Library entries

• Game

  7-Up

  A documentary crew revisits the same characters every seven years, from childhood to old age.

  3–5 players short formcharacter

• Warm-up

  A and B Shapes, with Caption

  Two players each make a shape and a third says what the picture represents; then the roles rotate.

  3+ players physical

• Game

  A Great Debate

  A formal debate in which each speaker argues as a different type of person, handed over by the chair.

  2–4 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Action Replay

  One pair plays a busy physical scene; a second pair who couldn't hear it copies every move with new words.

  4 players short formphysical

• Game

  Addicts Anonymous

  A support group meets for people hooked on harmless, absurd things, and each member shares their story.

  3–5 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Adjective Occupation

  Given a describing word and a job, players step out of a line one at a time for a short monologue as that person.

  3+ players short formcharacter

• Game

  Advertisement to Music

  A player improvises an advert for a product, pitching it in the style of whatever music is playing.

  1–2 players short formstyle switch

• Game

  All in One Voice

  Two pairs each speak and sing as one person, in unison, performing a duet as a famous singing double act.

  4 players short formsong

• Game

  Alphabet

  Each line of the scene starts with the next letter of the alphabet, all the way round from a given letter.

  2–3 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  American Musical

  The cast improvise a short Broadway musical from an audience suggestion, singing whenever the music starts.

  3–5 players short formmusical

• Game

  Animals

  A dramatic human scene played by a group of animals of one kind.

  2–4 players short formphysical

• Game

  Audition

  A director auditions three hopefuls for a musical that mashes up two films: one acts, one sings, one dances.

  4 players short formmusical

• Game

  Authors

  Players tell one story between them, each in the style of a different author, swapping when the host points.

  3–5 players short formstyle switch

• Game

  Award Show

  Two presenters hand out an absurd award, and the winners accept it with emotional speeches.

  3–4 players short formparody

• Game

  Backwards Scene

  A scene played in reverse, starting with its last line and working back to how it began.

  2–3 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Warm-up

  Bad Rap

  A rap circle where each line sets up the obvious rhyme, then dodges it on purpose.

  4–20 players circlerhyme

• Game

  Bartender

  Customers come into a bar one by one and sing their troubles to the bartender, who sings advice back.

  3–4 players short formmusical

• Game

  Beastie Rap

  Round a circle over a beat, each player raps a line rhyming with the last while the crew shouts each rhyme word.

  4+ players short formrhyme

• Warm-up

  Bippity Bippity Bop

  The player in the middle points and says 'bippity bippity bop'; the target must say 'bop' before they finish.

  6–25 players circlefocus

• Warm-up

  Bomb and Shield

  Each player secretly picks a bomb and a shield, then moves to keep the shield between them and the bomb.

  8–40 players movementfocus

• Game

  Boogie Woogie Sisters

  Three players are a 1940s close-harmony trio singing an upbeat tribute to the heroes of an everyday job.

  3 players short formsong

• Warm-up

  Bunny Bunny

  A silly ritual chant: the bunny says 'bunny bunny' and passes it on while the bunny's neighbours chant 'toki toki'.

  6–25 players circleenergy

• Exercise

  Bus Stop

  One player waits at a bus stop; a newcomer arrives with a strong character, and the first gradually takes it on.

  3–16 players characterstatus

• Game

  Call and Response

  A leader sings lines in honour of an audience member and the group sings back a refrain, over a steady beat.

  3–5 players short formsong

• Technique

  Callback

  Bringing back a character, line or detail from earlier in the show, at the moment it means most.

  2–12 players long formstory

• Warm-up

  Captain's Coming

  The caller shouts ship's commands and everyone does the action; the last to do it is out.

  8–40 players movementelimination

• Technique

  Challenge Edit

  Someone shouts a kind of scene, such as 'Silent scene!', which ends the current one and sets the next.

  4+ players editlong form

• Game

  Change Letter

  Players must swap one letter of the alphabet for another in every word they say.

  2–3 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Change of Cast

  The scene keeps its plot, but each time the host calls, the players all become a new kind of people.

  2–4 players short formstyle switch

• Game

  Changing Emotions

  Each prop carries an emotion, and whoever holds it plays that feeling until it changes hands.

  2–4 players short formprops

• Exercise

  Character Walks

  Players walk the room leading with different parts of the body and notice what kind of person each one makes.

  1+ players charactermovement

• Game

  Choose Your Own Adventure

  The host freezes a story at each turning point and the audience votes on what happens next.

  3–5 players short formstory

• Technique

  Cocktail Party

  The cast become guests at a party, chatting in pairs, with the focus passing from one conversation to the next.

  4–12 players openercharacter

• Game

  Come Dining

  A dinner party switches film genre as each guest arrives, then switches back as each one leaves.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Exercise

  Compliments

  A two-person scene where every other line each player says opens with a compliment to their partner.

  2+ players pairs

• Game

  Conducted Story

  A conductor chooses who tells the story and when to switch; each teller picks up exactly where the last one stopped.

  1+ players short formstory

• Exercise

  Conscience Alley

  A character facing a decision walks slowly between two lines of players who voice the arguments for and against.

  7–30 players drama classcharacter

• Warm-up

  Count to Twenty

  The group counts to twenty, one voice at a time with no order; if two speak at once, it's back to one.

  5–20 players circlefocus

• Game

  Couples

  Two players carry one conversation through a string of famous pairs, switching on the host's call.

  2 players short formstyle switch

• Game

  Courtroom Scene

  A trial for a petty crime, where each witness grabs a hat and becomes whoever it suggests.

  4–5 players short formcharacter

• Technique

  Cross-Cut

  Two scenes share the stage and the show cuts back and forth between them.

