In one week you will spend four days with Jill Bernard and one day with Leonie Traffelet – the same topics will be explored from two completely different perspectives: IMPROVISOR’S MINDSET | CHARACTER WORK. Lets enjoy impro summertime!

CONTENT

JILL BERNARD

In 2002 Jill designed a toolkit for creating characters called VAPAPO: Voice, Attitude, Posture, Animal, Prop and Obsession. Improvisors could grab one of these elements to build a quick character for a short improv scene. We’ll also practice connecting these choices to realistic character work, noticing ourselves and our scene partners on a microlevel, and playing with emotions and energy in ways that feel honest rather than absurd. You’ll learn how to sustain these characters with pauses and rests, build narrative or relationship‑based structures, and create scenes that leave the audience engaged, content, and invigorated.

LEONIE TRAFFELET

We’ll dive into big, bold characters using body work and emotion, taking loose inspiration from traditional mime. We’ll explore how physical transformation, emotional exaggeration, and clear physical choices can take over your whole body as you play with intensity and focus, all while staying present with your scene partner.
IMPROVISOR’S MINDSET

JILL BERNARD

We’ll explore how to approach improv with curiosity rather than judgment. To me, learning improv is a series of experiments where we see if we can get results that are useful and spark creativity, while being clear to an audience and generous to our scene partners. We’re looking to have a playful mindset where we ask: “What happens if we….” & “What if we try….” to see what we can get out of the tools and exercises.

LEONIE TRAFFELET

We’ll look at committing 150% to your own ideas, saying “Yes” to yourself first, and creating bold, comedic, physical characters — all while staying present, listening, and building scenes collaboratively with your stage partners.

THE COACHES

JILL BERNARD

Jill Bernard has been performing with ComedySportz‑Twin Cities since 1993, and was a founding member of HUGE Theater in Minneapolis. Her one‑woman improv piece, Drum Machine, has been featured in over forty improv festivals. She has taught and performed improv in Argentina, Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and in over forty of the United States; and also on an episode of MTV «Made». She is author of the improv book «Small Cute Book of Improv».

LEONIE TRAFFELT

Leonie Traffelet is a versatile performer, teacher, and human. She began improvising in 2011 and became a professional improvisor in 2018 with anundpfirsich, while completing her master’s degree in Robotics at ETH Zürich. Her training includes iO Chicago, The Annoyance Theatre, numerous international festivals, and studies in mime at the Scuola Dimitri in Ticino. Leonie has performed across Europe and along the West Coast of Canada and the USA, including as part of the ensemble of the International Seattle Improv Festival. In Zurich, she has helped shape a range of projects such as SPUNK, Improchäller, da vorne links, and Ein frühes Stück, and contributed to organizing the opening of anundpfirsich’s Theater im Zollhaus. As an artist and engineer, Leonie brings a wide artistic vocabulary, a deep love of play, and a commitment to precision and continuous exploration to everything she does.

THE LOCATION

The Summer Intensive will take place at Theater im Zollhaus – Zollstrasse 121, 8005 Zürich.

PREREQUISITES

The Summer Intensive is aimed at advanced improvisers.
This is equivilant to „Bühnenkurs: Grundlagen“ or 1.5+ years of improv experience.

We reserve the right to contact you and ask for more information about your previous experience.