The Theatre Classroom — A Very Inexpensive Improvisation App

March 7th, 2012

An app to help create improv scene ideas

Several months ago I received an email from Matt Ludlam, a drama teacher in Dallas, TX, who has developed an iPhone/iPad app called “The Amazing Improv Generator.” It gives you an array of characters, places, and events containing over 750 completely different suggestions that can be used at the push of a button.  Three examples are:

Character                           Place              Event
Driving Instructor                 Dorm              Hosting a dinner party
Traveler from Outer Space   Guard-house    Participating in a protest
Engineering Technician       Carnival           Falling down the stairs

A great feature to this app is the ability to lock the character, place, or event.  For example, if you want to change the character but leave the place and the event the same, you can easily do that by locking the place and the event and then generate a new character.  This app also is a timesaver — you won’t have to have cards with people, places, and events, but you’ll still need the card box for your “one liners.”  I wish this app had been available when I was teaching.  It only costs $0.99 — a well-spent dollar!  You can find the app on his website under the "Improv Generator" tab or you can look up Matt Ludlam +Improv on Goggle.  It is well worth your time to give this a look-see. I’ll be using it this spring when I teach, “Let’s Act Up Some More” with my over 50 “kids.”  I’ll let you know how we do.