  4–12 players editlong form

• Game

  Day in the Life

  The host asks someone about their ordinary day, then the players act that day out, bigger and stranger.

  3+ players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Daytime Talk Show

  A trashy daytime talk show where the guests airing their grievances are characters from a fairy tale.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Game

  Dead Bodies

  Everyone but one player is a limp body that can talk but not move, and the one alive must move them.

  3–4 players short formphysical

• Format

  Deconstruction

  A long opening scene, then scenes that explore its characters and ideas, ending back in the original.

  4–10 players long formstory

• Exercise

  Describe Then Speak

  Before every line, the speaker narrates one detail in the third person, then says the line.

  2–16 players narratedpairs

• Game

  Diamond Dance

  Dancers in a diamond copy the front player; the diamond rotates on a fixed pattern, so the lead keeps changing.

  4+ players short formmovement

• Warm-up

  Digging a Hole

  Everyone digs a hole; one person rhymes a new action or redefines the mime, and the whole group follows.

  4+ players mimerhyme

• Game

  Don't Laugh

  Get a laugh and you're replaced: the next player repeats your line, trying to play it straight.

  4+ players short formcharacter

• Game

  Doo-Wop

  Three players form a 1950s doo-wop group and sing a heartfelt ballad about someone in the audience.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Double Freeze

  Freeze Tag where an experienced player can swap out both players and bring a newer one on with them.

  4+ players short formphysical

• Game

  Dragon's Lair

  Two hopeful inventors pitch a mystery prop to two hard-nosed investors, who each declare they're in or out.

  4 players short formparody

• Game

  Dramatic Episode

  Players re-enact a true story from an audience member, who rings a bell when it's right and honks when it's wrong.

  3–5 players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Dubbing

  An audience volunteer joins a scene but never speaks: a player at the side says every word for them.

  3 players short formdubbing

• Game

  Duet

  Two players sing a duet on the audience's topic, trading verses and coming together for the chorus.

  2 players short formsong

• Warm-up

  Dyever?

  Round the circle, one word each, the group builds questions that all start with 'Dyever', as in 'did you ever'.

  4–12 players circlestory

• Game

  Early TV

  A popular modern TV show as it might have been made in the earliest days of black-and-white television.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Game

  Echo Chamber

  A hidden game in a scene: one player on stage hears voices from players outside it, and has to deal with them.

  3+ players short formcharacter

• Game

  Eight Things

  A player names eight things in a category while everyone counts them off, then the room cheers.

  3+ players short formenergy

• Game

  Emotion Options

  A scene runs on, but switches to a new emotion each time the host calls one from the audience's list.

  2–3 players short formstyle switch

• Exercise

  Emotional Story Prompts

  A musician turns a five-line story card into music; listeners with their eyes closed say what they felt.

  3–12 players musicalfocus

• Game

  Emotional Temperature

  One line of dialogue gets reactions at different emotional temperatures; the audience vote which becomes a scene.

  2–4 players short formcharacter

• Exercise

  Endowments

  Partners tell each other who they are and what they're like, and each takes on what they're given.

  2+ players pairscharacter

• Game

  Every Other Line

  One player can only say lines read from a play script; the other improvises around them.

  2 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Expert

  An expert in a very obscure subject is interviewed in the style of a TV or radio show the audience picks.

  2 players short formparody

• Game

  Expert Translation

  A visiting expert who speaks only gibberish talks about their subject while a translator puts it into English.

  2–3 players short formgibberish

• Game

  Explanations

  Two players explain something huge and complicated, as whatever kind of people the audience chooses.

  2–3 players short formcharacter

• Warm-up

  Explore the Room with Sounds

  Players explore the room with voice, rhythm and tapping, making sounds that fit the musician's changing underscores.

  4+ players musicalmovement

• Game

  Fashion Models

  Models show off a fashion collection designed for a profession while a commentator describes each look.

  3–4 players short formparody

• Game

  Film and Theatre Styles

  One scene keeps its story but jumps to a new film, TV or theatre style each time the host calls one.

  2–3 players short formstyle switch

• Game

  Film Dub

  Two players act an old film in silence while two others at the side speak every line for them.

  4–6 players short formdubbing

• Game

  Film Noir

  A hard-boiled detective story set somewhere harmless, with players stepping forward to narrate in voice-over.

  2–4 players short formnarrated

• Game

  Film Review

  A critic reviews a made-up film and the other players act out the clips they describe.

  3–4 players short formnarrated

• Game

  Film Trailer

  A voice-over artist narrates a trailer for an audience film title while the others act the clips.

  3–4 players short formnarrated

• Game

  First Date

  A couple from the audience describe their first date; players re-enact it while the couple ring right or honk wrong.

  3–5 players short formaudience volunteer

• Warm-up

  Five Things

  Name five things in a category in time with the group's count, then the circle cheers.

  4–25 players circleenergy

• Game

  Fixed Expression

  Each player keeps one facial expression, chosen by the audience, for the whole scene.

  2–4 players short formphysical

• Warm-up

  Flock of Birds

  The group moves as one flock behind whoever is leading; the lead keeps changing as the flock turns and shifts.

  5+ players movementfocus

• Game

  Flock Story

  A storyteller tells a story while the flock acts it out together in movement, the lead passing as it goes.

  5+ players short formmovement

• Warm-up

  Follow the Follower

  Everyone copies small habits they notice in each other, until the whole room builds to chaos with nobody leading.

  6+ players movementfocus

• Exercise

  Forced Metaphor

  Partners trade stranger and stranger metaphors about each other, justifying each one before giving one back.

  2+ players pairscharacter

• Game

  Foreign Film Dub

  Two players act a foreign film in made-up gibberish while two translators turn every line into English.

