There is no doubt the improvisation is becoming more widely recognised as a tool for so many life skills, whether in your business or your personal life.  Having witnessed the transformation in people who improvise regularly and heard it from participants time and time again, it is nice to see that improvisation for anxiety and...

Medical Improv The medical profession revolves around interactions between people. Improv depends on strong interactions between people. From the GP consultation through to the team working in an operating theatre, communication is at the heart of a health profession that is efficient, accountable and ultimately improves patient’s health.  From my own experience, I know that...

Having a foot in both the improvisation and the teacher camps, I have often mused and been asked about how people could use the techniques of comedy improvisation for teachers.  Here is my brief journey… I started teaching piano in 2002.  I had one pupil who I would teach in the piano shop I worked...

We have been lucky enough to be invited to many of the European Improv Festivals to teach and perform over the last few years.  Having the chance to travel and do the thing we love is the dream really for many of us.  Find out how one of our band – Chris Mead feels about...

by Jamie Lee First Impressions: It’s an average Wednesday afternoon in late March and I’m trudging the platforms at Clapham Junction weathering the crowd controlled confusion of a ‘CANCELLED SERVICE’ announcement. Sporadic splutterings of rain breeze by in a lightly suppressive mood but these irregular arrivals and departures can do little to diminish my own...

  Improv is all about supporting your scene partner so let’s get out there and support our fellow improvisers by checking out their improv shows in the Brighton Fringe this month. Since I am not allowed to read the full Fringe Brochure (because of The Maydays ‘Fringe Show) this list is based on the results...

Katy Schutte, one of our longest serving improvisers has written a wonderful piece about how to stay together as an improv company through thick and thin. Whether it is celebrating each other’s successes or committing to working out problems openly and honestly, here are some great tips on how to survive the inevitable storms and...

by Tony Lowe   I am a student studying philosophy politics and ethics. It’s a weighty subject full of debates and essays that seems to be nothing like improv… we can’t just say what we want, everything we argue must be backed up by reasons and a lot of what we do is pre-meditated. We...

  By Rhiannon Vivian Let’s talk about work. Green party leader Caroline Lucas has just announced that she’d promote a four-day working week if she were in power. Some people have already criticized this (the main one being Brexit loving, Thatcherite, Tim Montgomerie) but I can’t understand why. Does having a rigid, toil based work...

We at The Maydays know that improv classes can have profound effects on people’s confidence, self respect and social skills in general but can they work for someone who identifies as an introvert?  Well we found out recently as one of our students, Jacqui Moorhouse, was moved to write a blog on the subject.  Here...

We know that improv classes are not just about laughing and meeting people, but it is lovely to hear it direct from one of our students. We see our students go on their own journeys as they come back each week.  Some seem to gain confidence, others are less pushy, rude, quiet or awkward when on...

You’ve signed up to an improv class which is a COMEDY course, so you really should be extra funny by week two, shouldn’t you? But Janet got 4.5 times more laughs than you and Dave, well Dave might just as well book his ‘Live at the Apollo’ gig right now. You know what you need...

  Katy has been a member of the Maydays for 12 years. She met LA’s Craig Cackowski (2nd from left) at the OOB comedy and improv Festival in Austin, Texas playing in an Armando show in 2015. She took an improv class with him then and has been enjoying his insights ever since. At the...

 by Ed Pithie  I was generously granted the full Jason Chin Scholarship to the September 2016 Maydays Improv Retreat. I planned to sanctify my notebook with the sacred teachings of the Maydays and bring the Good Word back to the folk of Horley, where I run a weekly drop-in. I can honestly say that the...

The Maydays are awarding a scholarship to the Maydays Improv Intensive  (22nd – 26th March) in memory of our friend, teacher and mentor Jason Chin. Jason was a huge influence on the development and spirit of the Maydays. At a practical level our show, “Tonight’s Top Story”, was blatantly stolen from the format of “Whirled...

Improvisation Classes: Using good techniques to avoid bad reviews. Improvisation classes are popping up everywhere nowadays and the participants are from extraordinarily diverse sectors of society.  Many improv schools have their own flavour of improvisation techniques and styles so choosing which class to attend can be tricky.  One of the most important factors is having...

by Rhiannon Vivian ‘Eliminate self motivation and take care of each other,’ – Jorin Garguilo, the ‘Space Hippie’ After years of invaluable training and trying out different methods, schools of playing, tools, tricks and tips (all of which chug away in your subconscious) in recent times I’ve ended up actively focusing on just one thing...

How To Improve Communication Skills with Three Quick Exercises   Improvisers actively practise their communication skills as a warm-up for rehearsing and performing comedy and theatre shows. Many of these exercises improve communication as well as being quick, fun and easy for anyone to play and practise in their work life.  Listen Fully    Listening is the...

by Will Naameh I was fortunate enough to be offered a partial Jason Chin scholarship to the Maydays spring improv intensive in Osho Leela this year. I perform, teach and coach improv in Edinburgh, so went down to Dorset to learn and bring back as much improv wisdom as possible to the community here in Scotland....

Can Improv address some of the problems of mainstream education? by John Cremer and Joe Samuel Our mainstream education system is based on an industrial model of mass-produced learning. We compel lively and inquisitive young people to sit in rows and be “educated” according to an outdated and rigid curriculum. One of the problems of...