How to Build a Dead Parrot — Comedy Sketch Writing with Neil Alsip

Learn the professional tricks of how to create a comedy sketch that will make your audience laugh so hard it will plague their memories for years to come. Award-winning film and television writer Neil Alsip draws on 25 years in Hollywood, writing for everyone from Bill Maher to Mickey Mouse, to help you give sweet sweet birth to a perfect comedy sketch of your own. In a two-night class, you’ll learn the secret mechanics used in the greatest skits in history — from SNL and Monty Python to Key and Peele and more. In dissecting what makes a good sketch great, you’ll learn how to generate ideas, find the character engine, and get the laughs your needy little heart demands. The second night, you’ll bring in a draft of your own sketch and hear your words acted out by other students in a warm and raucous table read. After generous constructive feedback, you will bounce out onto the street with a spring in your step, new friends, and a shiny little comedy gem to call your own.

This is a two-part workshop. Signing up automatically registers you for both courses on Sept. 28 & 30.

NIGHT ONE — LEARN THE CRAFT

The most memorable skits in history took thought and craft. Chris Farley wasn’t just born in a “van down by the river,” writer Bob Odenkirk carefully put him there with a pad and pencil. We’ll dissect legendary skits from Monty Python, Saturday Night Live, Key and Peele and more to see the mechanics of emotion and point of view that make a good sketch great. We’ll learn the skeleton of a skit: the premise, the characters, the twist, the escalation, the punch and the blow.

NIGHT TWO – TABLE READ AND REFINE

Students will come back for a second class with a draft of a script they’ve written based on their ideas. We will go through a professional-style table read in which each script is acted off the page by other members of the class. After each read, we will discuss what worked best, what got confusing or repetitive, and the best ways to clarify, refine and punch up the dialogue. When done in an atmosphere of camaraderie and positive energy, table reads are far more fun than they sound. Ideas bubble up out of the most unlikely places and you’ll laugh more in these critiques than in even the most thrilling mid-level manager quarterly review. By the end, every student will bounce out into the street with a spring in their step and a shiny little gem in their pocket. Use it as a professional calling card, put it on for your pets and neighbors, or wing it out on YouTube. It’s yours, you made it, we love it!

PLEASE NOTE: This class is being held at 248 Cabot Street.