  4 players short formdubbing

• Exercise

  Fortunately, Unfortunately

  A story told in turns, with lines alternately starting 'Fortunately' and 'Unfortunately', so the luck keeps swinging.

  2+ players storycircle

• Game

  Forward Rewind

  The host controls a scene like a video, calling rewind, play and fast forward, and the players follow.

  2–3 players short formphysical

• Exercise

  Freeze Frames

  Groups make still pictures of a single moment, then bring them to life or link several into a story.

  3+ players drama classphysical

• Game

  Freeze Tag

  Anyone can freeze the scene, take over one player's exact pose and start a completely new scene from it.

  4+ players short formphysical

• Warm-up

  Fruit Salad

  Players swap seats when their fruit is called, while the caller in the middle tries to grab a chair.

  8–40 players circleenergy

• Game

  Funeral

  Mourners give eulogies for someone who died doing their hobby, then sing a farewell hymn together as one voice.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Technique

  Game of the Scene

  Find the first unusual thing in a scene, then play it again and again, heightening each time.

  2–16 players long form

• Format

  Giant Slacker

  A big jam circle passes the focus from person to person through two-person scenes and tap-outs.

  8+ players long formcharacter

• Exercise

  Gibberish Conversation

  Pairs play a scene in made-up language, telling the story through tone, gesture and status.

  2+ players pairscharacter

• Warm-up

  Gibberish Duets

  Wordless sung duets round a circle: connect, react and tell a story without a single real word.

  4–14 players musicalcircle

• Warm-up

  Gift Giving

  Give each other imaginary gifts round the circle, first spoken, then sung.

  4–20 players musicalcircle

• Warm-up

  Gift Song

  Round a circle, players give each other gifts in song, and each thank-you sets the rhyme for the next gift.

  4–16 players songrhyme

• Game

  Glee Club It

  When the host calls 'Glee club it', the last speaker bursts into a show-choir song until called back to normal.

  3–5 players short formmusical

• Game

  Good Cop Bad Cop

  Two former police officers, now repair people, treat a call-out for a broken appliance like an interrogation.

  3 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Good, Bad, Ugly Advice

  Three advisers answer the audience's problems in turn: one good, one pretty bad, one utterly ruinous.

  1–4 players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Gospel

  Each player preaches a gospel verse about an everyday trouble while the others answer as the choir.

  3–5 players short formsong

• Warm-up

  Grandma's Footsteps

  Players creep up on Grandma while her back is turned; anyone she sees moving goes back to the start.

  4–30 players movementphysical

• Game

  Greatest Hits

  Two TV pitchmen sell a compilation album on one topic, and the singers perform a snippet of each track they name.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Warm-up

  Group Clap

  The whole group tries to clap at the same instant with no leader, then builds rhythms together.

  4–30 players circlefocus

• Technique

  Group Game

  A whole-cast game between rounds of scenes, built from the show's themes.

  4–12 players long form

• Game

  Guess the Country

  Travellers arrive somewhere new and must work out which country they're in from the locals' clues.

  4–6 players short formguessing

• Game

  Hats

  Players grab hats from a pile and step forward as whoever the hat suggests, one quick line each.

  3–6 players short formquick-fire

• Game

  Helping Hands

  One player talks while another, hidden behind them, supplies their arms, usually in a messy demonstration.

  3–4 players short formphysical

• Game

  Hey, You Down There!

  A narrator talks the characters of an old-fashioned instructional film through doing everyday things properly.

  3–4 players short formnarrated

• Exercise

  Hidden Missions

  Each player gets a private mission to pursue inside the scene: an extra focus that sharpens good practice.

  2+ players characterfocus

• Game

  Hitchhiker

  A car of passengers picks up hitchhikers one by one, and everyone in the car takes on each newcomer's trait.

  4–8 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Hoedown

  The players line up and sing a country hoedown on the audience's topic, a four-line verse each.

  3–5 players short formsong

• Game

  Hollywood Director

  A film director keeps stopping a short scene and has the actors replay it with a new note each take.

  3–4 players short formstyle switch

• Game

  Hollywood Moments

  An everyday scene, until the host calls a Hollywood moment and one player's action becomes an epic film scene.

  2–4 players short formparody

• Game

  Home Shopping

  Shopping-channel presenters sell a run of useless items live on air, ending with one the audience names.

  2–4 players short formparody

• Warm-up

  Honey, I Love You

  One player tries to make another smile with 'Honey, I love you'; the reply must come with a straight face.

  5–25 players circlecharacter

• Exercise

  Hot Seating

  A player stays in character in the hot seat and answers the group's questions as that person.

  3–30 players drama classcharacter

• Warm-up

  Hotspot

  Circle song-tag: step into the middle and sing any song you know until someone rescues you with another.

  6–20 players musicalcircle

• Warm-up

  Hush Little Baby

  A sung lullaby chain round the circle: each singer breaks the last promised gift and rhymes a new one.

  4–16 players musicalcircle

• Game

  I Am a Tree

  Players build a three-part picture one shape at a time, then keep one piece and build a new picture round it.

  3+ players short formphysical

• Game

  Ice Skaters

  A figure-skating pair perform a routine that acts out an everyday chore, to music and commentary.

  2–4 players short formparody

• Game

  If You Know What I Mean

  A scene about an innocent topic where every line has a second meaning and ends 'if you know what I mean'.

  2–3 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Improbable Mission

  Secret agents receive a self-destructing message ordering an everyday chore, and carry it out like a daring heist.

  2–4 players short formphysical

• Format

  Improvised Musical

  A full musical made up on the spot from a title, with songs at the big moments and a musician driving.

