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I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. I’m somewhat blown away that I’m up to 150 of these improv tips. It’s gotten somewhat difficult to sustain due to the fact that I’ve been unable to improvise, rehearse, or teach over these past few months. So, I’m going to call this the end of the first season and take a bit of a break. I’m not sure yet how long of a break or what the next season will look like, but I’d love to hear your input on that, so please email me with your questions or thoughts at michael@bitimprov.com. In the meantime, I have a couple of plugs. If you’d like to hear me mostly heed and occasionally ignore these tips, I’d love for you to check out my improvised comedy radio detective story currently in its second season at thebureauboys.com. I’m also in the process of launching some remote improv classes that you should be able to check out by the end of this week. Those can be found at bitimprov.com, where you can also find a link to this podcast. I appreciate all of the time you’ve given me over these past 149 episodes, and I’m looking forward to some exciting things in the future. If you’re listening to this on an Echo device, I’m not sure how Amazon will react if I modify the format of this show, so please find me on a podcast player if I get booted from their marketplace. If you’ve enjoyed this mini-podcast so far, please rate and review it wherever you’re listening, and spread the word to any fellow improvisers who might be using this time away from one another to think about the craft. I will see you soon for the next step on my improv journey. Meanwhile, stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. When you’re putting an improv team together, it may be tempting to simply cast the people you like best or are friendliest with. That’s not always the best strategy for forming an improv team. Yes, chemistry is important, but don’t let the love of your friends cloud your judgment as to what makes a good improv team. Set up a system for how you’re going to audition new members to your team, stick to it, and don’t play favorites. Just like friends aren’t always the best roommates, they’re not always the best improv teammates. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. The world is an absolutely wild place, and unbelievable stories happen every day in real life. So don’t be afraid of occasionally using outlandish plot lines onstage. People do find out that they have long-lost siblings. One twin sometimes is evil. People are in comas for twenty years. Maybe don’t make those stories the first tools you pull out of your box, but don’t let fear that it’s too unbelievable prevent you from ever using those tools. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Early on in your improv career, you may be told that you should never argue onstage. If the alternative is that you’re always arguing onstage, that’s not a bad rule of thumb. However, arguments happen in real life, so they should inevitably happen onstage. Just be careful that you’re not defaulting to arguments or that the arguments you have aren’t going on forever. If you find yourself stuck in those situations, agree with the other side and end the argument. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. I'm the first to admit that I don't love warming up. Some improvisers do insist that they need to warm up to get into the mindset of improvising. Others are like me and could take it or leave it. However, one thing that I do find useful is to physically warm up my mouth. Tongue twisters, mouth and check stretches, and buzzing my lips help me with my annunciation and help me avoid getting a case of mushmouth onstage. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. In some circles, there is a bit of a rivalry between short-form improvisers and long-form improvisers. There shouldn’t be. Both short- and long-form improv can be brilliant, both can be terrible, and both can be anywhere in between. The best improvisers I know—and the ones who are the most fun to play with—excel at both short- and long-form improv. More importantly, they don’t pass judgment on anyone for not choosing to do their preferred form. Don’t shut out a particular form of improv, especially if you’ve never tried it. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. When you do improv, you’re necessarily going to end up spending quite a bit of time watching improv. When I’m in the audience, I try not to give suggestions, if possible, so as to avoid the appearance of cheating. However, you might have to give a suggestion every once in a while. When you’re in the audience, remember it's not your job to be funny. The improvisers onstage would much prefer a suggestion they've never heard before than hear the same jokey suggestions they always get. Do them a favor and give them a suggestion you’ve never heard before. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Find some characters you're comfortable with and confident playing that you can pull out at any time during a set. Not only will you have a safe space of characters you can use when you’re feeling lost or a set is spinning out of control, but also you can grow these characters over time. In addition, your teammates will learn to recognize these characters, and they'll know what they're getting when you break them out. That’s not cheating any more than it is when you act like yourself, which is really just a character. At least, I don’t think so. