Lesson 18 · Improv moves · 5 min · Status play
Be the straight man
The reasonable person in an unreasonable moment
The big ideaYou don't have to be the funny one to make a moment funny. Being the calm, sensible reaction to someone else's chaos gets laughs too, and it makes them look great.
Watch the pro do it
Watch forAbbott stays calm, patient and completely logical. Costello gets more and more frustrated. The routine only works because one of them refuses to panic. Watch Abbott: he's the engine of every laugh, and he barely jokes.
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