  4–10 players long formmusical

• Format

  Improvised Play

  One continuous story in acts: characters, a central problem and a resolution, sometimes in a writer's style.

  3–10 players long formstory

• Format

  Improvised Shakespeare

  A whole play improvised in Shakespeare's style: heightened language, asides, disguises and a big finish.

  4–10 players long formstory

• Game

  Infomercial

  Two TV presenters sell miracle products for one everyday problem, inventing each product from a box of odd props.

  2–4 players short formparody

• Game

  Instruction Manual

  A conductor passes an improvised instruction manual between players, section by section; a stumble knocks you out.

  4–8 players short formelimination

• Game

  Interpretative Dance

  One player dances out the words of a well-known song while two others, who don't know the song, try to name it.

  3–6 players short formguessing

• Game

  Interrogation

  Two detectives question a suspect who has no idea what they did, until the suspect works it out and confesses.

  3 players short formguessing

• Game

  Interview

  A famous or fictional character is interviewed in the style of a magazine or programme the audience names.

  2 players short formparody

• Technique

  Interview Opener

  The host chats with an audience member about their day or life; the cast build scenes from the answers.

  3–10 players openeraudience volunteer

• Game

  Interview Switch

  A rolling interview: on 'Switch!' the expert leaves, the interviewer becomes the expert and a newcomer asks.

  4+ players short formcharacter

• Format

  Invention

  A long form about one invention: life before it, the moment it's invented, and what it does to the future.

  3–8 players long formstory

• Technique

  Invocation

  The cast address the suggestion in four stages, from describing it to becoming it.

  4–12 players openerlong form

• Game

  Irish Drinking Song

  Players sway arm in arm and build a pub song one line each, with a nonsense chorus between verses.

  3–5 players short formsong

• Game

  Job Interview

  A candidate interviews for a job they don't know, working it out from the interviewer's ever more pointed hints.

  2–4 players short formguessing

• Warm-up

  Jump Around

  Everyone moves round the room saying and doing a short instruction; mishear one and it becomes yours.

  6+ players movementenergy

• Warm-up

  Keeper of the Keys

  A blindfolded keeper guards a bunch of keys while players sneak in one at a time to steal them.

  5–30 players circlefocus

• Game

  Kick It

  In a spoken scene, the host calls 'kick it' and whoever spoke last raps their thoughts until told to stop.

  2–4 players short formmusical

• Game

  Knockout Lines

  Two lines feed a limited-dialogue scene; break the rule and you go to the back of the other line.

  6+ players short formfocus

• Format

  La Ronde

  A chain of two-person scenes: A meets B, B meets C, and so on until the last player meets A.

  4–10 players long formpairs

• Game

  Landscape

  Over free underscoring from the keyboard, players come in one by one and build a scene in a place.

  3+ players short formmusical

• Game

  Late for Work

  A late arrival explains to the boss, working out the room's secret excuse from mimes behind the boss's back.

  4–6 players short formguessing

• Game

  Let's Make a Date

  A contestant quizzes three hopeful dates, each hiding a secret identity, then names who each one really is.

  4 players short formguessing

• Game

  Letter Exchange

  A pair writes a letter one word at a time as one writer; later in the show another pair replies, and so on.

  4+ players short formpairs

• Game

  Living Scenery

  Two players act a scene in which audience volunteers become all the furniture and objects.

  2–3 players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Lounge Lizards

  Two smooth lounge singers croon about something mundane, with patter and winks to the front row.

  2 players short formsong

• Game

  Love Is Like

  Players step out of a line one at a time to say why love is like the room's word, landing on a pun or twisted logic.

  3+ players short formcharacter

• Exercise

  Machine

  One player starts a repeated movement and sound, and the others join one by one to build a working machine.

  4–20 players physicalmovement

• Game

  Madrigal

  Four singers each sing an audience line to a stately tune, then keep swapping words between lines into a mash-up.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Magic Music

  A returning player hunts for a secret task, guided only by the audience singing louder when close and softer when not.

  1–2 players short formguessing

• Game

  Make a Monster

  A mad scientist builds a monster from body parts of famous people and jobs, then brings it to life.

  3–4 players short formphysical

• Game

  March

  The players march on the spot and sing a rousing marching song on the audience's topic, a verse each.

  3–5 players short formsong

• Format

  Meanwhiles

  A long-form set of scenes from the audience's cards, with short games dropped in and World's Worst to close.

  4+ players long form

• Game

  Meet the Family

  Someone brings their new partner home to meet the parents, who each have a strange trait.

  4–5 players short formcharacter

• Warm-up

  Mind Meld

  Two players say random words at once; the next pair tries to find the word linking them, until two match.

  4–25 players circlefocus

• Exercise

  Mirror

  Pairs face each other and move as one, first with a leader and a follower, then with no leader at all.

  2+ players pairsmovement

• Technique

  Monologue Opener

  Players tell true or invented monologues sparked by the suggestion; the scenes that follow draw on them.

  3–10 players openerstory

• Format

  Monoscene

  The whole show is one continuous scene in one place, in real time, with characters coming and going.

  3–8 players long formcharacter

• Format

  Montage

  A run of scenes from one suggestion, loosely linked or unconnected, edited by the cast as they go.

  3–12 players long formjam

• Game

  Motown Group

  Three players are a 1960s soul vocal group launching a new dance craze based on a job.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Mousetraps

  Blindfolded players act a scene on a floor scattered with noisy obstacles, working every pop into the story.

  4–6 players short formphysical

• Game

  Moving People

  Two players can't move on their own, so audience volunteers move their bodies for them.

  2 players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Multiple Personalities

  Each prop is a famous person, and whoever holds it becomes that person until it moves on.

