The Harold Has Too Many Scenes!
This is an improv post. Here’s the gist: Even though The Harold is a valuable teaching tool (sometimes), it’s not a good performance form (kinda ever). Yet it’s used… a lot!
We need something better.
Sorry, right. This is an improv post. Not everyone who reads this newsletter has done improv for a million years.
The “Harold” is an improv structure (just like “the sonnet” is a poetry structure) developed at iO Chicago (and earlier) by Del Close. It’s a way to do a fully improvised set of scenes but have them feel like a cohesive whole. The form is presented very well in Dyna Moe’s excellent poster.
The Harold is used as the signature improv structure for training and performing at many popular and excellent theaters, including: iO Chicago, Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (LA and soon NYC), The Free Association in London, the Improv Conspiracy in Melbourne, Sea Tea Improv in Hartford, CT. And many others.
I’m speaking primarily of how The Harold is taught at the UCB Theatre, which is with a heavy emphasis on initiating scenes with full premises.
The main problem with the Harold is this: there are too many scenes.
Like, way too many. To follow the classic structure properly, you do an opening and then a minimum of 9 scenes(!).
That’s what makes the Harold no fun. It’s not “game of the scene” or “openings” or “second beats” that hurts the Harold. It’s not that it’s hard or demanding. It’s just: Too. Many. Scenes.
Remember that the Harold is generally performed by student groups or new house teams. Two things result: either the show is about 40-45 minutes long (too long for a set from an apprentice teams).
Or — far more common — you rush the scenes so that your improv is about 75% coming up with initiations, and then editing after a minute and a half. There’s no discovery. You walk into a scene and set up 50% of the scene in your initiation. There’s no time for patience or discovery.
I freely admit: The Harold, done this way, is a GREAT training regimen for initiations. It’s also decent at teaching connections. The classic Harold should still be a class that is taught at any major improv theater, just like an improvised movie, monoscene or documentary.
But using The Harold as your SIGNATURE FORM? Both for teaching and for performing? That’s too much Harold, and too much initiating. Think of a world where every restaurant had nights where they only served 9 course meals. You just… wouldn’t go on those nights. Or you’d go and leave early.
I believe The Harold earned its place as the primary improv form because (and I am fully guessing) it was seen as an open-ended form, which groups could adopt to their style. But that’s not what happens. It turns a team into an initiation machine, and that’s it.
Great teams can do great Harolds. But it feels like an insane feat when they do. You have to think so incredibly fast and deeply. You initiate full ideas in half a sentence. You edit the second you can take a breath.
I think that’s why no veteran team DOES the Harold on a regular basis once they are not required to by their theater. It just doesn’t work as well as other forms.
It shouldn’t be this hard. Not for the signature form.
I saw a documentary on the sport of cricket. The main things I knew about cricket is 1) it takes forever to play, and 2) fans get mad if you suggest there’s anything wrong with the game. Sounds like longtime improv teachers defending the Harold.
Then I saw that in 2003 they developed a shorter version of the game (called, is this right, Twenty20) which could be completed in 3 hours. It seems to capture much of the spirit of classic cricket but in less time. It has become extremely popular in its own right. Classic cricket still exists. But there’s also Twenty20.
Here’s my pitch (cricket pun intended) for a Twenty20 version of the Harold:
Mini Harold. Two beats instead of three and only one group scene. So you have: an opening, 2 first beats, a group scene, 2 second beats, and then a final connection scene. An opening and six scenes.
Penta-form. Slightly more freeform. An opening, five scenes and then a closing connection scene. It’s still an opening and six scenes. But there’s no required group scene or required second beats - do them as you wish.
With each of these, you still get:
But the reduced number of scenes also gives enough breathing room that there’s more discovery and less heightening. You could also easily do these forms in about 25 minutes.
I would still advocate for The Harold, in it classic form, to be an advanced class. Kinda like Latin. There’s a lot to learn there. But we don’t need it front and center.
Happy to hear discussion on this. I’m still thinking it over a lot myself!
Thanks to Jen deHaan for graphics help!
Friendship Buddies Stand-up: Sunday Aug 20 8pm at Verdugo Bar here in lovely Los Angeles. Great show, nice people! I’m gonna do 8 minutes on The Harold (no I’m not).
Totally Pals! - Sarah Claspell and I are the guests on this epsiode of Steve Szlaga’s improvised podcast about a fake TV show.
Improvly Speaking - I’m a guest on Dayna Gowan’s cool improv podcast. This is one where we talk ABOUT improv.
Toretto Sauce: Saturday 7pm The Clubhouse. Toretto and The Sauce are two great indie teams I’m a big fan of. These guys are really fun. Check ‘em out!
Screw It, We’re Just Gonna Talk About Comics - Comic book podcast, hosted by my brother Kevin and I. This week, Kevin and I continue to read John Byrne’s Fantastic Four comics and answer email.
Clubhouse Fridays - WGIS’ weekly improv show. Fridays 7pm at The Clubhouse. Free!
How to Be The Greatest Improviser On Earth - My improv book, available at Amazon. Kindle or print. It’s a hodge-podge of advice I wrote in 2016 about doing improv. Hey, if you’re broke and want a free PDF just email me and I’ll send it over.
At the PDA show last Saturday (in which I got to perform) I got to see Kevin Krieger do his improvised act and it was really fun and funny and great. PDA is a “clowning theater” which I put in quotes because I do not know enough about clowning to be sure I’m saying anything right. But I really enjoyed Kevin’s performance and want to see him again!
Ghost at UCB Harold Night - Even though I’m pushing for the Harold to change, that doesn’t mean there’s not people who can do a fun show with it. Ghost at UCB did a terrifically fun Harold a few weeks ago and if you’re in town I recommend them! I think maybe every team at UCB is strong, but for this section of the newsletter I’m sticking to stuff I saw with my own two peepers.
Bye! Please pass this newsletter on to anyone who you’d think would like it!
-William Bradford Hines
ncG1vNJzZmivmaG5qbXNnqpnq6WXwLWtwqRlnKedZL1wwMeeZKGZoqS5pXnHmqpmrJ%2Bkeq6tzbJkrJuVo7K0