaching today.
Are you a closeted optimist, as one of your books suggests?
Er… Yes, I am. I mean I struggle with it. If you meet me and you know me, I’m pretty negative.
Zoom helped me to appreciate using positivity in my teaching. I teach an advanced Zoom class, but I taught more online during the pandemic, and due to the format, you don’t have the luxury of people in person. So, I had to be more positive and I had to be more to the point. And I would leave those sessions feeling uplifted, so I took that into my classrooms.
Now, I sit there and think “Okay, what am I teaching? I’m teaching them how to act in love, or I’m teaching joy”. This is going on in the back of my head. Depending on their level, if they’re not getting something, I’m like “Okay, let it go. It’s about them having fun. It’s about them experiencing love, it’s about them experiencing joy.”
It's almost like doing a solo stand-up show, in that, especially lately, I have these great classes and I’m like, “I taught a class last night and I’m still high from it.” I want to live more like that in real life.
I might be a closeted optimist too. There’s this quote “Every pessimist is a disappointed optimist”.
Do you work better with positive people?
Yes, I do, but as an improviser, you have to work with everyone. You’ll come across some negative people and, for whatever reason, I’ve struggled with them. But eighty percent of improvisers, even if they’re negative like I am off stage; when they hit that stage, can be positive.
When I play with positive people, it gets me out of being negative, so it’s a real gift.
Great. How do you deal with nerves when performing?
Wow. You know what I do that’s helpful? Before the show, if I’m nervous, I’ll speak about how I’m feeling and say “You know what? I’m really scared tonight.”
I came into a show about ten years ago and I wasn’t feeling funny. I was scared, I was tentative, and I admitted this to the cast. Somebody said, “Make sure, when you go out there you do the first scene.” I’m one of these guys who never does the first scene. That night, I did the first scene and it killed. It was a great scene. That was such a valuable lesson.
I can imagine it would be. You’re getting it over with, aren’t you? You’re getting into it.
Also, it wasn’t “bottled up”. I think a lot of times, as a performer, you want to hide it if you’re nervous.
In Chicago, I did the original Armando show. It was the original cast; and the first time they had done it long-form. This was in the 90s when Chicago was stacked with talent - people who went on to great, great careers. You had Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, and the original four UCB people. Neil Flynn and Dave Koechner, Brian Stack, Kevin Dorff, Noah Gregoropoulos, Rachel Dratch, Stephanie Weir, Horatio Sanz. In this period of time in Chicago it was amazing and I was terrified.
I was terrified to do scenes with these people, so I would play nervous characters and it worked. I did that for a year and a half until I wasn’t scared anymore, which probably wasn’t true. I think I was always scared through the run of that show.
You mentioned UCB [the Upright Citizens Brigade]. I interviewed Kevin Gregory Krieger and he went to UCB. What is your understanding of “clowning” and that improv scene?
I don’t know much about clowning at all. I know it’s become popular. It’s even starting to make its way into Chicago.
It’s surprising that these scenes aren’t more interconnected.
What do new/aspiring improvisers get wrong?
As I said, doing one or two lines at a time is really important. Del Close always compared it to a ping-pong game. You hit it and you wait for your opponent to hit it back and then you hit it again. The other thing is – don’t worry about being funny. The “funny” will come. Build the scene.
Focus on what you can do to make the scene better. If somebody’s got a great character, play the straight person in that scene. Don’t make it so difficult for yourself. Don’t be like “Oh, I’ve got to be as funny as they are.” When you’re focused on the scene more than yourself or being funny, that’s when you know you’re getting better as an improviser.
Yes, sometimes a supporting role can make a scene. It’s not about grabbing attention. Sometimes it’s the one thing you say that might be the funniest; because your character is quieter… And it’s unexpected.
How do you teach a difficult concept to your students?
Well, I make a lot of mistakes. I had a class last night and I was explaining this form and they didn’t fully understand it. They suggested we just run the scene anyway. And of course, people do much better than they think they will; because there’s a lot of fear involved. So, I think I just listen to the class, willing to make mistakes. For me, it’s really important to get stuff on its feet. They should do an exercise that demonstrates what I’m going for, rather than me explaining it.
Another thing I like is re-doing a scene. “Okay, here’s what I think we could do better this time. Let’s do it.” And they get a lot of joy from that.
As an improv comic, how do you feel about unscripted comedy shows like Curb Your Enthusiasm?
I think when they’re done well, they’re amazing. What works so well in that show is Larry David understands structure. He’s got the form in his head. He knows what it takes for a sitcom to work. I think a lot of people fail because they just improvise, but there’s a structure to what he does.
…Because all of the little details in each episode come together to make an almighty sh**storm. Everything goes wrong for Larry in the final ten minutes. I’ve noticed that. It’s like crime fiction, the way he ties it all together.
I’ve got a quote from your book Improv Therapy: “Before you learn how to play something funny, you have to learn how to play it real.” How did you come to this realization?