  2–4 players short formprops

• Game

  Musical Film Review

  A critic reviews a film musical of an unlikely book, and the cast sing each scene the critic describes.

  3–4 players short formmusical

• Game

  Musical Producers

  Two producers pitch a new musical to backers while the other players perform each number they describe.

  3–4 players short formmusical

• Game

  My Movie

  Players invent film titles from an audience member's initials, pitch the best ones, then play a clip from the winner.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Warm-up

  Name and Gesture

  Each player says their name with a gesture, and the whole circle copies it back.

  4–30 players circlenames

• Game

  News Report

  A full TV news bulletin on a fairy tale, with an anchor, a studio expert, a reporter on the scene and witnesses.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Game

  Newsflash

  A reporter describes an event they can't see, while the studio anchors steer them towards what is happening.

  3–4 players short formguessing

• Warm-up

  Ninja

  Players take turns making one swift move to tap someone's hand; a hit hand goes behind the back.

  4–15 players circlephysical

• Game

  Now It's a Musical

  A well-known TV show reworked as a big stage musical, its characters bursting into song.

  3–5 players short formmusical

• Game

  Number of Words

  Every time they speak, each player must use exactly their given number of words.

  2–4 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Warm-up

  Object Transformation

  An object, real or mimed, passes round the circle and each player uses it as something new.

  3–30 players circlemime

• Game

  Objection!

  One player argues a point; anyone can shout 'Objection!' and take over the argument.

  3+ players short formcharacter

• Game

  Oh Waiter

  Two customers in two different restaurants share one waiter, who becomes each customer's kindred spirit in turn.

  3+ players short formcharacter

• Game

  Old Job, New Job

  Players start a new job but keep slipping back into the habits of the one they left.

  2–4 players short formcharacter

• Game

  One-Syllable Word

  A scene in which every word must have one syllable; anyone who slips is buzzed out and replaced.

  3–6 players short formelimination

• Game

  Opera

  The cast sing a short, tragic opera about the day an audience member has had.

  3–4 players short formmusical

• Technique

  Organic Opener

  The group moves and makes sound together on the suggestion, wordless at first, letting images emerge.

  4–12 players openermovement

• Game

  Pan Left, Pan Right

  Four players in a square play four pair scenes; the host calls 'Pan left' or 'Pan right' and the square turns.

  4 players short formstory

• Game

  Panel

  A chair hosts a panel of oddball characters, each in costume, debating the issue of the day.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Format

  Panto

  A quick pantomime run straight through, then replayed section by section in genres the audience choose.

  4–8 players long formparody

• Game

  Parallel Universe

  Two scenes in two places share the stage, taking turns line by line and never noticing each other.

  4 players short formfocus

• Exercise

  Park Bench

  Two players share a bench; the newcomer has to make the other leave, for a reason that grows out of the scene.

  3–16 players statuscharacter

• Game

  Party Quirks

  A party host greets guests who each hide a strange quirk, and must name every one before the party ends.

  3–5 players short formguessing

• Game

  Party Time

  Players dance to party music; each time it stops, one steps forward with a world's-worst line on the topic.

  3–6 players short formmovement

• Warm-up

  Pass the Clap

  A clap travels round the circle with eye contact, then reverses, doubles up and speeds up.

  5–30 players circlefocus

• Warm-up

  Pass the Face

  A pulled face travels round the circle; each player copies it exactly, then changes it for the next.

  5–25 players circlephysical

• Technique

  Pattern Game

  Associations on the suggestion pass round the group, building patterns that feed the scenes.

  4–12 players openercircle

• Game

  Picture

  Players put their faces through holes in a painted scene and play its characters with faces and voices only.

  2–4 players short formprops

• Game

  Pillars

  Two players act a scene, tapping the audience volunteers beside them on the shoulder for a word whenever they need one.

  2 players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Piranha Tank

  Two inventors pitch a strange prop as their invention to two investors looking for any excuse to say no.

  4 players short formparody

• Game

  Pocket Lines

  Players pull audience-written lines from their pockets mid-scene and have to make each one fit.

  2–3 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Poetry Translation

  A visiting poet recites in gibberish and a translator gives the poem in English, line by line.

  2 players short formpairs

• Game

  Press Conference

  A speaker holds a press conference without knowing who they are or why, and works it out from the questions.

  3–5 players short formguessing

• Game

  Prison Visitor

  Prisoners sing their woes through the bars to a visitor, who sings back.

  3–4 players short formmusical

• Game

  Props

  Two teams take turns turning a strange object into something else, one quick idea at a time.

  4–6 players short formquick-fire

• Game

  Psychiatrist

  Patients sing their problems from the couch, and the psychiatrist sings a diagnosis back.

  3–4 players short formmusical

• Game

  Question This

  A quiz show in reverse: the quizmaster reads out answers and the contestants must come up with the questions.

  3–4 players short formparody

• Exercise

  Question-and-Answer Rhyming

  Sung round the circle in order: answer your question, then ask the next person one that rhymes with your answer.

  4–16 players musicalrhyme

• Game

  Questionable Impressions

  Questions only, and every player who enters does an impression of someone new.

  3–6 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Questions Only

  A scene in which every line must be a question; anyone who slips is buzzed out and replaced.

  3–6 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Questions with Hats

  Questions only, and every player grabs a hat on the way in and plays whoever it suggests.

  3–6 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Questions with Wigs

  Questions only, and every player grabs a wig on the way in and plays whoever it suggests.

  3–6 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Quick Change

  Whenever the host calls change, the last player to speak must replace their line with a new one.

  2–3 players short formquick-fire

• Game

  Quiz Show

  A quizmaster puts three contestants through rounds of questions on a theme the audience chooses.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Game

  Radio Show

  Two DJs host a radio phone-in on the audience's topic, and the other players call in as a string of listeners.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Game

  Rap

  Over a steady beat, each player raps a verse in turn on the audience's topic.

