Improvisation in theatre can take many forms, comic and dramatic. Improv comedy as you might see performed in Boston is often one of two flavors, long-form or short-form.

Long Form

In long-form improv, there is usually one theme that is culled from the audience and then used as a jumping off point for what can be one continuous narrative or a series of related narratives which may be visited and revisited through the course of the scene, which could last one-half hour or more.

Short Form

In short-form improv, such as that performed by KIS, short, unrelated scenes and vignettes are performed, each one inspired by a different audience input. In most cases these scenes last 5 minutes or less. This is the type of improv fans of the TV show "Whose Line is it Anyway?" will recognize.

Are you guys REALLY making it all up?

As the name implies, improv is just that, in that the actors do not have lines nor do they know what the scenes are about before the show. However, some things are not improvised. These are the structures, or framework, of the scenes themselves, what makes a good story, and the "rules" of improv.