MASTER IMPROVISER JACOB BANIGAN ON HOW IMPROV CAN TEACH WRITERS TO EXPAND THEIR GAME A THOUSAND-FOLD (MF GALAXY 123) – 2017 May 22
INTERNATIONAL IMPROV ARTIST + TRAINER CREATES + CRITIQUE HUNDREDS OF STORIES PER YEAR; THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO KNOW ABOUT MAKING AUDIENCE CARE; HOW IMPROV REACHES PAST FUNNY TO FIND PROFOUND MEANING Jacob Banigan is one impressive cat. He knows more about how to build and refine stories than anyone I’ve ever met, and I know a lot of writers. And yet Banigan doesn’t see himself as a writer and writes only occasionally. So how and why does he grok story like no one else? Because he’s a master improviser who’s been studying the craft since 1990 when he joined Rapid Fire Theatre in Edmonton. Sure, he also gained skills in years of creating and performing sketch comedy, including in The 11:02 Show which is where we worked together for a season, and in Gordon’s Big Bald Head, where I also worked with him one summer. But Banigan kept growing in the field, serving as Rapid Fire’s Artistic Director from 1995 to 2004, creating news plays, launching improv festivals Nos...