  3–5 players short formsong

• Game

  Rap Intros

  Rappers at a showcase each live up to the stage name they're introduced with, then invent the next one.

  3+ players short formsong

• Game

  Rap Rhyme

  Over a rap beat, players set up a rhyme for the audience's one-syllable word, and the room shouts the rhyme.

  1–5 players short formrhyme

• Exercise

  Rapping Backing

  Pairs or small groups hold an ordinary conversation as a rap over a steady beat.

  2+ players musicalrhyme

• Game

  Rashomon

  One short scene, then the same events replayed as each character remembers them, always in their own favour.

  2–4 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Really Bad Hangover

  Two hungover characters struggle through the morning while every tiny sound comes out deafening.

  3–4 players short formmime

• Warm-up

  Red Ball

  Imaginary objects are thrown across the circle by name and thanked for, until several are flying at once.

  6–25 players circlefocus

• Game

  Remember That Song

  A shopkeeper recognises each customer as a forgotten pop star and gets them to sing their old hit.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Remote Control

  Each player is a TV channel covering the same subject, and the host flicks between them.

  3–5 players short formstyle switch

• Exercise

  Retained Chain Scenes

  A chain of two-player scenes on a fixed rotation: on each freeze one player stays on and a new one comes in.

  3–8 players long form

• Game

  Reunion

  Old friends meet again, remember their shared past, and sing their old song together as one voice.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Right Way Wrong Way

  Two pairs play the same everyday situations: one shows the perfect way to handle each, the other the worst.

  4 players short formpairs

• Game

  Rock Out

  The players form a rock band and each sings a verse on the audience's topic, with air-guitar breaks between.

  3–5 players short formsong

• Warm-up

  Rock Paper Scissors Evolution

  Everyone starts as an egg; win at rock-paper-scissors to evolve a stage, lose and drop back one.

  6–60 players energymovement

• Warm-up

  Rojo Globo

  A simple sentence goes round the circle, restated each time in completely new words, never reusing one.

  3–12 players circle

• Warm-up

  Samurai

  A mimed sword passes across the circle; whoever gets it raises it high while both neighbours slice beneath it.

  6–25 players circleenergy

• Exercise

  Scale Steps

  The group sings numbers up the scale and back, one step further each time, then swaps two numbers for words.

  2+ players musicalfocus

• Game

  Scene to Music

  A scene played to whatever style of music is on, changing its mood and action every time the music changes.

  2–4 players short formstyle switch

• Game

  Scene to Rap

  Two players act a scene in which every line is rapped over a beat, and the others rap their way in.

  2–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Scene with a Prop

  Two players build a whole scene around one odd prop, used as whatever the story needs.

  2 players short formprops

• Game

  Scene with an Audience Member

  Two players act a scene with an audience volunteer, who reads their lines from a script when cued.

  2–3 players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Scene with Masks

  Each player puts on a mask and plays the character it suggests, in a scene from the audience.

  2–4 players short formcostume

• Game

  Scenes Cut from a Movie

  The host calls out well-known films and players step out with quick scenes that never made the final cut.

  3–6 players short formquick-fire

• Game

  Scenes from a Hat

  The host pulls audience-written prompts from a hat and players step out with quick takes on each one.

  3–6 players short formquick-fire

• Exercise

  Sculptor

  One player shapes a partner like clay into a statue on a theme, and the group reads what the statue shows.

  2+ players pairsphysical

• Game

  Secret

  One character guards a box holding a secret, and the scene builds until it's opened and has to be explained.

  2–3 players short formprops

• Exercise

  Set-ups

  A two-line rhyming relay: sing a line that plants a rhyme, and the next singer completes it with the word you meant.

  4–12 players musicalrhyme

• Warm-up

  Sevens

  Count one to seven round the circle, a hand on the shoulder showing which way it goes; seven turns it round.

  5–20 players circlefocus

• Warm-up

  Shake Down

  Shake each limb in turn while the whole group counts down loudly from eight to one.

  2+ players energyphysical

• Game

  Shorter and Shorter

  A one-minute scene, then the same scene again in 30 seconds, 15, 5 and finally 1.

  2–4 players short formphysical

• Game

  Show-Stopping Number

  A spoken scene where, on the host's call, whoever spoke last turns their line into a big musical number.

  2–4 players short formmusical

• Warm-up

  Show, Don't Tell

  A silent mingle where players show an imaginary object by using it, then swap objects with everyone they meet.

  4+ players mimemovement

• Game

  Sideways Scene

  Players act a style-switching scene lying on the floor, moving as if they were standing up.

  2–3 players short formstyle switch

• Format

  Slacker

  Focus passes from one character to whoever they meet, following people rather than a single story.

  4–12 players long formcharacter

• Game

  Slideshow

  A presenter talks through their holiday slides, and on each click the other players freeze into the next picture.

  3–6 players short formnarrated

• Game

  Soap Opera

  A melodramatic soap episode set in a place where soaps never go, with a shock in every scene.

  3–4 players short formparody

• Game

  Something's Missing

  Players perform the same scene four times, one more player each run, each filling gaps the first one left.

  3–4 players short formmime

• Game

  Song Styles

  A player sings a song about the audience's topic in a music style or singer's manner the audience chooses.

  1–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Song Titles

  A scene in which every line of dialogue has to be the title of a real song.

  2–6 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Warm-up

  Sound and Movement

  One player makes a sound with a movement, the circle copies it, then it passes on and changes.

  5–25 players circlephysical

• Warm-up

  Sound Ball

  Throw an imaginary ball across the circle with a sound; the catcher catches the same sound, then throws a new one.

