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Event
SOLO SKETCH COMEDY CLASS - Instructor Matt Barbera Mondays 7pm starting FEBRUARY 23rd
The Playground Theater and Matt Barbera are offering a class in solo sketch comedy. Solo Sketch Comedy is blowing up in Chicago and rightfully so. The skills you will learn in this class will help you in auditions, prepare you for showcases, teach you the fundamentals of an SNL audition, give you a strong starting point to create a one person show, and generally help you create and perform well rounded characters that will help you in all areas of your performance (Improv, sketch ,writing, and directing).
This six week class focuses on:
Making sure YOU are seen and represented in the solo work you create.
We really focus on FINDING & REFINING COMEDIC VOICE
Covering the different types of solo sketch scenes
Pitching scene ideas and concepts
Taking the scenes from pitch to stage
The various ways in which solo sketch is used
The differences in set style for different venues such as auditions, showcase, SNL showcase, etc.
Solo sketch in a political / satirical sense
How to begin crafting a solo show
Class participants will be invited to: The Playground's "HAPPY HOUR" show, Chicago's only solo sketch comedy open mic Thursdays at 6pm, the participants will receive a slot in the next round of the "GIVE ME 5" season Wednesdays at 10pm, and will also be given a class performance showcase.
The 6 week class is $225. Class times are:
Mondays 7-10m Starting in June
Classes will be 8-12 participants max
Matt Barbera has been President of The Playground since 2004, and is one of the foremost leaders in the solo sketch comedy scene. In 2009, when TBS' Just For Laughs came to Chicago Matt pitched "ALONE" a solo sketch comedy show to festival producers. They saw the relevancy in this kind of show and Matt co-produced "ALONE" at JFL Chicago during the festival's Chicago run (2009-13). He continues to lead the Chicago showcases for JFL Montreal. Since then "ALONE", now called " The CHARACTERS Showcase" is a featured mainstay show in the Montreal Just For Laughs Festival.
Preceding his work for JFL, Matt was the co-creator of Happy Hour with SNL's Mike "Pat" O'Brien, Paul Thomas and Wendy Mateo, which was Chicago's first and only Open Mic for Solo Sketch Performers. In 2010, Matt created the "Give Me 5", which has become a transformative show for the improv community giving performers access and inspiration to create solo work. Building on what solo work can do for performers, Matt created "OUT OF CHARACTER" in 2011, which takes these highly developed solo pieces while the rest of the cast improvises a comedy pilot around the character. Matt is a huge fan of comedy and a bigger fan of the creative process.
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LocationThe Playground Theater
3209 N Halsted St
Chicago, IL 60657
United States
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