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. There will be times in your improv career when you have to play a doctor, lawyer, scientist, or astronaut. Unless you are or have been in one of those professions, you probably aren't going to know what the heck you’re talking about. It doesn't matter. There are many ways you can still play the scene. One way is to go in with bold confidence and make up your own professional lingo and style. Remember, you're creating this world, so the way a certain job is done is entirely your creation. Another way is to play a bumbling, incompetent professional who has no idea what they're doing. Just make a choice instead of playing it in the middle. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Remember when you’re playing a character that even though you’re showing only a moment of that character’s life, they existed prior to your scene, and they’ll exist after your scene. This means that they had a backstory before the scene started, and the actions they take in the scene will have consequences for them, even if we don’t see those consequences. If you keep in mind that the characters you create exist, you’ll have a much easier time remembering to give them a backstory and to make them believable, since their life has consequences. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. There's one in every class. The person who finds their way to improv because they've always been told that they're so funny. And that’s great, and they should be giving improv a shot. But they approach improv by trying to be the funniest person in the room filled with funny people. And often they try to be very jokey. But improv is not jokey, and everyone else is funny, too, so it can be exhausting when someone is trying to prove how funny they are all the time. So don't be that person in the group. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. One of the most precious commodities your audience gives you is their trust that you’re making everything up. I feel like I shouldn’t have to say this, but don't destroy that trust by planting suggestions in the audience. It can be tempting, because that certainly puts your set on easy mode, but it's not worth the loss of credibility you’ll suffer for taking the improvisation out of improv. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Five seconds of silence onstage can feel like a lifetime. But a mistake that is easy to make is to feel obligated to immediately respond to a scene partner’s offer with whatever comes to mind. It's better to take a second to think about your response than it is to blurt out anything just to fill space. If you find yourself doing the latter too often, try discarding the first line you think of and say the second line instead. Not only will it slow you down, but you'll be surprised how often your second line is better than your first. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. One of the things I love most about improv is how collaborative an art form it is. It’s worth remembering that when you’re talking about your sets and shows. If I’m an improviser who is constantly referring to “my” show that “I’m” in instead of “our” show that “we’re” in, I might be rubbing my teammates the wrong way. It might seem like in inconsequential nitpick, but it’s something that people notice, and it’s never a good look to appear selfish. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Once you get comfortable identifying as an improviser, it can be tempting to be “on” one hundred percent of the time, both onstage and offstage. You don’t need to always be on. Some of the most exhausting parties I’ve ever attended were filled with improvisers doing bits. As much fun as bits can be, it’s okay to have fun without doing bits and constantly being on. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. It's always a good idea to watch other people improvising. It's a great way to learn new techniques, forms, and skills. But don't allow yourself to sit and critique, nitpick, or second guess every decision that's made onstage. Not only will you not fully enjoy the show yourself, but you'll be completely insufferable to be around. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Don’t feel obligated to pay off an audience’s suggestion within the first thirty seconds of your set. There are few things more satisfying than spending twenty minutes improvising your set only to call back the suggestion as your blackout line of the set. You have time. Don’t rush to the immediate gratification. The delayed payoff is almost always worth the time invested. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Stop wasting time agonizing over your improv team’s name. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Just as it's important to know your weaknesses as an improviser, it’s equally important to know your strengths. Know what you’re great at. That way, if you ever find yourself in a bit of a slump, you can fall back on your strengths to improvise your way out of it. Falling back on your strengths is like eating your favorite comfort food after a breakup or going to your safe space in times of turmoil. Whether it be playing a silly character, breaking into a song, or getting lost in a big physical activity, find your safe space where you’re confident that everything you’re doing is brilliant. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. As someone who doesn’t dive into playing characters as well as many other improvisers, I’ve learned a bit of a cheat. You don’t have to come out with a massive character decision like a mustache-twirling Southern gentleman or a cackling, evil witch (though, by all means, go for that). You can make a tiny change to yourself and be a new character. Change your face from your normal smile to a scowl. If you usually have a booming voice that comes from your diaphragm, come out speaking with your voice just behind your teeth. If you normally stand up very straight, come out hunched over. Trust me. Little changes like those will inform your character choices for the rest of the scene. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.