These exercises are good for making you think harder about language and dialogue. Sometimes limitations force the actor to consider new and better ways of expressing a role.

Three touch drama

This is an exercise where the actors improvise but can only each say three words at a time. It’s very good for exploring the essence of a scene and forces actors to work together and help each other out, for example:

• A: Is it true?
• B: is what true?
• A: that you have…?
• B: I have what?
• A: I can’t say…
• B: Spit it out
• A: Had a baby
• B: I’m a boy!
• A: Did it hurt?

Alphabetical dialogue

The actors can use as many words as they like but the lines of dialogue must start with consecutive letters of the alphabet.

• Are there any buses that go to Bradford from here do you know?
• Bradford, why do you want to go there?
• Can you keep a secret? I’m on the run.
• Don’t tell me anymore. My life is complicated enough. Who are you on the run from?
• Evil scientists who work for a top secret government organisation…