Art by Committee: A Guide to Advanced Improvisation; Sequel to "Truth in Comedy" [With DVD]

This book re-addresses a lot of the ideas introduced in Truth in Comedy and explores them in a little more depth. The only thing I really *didn't* like about it was the way it talks about improv as if it is the meaning of life, and great improvisers as if they're the second coming - I love improv, but let's try to keep a bit of perspective on it! Anyway, just as with Truth in Comedy, I found myself highlighting and making notes right and left, and this one's also accompanied by a DVD with examples of iO performers illustrating the concepts Halpern's explaining. That is EXTREMELY helpful - for someone who's only ever done short-form (like myself), just *reading* about long-form doesn't quite cover it. Also, as a female improviser just getting started (at a theater where the boys outnumber us by a longshot), I appreciated the brief but illuminating chapter on women in improv. Highly recommended if, like me, you learned a lot from Truth in Comedy and want to take it to the next level.

Halpern has done it again! This book is excellent! If you're a serious improviser you need to get this book. "Truth in Comedy" is 5+ Stars and is a great book for any improviser, but "Art by Committee" takes it to the next level. Follow the exercises in this book and you will definitely see a boost in your performance level, confidence, and overall ability as an improviser... this book will take you to places you never even imagined! The DVD that accompanies the book is really cool because it shows you what Charna is explaining in the book, and as a bonus there's interviews with various iO alums like Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and many others. If you're a history buff there's a lot of information about how iO got started, and how Del and Charna pioneered long form improv. Also, she includes some very touching stories about Del and his love for this wonderful art form.

There is some good info in this book. The best part of the book is that Halpern references examples from the included DVD to illustrate some of her points. These examples come in the early chapters and are by far the strongest part of the book. In fact, the DVD itself is worth the price of the book with full performances by "Beer Shark Mice" and the "Reckoning" as well as performance snippets of ASSCAT and an Armando (with Joe Bill as the Armando). There are also interviews with various well known improvisers such as Tina Fey, Tim Meadows, etc. Halpern's writing is weak because - even though she makes good points - she never takes you through the whole thing so that you can get it. A book that would lay out specific issues in teaching long form improv and then useful exercises and teaching points would make for a more useful book. It seems like she is either describing the final result (what makes up a Harold, for example) or making a small teaching point (how to treat mistakes as gifts), but she's never taking you through the whole process. If Halpern could write with the discipline of Carol Hazenfield (see Hazenfield's "Acting on Impulse"), you would have an excellent long-form improv book. Halpern uses the last part of the book to tell some stories about Del Close and the history of improv. Anyone with an interest in the development of long-form will find this part of the book interesting. "Art" is a good book - not great, but good. Even if you are not a fan of Halpern's work, the DVD itself is worth the price of the book.

Inherently entertaining and informative, Art By Committee: A Guide To Advanced Improvisation offers its readers an inspired and inspiring understanding of the philosophy and visual outlook of life through the wisdom and guidance of Charna Halpern. As a long-term improvisational co-creator and comically creative mind, Charna presents Art By Committee as her most informative and constructive guide to date through the incredible art of improv acting and performance. Art By Committee is very strongly recommended for all students of acting and improvisational comedy, as well as those searching for a personal history of Del Close and Charna Halperns.