As an actor and a stand-up comedian, I’ve learned how to live in both worlds of entertainment. What I have noticed is that comics often perform very well on sitcoms and films because most of what is asked for in the script they do on stage nightly. As an actor, you should be just as knowledgeable and prepared as your comedian counterparts. Here are some of the terms that every actor should know when they step onto a sitcom or comedy film set:
Improvisation: When you, as an actor, are given a scenario and a setting, then asked to create a scene with no lines. Or when you’re asked to do more with a scene than the lines that are written.
Storyline: The plot or narrative of the sitcom or play. For a comedy, this is the road map from which all the comedic situations will arise. In a sitcom, there are usually an A, B, and C storylines for the characters, which are intertwined into the main theme of the show.
Slapstick: A show or movie based on deliberately clumsy and humorously embarrassing events. Not necessarily high-brow comedy, usually filled with pratfalls, spit-takes, and physical comedy
Satire: A show or sketch that uses humor to ridicule the views of a person’s stupidity or vices, usually a political
As an actor and a stand-up comedian, I’ve learned how to live in both worlds of entertainment. What I have noticed is that comics often perform very well on sitcoms and films because most of what is asked for in the script they do on stage nightly. As an actor, you should be just as knowledgeable and prepared as your comedian counterparts. Here are some of the terms that every actor should know when they step onto a sitcom or comedy film set:
Improvisation: When you, as an actor, are given a scenario and a setting, then asked to create a scene with no lines. Or when you’re asked to do more with a scene than the lines that are written.
Storyline: The plot or narrative of the sitcom or play. For a comedy, this is the road map from which all the comedic situations will arise. In a sitcom, there are usually an A, B, and C storylines for the characters, which are intertwined into the main theme of the show.
Slapstick: A show or movie based on deliberately clumsy and humorously embarrassing events. Not necessarily high-brow comedy, usually filled with pratfalls, spit-takes, and physical comedy
Satire: A show or sketch that uses humor to ridicule the views of a person’s stupidity or vices, usually a political
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