The kind of improv I like, it feels like a movie. You’re sucked in by the characters. The characters are real. In a lot of improv, they’re so worried about being funny, and not playing connected. Your response is “I don’t care about you” and it’s kind of annoying to watch. It’s all that frenetic energy. So, I thought “Let’s strip it down. Let’s play ourselves.”
In a class a couple of weeks ago, they weren’t connected and I said “Let’s just go out there – two people on a park bench. Let’s just have a conversation.” It’s much more compelling than two people focused on being fast and trying to be funny.
Some great sitcoms [Mid-Morning Matters/Car Share] are set in confined spaces. You can get amazing moments out of regular conversations.
In Improv Therapy you mention “adding specifics” to a scene, bringing it to life. Many would struggle with this at first. What can they do to get better at that besides practising?
Be conscious of broad ideas as opposed to more specific ones. Instead of a cat, is it a Siamese cat? Do you want something to drink? OR do you want a Scotch and soda, or a Diet Coke with no ice? Those kinds of specifics can help you with your characters.
I have an exercise. I didn’t come up with it but it helps and that is naming your characters. It’s really simple. You come up with fictitious names for each other. So, if I called you Bruce, you would call me…
Ben?
Ben. So, we would just go back and forth, so I would go “Bruce…”
Ben
Bruce
Ben…
Bruce
Ben?
We’re starting to create a connection by doing this. I noticed you were smiling. So, maybe we’re two kids and we just stole something. You don’t want them to go straight to dialogue. Once they feel a connection, then they can go to say something. A name can give you ways to discover your character.
When we’re addressed by name, it’s often that someone wants our attention badly. They’re upset or they’ve noticed we’re not focused on the task at hand, so I can see the value of the exercise.
Can you tell me more about Jazz Freddy?
Jazz Freddy was during the golden age of improv in the 90s. A lot of us had been through the “ImprovOlympic” training centre; we had studied with Del Close and Charna Halpern.
A bunch of us liked the idea of “slow comedy”. There were a lot of great performers in the group. So, we brought it to a prestigious theatre in Chicago. We came up with a unique way of doing things and it surprised us how big the audience response was.
Years later, people would come up to me and say “Oh my god, I went to every Jazz Freddy show and that really inspired me”. In terms of improv, if you can inspire the next generation that’s a pretty cool thing.
Is there a possibility of a reunion? [Jimmy’s face lit up at this question]
I don’t know, but it would be fun to do.
It seems like the obvious thing to me.
What’s it like being interviewed about your comedy, when you’ve interviewed so many comedians for the Improv Nerd podcast?
First, I want to say, good for you, coming up with written questions. That makes me feel comfortable. Interviews used to make me feel more self-conscious than they do now. For me, asking lots of questions can be a way to hide. I’ve done that a lot in my life.
Because you’ve done so many interviews with comedians, do you have any advice for me about my blog?
Yes, I do. When I started Improv Nerd, I thought I was going to be famous. The idea was to interview successful people about their comedy to find out what I was doing wrong. What was their secret to becoming great at improv?
My wife Lauren who works in PR and journalism kept saying “Who’s your audience?” She said this about the blog and the podcast, and I got good at it. I thought, “This isn’t a mainstream audience, this is improv nerds around the world who want tips on getting better. They want an exercise, and if we do one, they want us to deconstruct it.” And that changed how I interview people. Now I think “Does the audience want to hear that?” I think “The audience is going to love this because they can use it at a show that night”.
How can people join your classes?
I do an online class, they’re $279 for early registration, then $309 if you wait till the last minute to sign up. It’s an advanced class, and if you haven’t worked with me before you need to send me your experience so I can approve you. The next one starts in January, but I teach in Chicago as well. You can go to my website JimmyCarrane.com for more info, or if you want to find the Improv Nerd blog and podcast.
When I first started teaching Slow Comedy, nobody wanted to do it. They wanted it to be fast, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve attracted people who came to improv later in life, actors, and improvisers who have been through the institutions and are kind of bitter. They come and they start slower, start connecting with their emotions, reacting to their partner in the moment and then they find the joy of improv again.
If I attended an improv class, the slow comedy ethos would work for me. I do tend to be impulsive and rush things, so I can imagine slowing down and relaxing would bring out the best in people.
How many come to the online classes?
Well, I limit it to nine. I also have a drop-in class on December 7th with around three spots left. It’s an hour-and-a-half class, it’s only $45. You can come and sample and see what I’m doing.
Do you have any questions for me?
What’s the improv scene like in the UK?
I’m connecting the dots, but I don’t think it’s as developed as Chicago! I did go to one class.
What do you love about improv?
People like you! There’s something different about improv comics. Deep down they’re nice people. Perhaps it’s related to being an open person who likes to conjure fun out of thin air, out of conversations.
Well, I do think we speak a language. I do stand-up as well and in Chicago, it’s great because many comics come through improv and there’s a sense of playfulness when we get together. The tools of improv, like listening to your partner and taking what they say as a gift work great when we get together in a social situation.
I think he’s onto something there.
That’s all folks. It’s surreal to be able to talk to people like Jimmy, and it was great for my spirit. Thank you all.