  5–25 players circlemime

• Game

  Sound Effects

  Players act a scene while others at the side make every sound it needs.

  2–4 players short formmime

• Game

  Sound Effects with Audience Members

  Two players act a scene while two audience volunteers make all its sound effects.

  2 players short formaudience volunteer

• Warm-up

  Soundscape

  Lying down with eyes closed, the group builds a place out of sounds, slowly turns it into another, then lets it fade.

  4+ players focusjam

• Game

  Space Jump

  Each 'Space jump!' adds a player and a new scene from the frozen shapes, then the scenes unwind in reverse.

  4–6 players short formphysical

• Warm-up

  Splat

  The caller points and says 'Splat!'; that player ducks while the two either side splat each other.

  6–30 players circleelimination

• Game

  Sportscasters

  Two players treat an everyday task as a top-level sport while two commentators call the action.

  3–4 players short formparody

• Game

  Stand, Sit, Lie

  Three players play a scene in which, at every moment, one stands, one sits and one lies down.

  3 players short formphysical

• Exercise

  Status Cards

  Each player wears a playing card they can't see, and everyone treats them by its rank until they guess their number.

  6–30 players statusguessing

• Game

  Status Swap

  Two players start at opposite ends of the status scale and have swapped places by the end of the scene.

  2 players short formstatus

• Warm-up

  Stop, Go, Jump, Clap

  Walk the space to called commands, then the meanings swap and brains scramble.

  4–40 players movementfocus

• Game

  Story

  A narrator tells a story from an audience title while the others act it out, steering it to a given moral.

  3–4 players short formnarrated

• Exercise

  Story Spine

  A story built on fixed sentence openings, from 'Once upon a time' through 'Because of that' to 'And ever since then'.

  2+ players storycircle

• Game

  Story, Story, Die

  A conducted story where anyone who stumbles, hesitates or breaks the story is knocked out, until one teller is left.

  4–8 players short formstory

• Game

  Strange Bedfellows

  Three famous people share a flat and have to sort out an ordinary household problem.

  3 players short formcharacter

• Game

  String of Pearls

  A story is retold in full each run, starting from its first and last lines, with one new line added every time.

  4+ players short formstory

• Game

  Superheroes

  A hero with a feeble power faces a world crisis, and each hero who arrives is named on the spot by the one before.

  3–5 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Survival Show

  Contestants compete in a reality survival show set somewhere ordinary, with challenges, confessions and a vote-off.

  4–5 players short formparody

• Technique

  Swarm Edit

  Several players flood the stage to end a scene, often forming the start of the next.

  5–12 players editlong form

• Game

  Swedish Story

  A storyteller spins a tale while the host stops them for single words from the audience that they must work in.

  2 players short formstory

• Technique

  Sweep Edit

  A player runs across the front of the stage to end one scene and start the next.

  4–12 players editlong form

• Technique

  Tag-Out

  A player taps one actor on the shoulder; that actor leaves, and the scene goes on with a new character.

  4–12 players editlong form

• Game

  Telethon

  Two telethon hosts raise money for people who don't need it, introducing acts who sing for the cause.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  That Sounds Like a Song

  Someone outside the scene repeats a line just spoken, says 'That sounds like a song', and the scene breaks into song.

  3+ players short formmusical

• Game

  That'll Be Charlie Now

  Friends gossip about the odd habits of someone they're expecting, and the player who arrives has to become them.

  3–5 players short formcharacter

• Format

  The Armando

  A guest tells true stories from a suggestion; the cast spin scenes out of them, and the stories return between scenes.

  4–10 players long formstory

• Game

  The Ballad Of

  Two players sing a country ballad that turns an audience member's ordinary job into a legend.

  2 players short formsong

• Format

  The Bat

  A Harold or long-form set played in total darkness: everything happens through voice and sound.

  4–9 players long formfocus

• Warm-up

  The Big Wind Blows

  The caller says 'The big wind blows for everyone who…'; everyone it's true for must swap seats.

  8–40 players circleenergy

• Game

  The Blues

  A slow twelve-bar blues about the room's subject, one verse per singer, building as it goes.

  2–6 players short formmusical

• Warm-up

  The Circle of Zum

  A grown cousin of Zip Zap Boing, with a contested throw and an echo modifier.

  circlepassing

• Format

  The Harold

  An opener, three rounds of three scenes with group games between, and threads that tie together at the end.

  6–9 players long formstory

• Format

  The Living Room

  The cast chat like friends about the suggestion; any player steps out into a scene, then back to the chat.

  3–8 players long formstory

• Game

  The Millionaire Show

  A contestant climbs a ladder of multiple-choice questions on a theme, using lifelines to reach the top prize.

  2–4 players short formparody

• Format

  The Movie

  An improvised film: title and settings at the start, then scenes cutting between storylines using film tricks.

  4–10 players long formstory

• Game

  Theme Scenes

  The whole cast plays a fast run of short scenes on one audience theme, editing each other in and out.

  4–8 players short formstory

• Game

  Themed Restaurant

  Two diners eat at a restaurant built around an odd theme, and the staff play the theme in every detail.

  3–4 players short formcharacter

• Game

  This Is the Story of Your Life

  A presenter surprises a guest of honour with their life story, as people from their past walk on with memories.

  3–5 players short formparody

• Exercise

  Thought Tracking

  The scene freezes, and characters tapped on the shoulder speak their private thoughts aloud.

  3+ players drama classcharacter

• Game

  Three of a Kind

  Three players who all share the same job meet in a place where that job has no business being.

  3 players short formcharacter

• Warm-up

  Three Things

  A player is given a category and names three things in it fast; the circle cheers however bad they are.

