Here’s a great warm-up courtesy of Tom Vest, just in time for Halloween:

This is a variation on the classic “Sound and Motion” exercise I made up one year around Halloween when I couldn’t find any “monster” related warm-ups for a class I was teaching.

To start, the class forms a circle with one person standing in the middle.

That person begins to walk around the circle as a zombie — their zombie walk is totally up to them, there is no right or wrong. The next person to enter follows them, mimicking them as closely as possible.

Take note: How fast are they going? Do they drag a foot? Does the zombie tilt to one side, or are they making some kind of sound?

I found this exercise is really great for people who are new to improv, or for performers who haven’t worked together before. It puts everyone immediately on the same silly page, and laughs are guaranteed.

Photo © New York Musical Improv Festival