  4–25 players circleenergy

• Game

  Three-Headed Broadway Star

  Three players link arms as one Broadway star and sing a showtune one word each in turn.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Three-Headed Expert

  Three players play one expert, answering questions a word at a time each, in turn.

  1–4 players short formaudience volunteer

• Exercise

  Three-Line Scenes

  Two players establish who they are, where they are and what's happening in three lines, then step back.

  4–20 players pairs

• Technique

  Time Dash

  The same characters jump forward or back in time: 'Ten years later'.

  2–12 players editlong form

• Game

  Title Sequence

  Two players sing a sitcom theme about two unlikely flatmates while two others act out the opening titles.

  4 players short formsong

• Technique

  Transformation Edit

  Players morph the current scene's shapes, sounds or a line into a new scene without leaving the stage.

  3–12 players editphysical

• Game

  TV Channels

  Three players rotate in pairs through three TV shows while a host flicks channels; each show returns three times.

  4 players short formparody

• Game

  Two Characters

  Two characters who'd never normally meet are stuck together somewhere unlikely.

  2 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Two Play Three

  Two players share three characters, switching roles on the spot, until each has played all three.

  2 players short formcharacter

• Game

  Two-Headed Expert

  Two players speak in unison as one expert, quizzed by an interviewer made of two players taking a word each.

  4 players short formfocus

• Game

  Two-Headed Scene

  Two players speak a word at a time as one character, in a scene with an ordinary player or another pair.

  3–4 players short formpairs

• Game

  Two-Line Vocabulary

  Two players may only say their two given lines; the third speaks freely and must make sense of them.

  3 players short formrestricted dialogue

• Game

  Typewriter

  A writer types a story aloud at an imaginary typewriter, the players act it, and the writer rewrites what they see.

  3–5 players short formnarrated

• Game

  Understudies

  One person reads a character's lines from a script while a player improvises the other side of the scene.

  1–2 players short formaudience volunteer

• Game

  Upside Down

  Two players lie back with their legs up so they seem upside down, and sing a duet about their topsy-turvy lives.

  2 players short formsong

• Game

  Video Player

  One player reads a film's short guide entry, then works the remote while the others act the film.

  3–4 players short formnarrated

• Exercise

  Wait, Wait, Wait

  Scenes where every player silently counts about six seconds before replying to any line.

  2–16 players pairsfocus

• Warm-up

  Walk the Space

  The group walks the room filling the gaps, changing speed, direction and focus on the facilitator's calls.

  3+ players movementfocus

• Technique

  Walk-On

  A player enters briefly as a new character to add to the scene, then leaves.

  4–12 players editcharacter

• Game

  Wedding

  A wedding built around an audience volunteer's harmless quirk, with speeches, a tipsy relative and a wedding song.

  3–4 players short formsong

• Game

  Weird Newscasters

  A news programme whose anchors, sports reporter and weather presenter each have a strange quirk.

  3–4 players short formcharacter

• Warm-up

  What Are You Doing?

  One player mimes an action; asked what they're doing, they name something else, which the asker must mime.

  2+ players pairsmime

• Game

  What Are You Trying to Say?

  Two touchy characters take everything the other says as a veiled insult, and say so at length.

  2 players short formcharacter

• Format

  What the Dickens?

  A narrated Dickensian story about one person whose fate matters, full of injustice, coincidence and caricature.

  5–7 players long formnarrated

• Game

  What Three Words

  Three words are spelled out letter by letter, and each line of the scene starts with the next letter.

  1–2 players short formpairs

• Warm-up

  What's Funny About…?

  Someone asks what's funny about an everyday thing, and everyone calls out what's odd or comic about it.

  3+ players energy

• Game

  What's in the Bag?

  Players play a scene using whatever they pull out of audience members' bags as props.

  2–3 players short formprops

• Warm-up

  Who Started the Motion?

  A secret leader changes the group's movement and everyone follows; a guesser in the middle tries to spot them.

  6–25 players circleguessing

• Warm-up

  Whoosh

  Send energy round the circle with 'Whoosh', bounce it back with 'Whoa', fire it across with 'Zap'.

  6–30 players circleenergy

• Game

  Why Are You Late?

  Latecomers explain themselves to the boss with excuses that are secretly the plots of well-known films.

  3+ players short formguessing

• Warm-up

  Wink Murder

  A secret murderer kills by winking; victims die dramatically while a detective works out who it is.

  6–30 players circleguessing

• Warm-up

  Word Association

  Round the circle, each player says the first word the previous one brings to mind, as fast as they can.

  3–25 players circlefocus

• Exercise

  Word at a Time Story

  A story told one word per person, round the circle or between partners, with nobody in charge of where it goes.

  2+ players storycircle

• Game

  World's Worst

  Players step forward one at a time to show the world's worst version of a job, person or thing.

  3–6 players short formquick-fire

• Game

  Wrong Theme Tune

  Players present a serious subject as a TV programme, but the theme tune is all wrong and they have to follow it.

  2–3 players short formstyle switch

• Exercise

  Yes, And

  Pairs plan an event where every line accepts the last idea and adds to it, after a round of 'Yes, but'.

  2+ players pairs

• Warm-up

  Yes, Let's

  Anyone calls out 'Let's…'; the whole group shouts 'Yes, let's!' and does it until the next idea.

  4–40 players energymovement

• Warm-up

  Zip Zap Boing

  Pass the energy round the circle: zip to a neighbour, zap across, boing to block it and send it back.

  5–30 players circlefocus
  Read it in full →

• Warm-up

  Zip Zap Zop

  Point across the circle passing 'zip', 'zap', 'zop' in strict order; break the order and you restart.

  5–30 players circlefocus