Next month is Slapdash International 2015 – four evenings of exciting shows and a week of workshops by performers from all over the world and the UK.

We have amazing performers that we love such as Dummy from iO Chicago, The 2 Man Movie from UCB New York and one of our favourite groups from Europe, Teatribu who hail from Milan. Plus a very special Wunderkammer from local legends Do Not Adjust Your Stage.

Want to learn from some of the best improv teachers in the business? We have workshops from Dummy in iO, Anthony Atamanuik of UCB New York, Mico Pugliares from Teatribu, Neil Casey of UCB LA and many, many more.

You can buy a festival pass that gives you access to four nights and over 15 different shows for just £20 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1433686)

Want to learn from some of the best improv teachers in the business? We have workshops from Dummy in iO, Anthony Atamanuik of UCB New York, Mico Pugliares from Teatribu, Neil Casey of UCB LA and many, many more.

# Workshops

## Sunday 7 June

### The Movie with Neil Casey and Anthony Atamanuik

An intensive crash course with the cast of Two Man Movie on the improvised longform "The Movie," created by Del Close with The Family. Learn how to find games in classic and contemporary movie genres and to simulate film making techniques like camera angles and editing on the live stage and on the fly. (To clarify -- NO CAMERAS INVOLVED, the form is performed live on stage only).

Sunday 7 June – 11am-5pm £60 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1620363)

## Monday 8 June

### Sketch Workshop with Neil Casey

Neil has written and directed countless live sketch shows. Inside Amy Schumer, Kroll Show and Saturday Night Live and has been nominated for two WGA Awards and two Prime-Time Emmy Awards. This workshop will see participants bringing in a written piece which is then analysed. There will also be writing exercises as a group.

Monday 8 June – 7pm-10pm £35 [Book Now]

(http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1620370)

### The Mini-Monoscene with Anthony Atamanuik

Let's work on small space, small group mono scenes, with an emphasis on no bullshit, realistic scene work, and following through on the ideas we set forth.

Monday 8 June – 7pm-10pm £35 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1620380)

## Tuesday 9 June

### 5 Stations of Improv with Anthony Atamanuik

1. LISTENING
2. JUSTIFICATION
3. INITIATING
4. OBJECT RELEVANCE
5. POINT OF VIEW
5 important ideas I want to see Improvisors focusing on in their Scene-work. We will cover the 5 Stations through exercises designed to highlight each element of scene work.

Tuesday 9 June – 7pm-10pm £35 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1620381)

### Advanced Harolds with Neil Casey

An intensive Harold bootcamp with one of UCB's senior Harold teachers. Some experience doing Harolds essential.

Tuesday 9 June – 7pm-10pm £35 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1620382)

## Wednesday 10 June

### Meditation and Improvisation with Anthony Atamanuik

Mindfulness meditation leads to mindful scene work. There is a strong connection between the mind in a meditative state and the mind in the midst of improvising. In this workshop we will practice some basic meditation techniques and then perform scenes inspired by the thoughts that were isolated during the process of opening the subconscious.

Wednesday 10 June – 10am-1pm £35 [Book Now

(http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1620383)

### Simplify your Scenework - with Dummy

The tenets of improv sound so easy: ‘Listen’, ‘Yes And Your Partner’, ‘Find The Relationship’. Sounds simple enough, right? So why do so many scenes devolve into fighting? Why does it feel so hard? Why can’t improv be easy? Well, believe it or not, improv is actually crazy easy; we’re just making it harder than it has to be.

The truth is human beings are naturally defensive. We can’t help it. And the anxiety we feel when we get onstage in front of a crowd of people brings all of our defense mechanisms to the surface. You can’t help but separate from one another and put your guard up. You’re a human being! In this workshop we’ll use a few simple techniques that will help you start breathing easy and having fun with your scene partners.

This workshop will not focus on ‘good’ vs. ‘bad’ improv scenes, but instead focus on ‘easy’ vs. ‘hard’ improv scenes. We’ll focus on the relationship of the scene by ‘Yessing Until You Find Your And’ so we can ‘Get in a Boat’ together. We’ll talk about ‘Our Thing’ vs. ‘My Thing’, and the ‘3 Spinning Plates of Scenework’.

We’ll get ‘Context’ out of the way so the ‘Little Old Lady’ in the back of the theater can relax and enjoy our show. And we’ll declare what our ‘Button’ is so our teammates know what to pull us onstage for later (which is essential for any longform show). Improv isn’t hard. Let’s figure out how to make it easy and fun.

Wednesday 10 June – 2pm-6pm £60 [Book Now]

(http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1572995)

## Thursday

### Better Scenework with Neil Casey

This class will focus on committing to the reality of your scene, cutting out the bulls**t, and eliminating the habit of getting laughs from the fact that you're improvising rather than the reality of the scene.

Thursday 11 June – 10am – 1pm £35 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1620384)

### Character and Groupwork with Dummy

Often when improvisers think of ‘character’, they think of broad physical and vocal choices. In pursuit of playing interesting or funny characters on stage, we sacrifice all the things that are true of ourselves; the combination of opinions, experiences, and foibles that make us us. Also, when we play too big it often puts us in our head and makes scenework more difficult.

We put ourselves in the position of having to invent how this broad character should react instead of reacting as a human being; these characters can be so big that it’s difficult for your scene partner to get you to react and play with them in the moment. The reality is you yourself are interesting and compelling to an audience. We will focus on creating characters from a more organic, realistic place; it’s you with a twist.

The second half of this workshop will focus on groupwork. How do we tackle this element of longform to make something cohesive and satisfying with so many people on stage?

We will approach openings, group games, and group scenes from a variety of angles to get us ever closer to creating ‘group mind’: building ideas and themes, recognizing patterns as well as opportunities in our “mistakes”, and following the fun. We’ll practice hyper-listening to insure that every voice is heard and every move is seen. You’ll be encouraged to drop your judgmental ‘edit’ brain and embrace the idea that the best idea is the one that’s happening right now.

Thursday 11 June – 2pm-6pm £60 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1572996)

## Creating Character Through Pre-Existing People

Get there with Gandhi, Dick around with Dickens, Become your Aunt Bertha! This workshop explores impression and imprinting based character development. Not suitable for beginners.

Thursday 11 June, 2pm – 5pm £35 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1564657)

## Friday

## Secrets and Lies – The Art of Subtext

You’re funny…Now what? This workshop explores layering scenes through subtext and subtle emotional choices to make them more realistic and human. Not suitable for beginners.

Friday 12 June, 2pm – 5pm £35 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1564657)

## The Harold with Dummy

The Harold is one of the most popular forms of longform improvisation and the signature form of the iO Theater. The Harold is still taught, practiced, performed, and often bastardized the world over. This workshop will delve deep into what Harold actually is and what has made it worthwhile, compelling, and challenging since it’s inception.

We will break down all the components of the piece to make sure we know the real ‘what’, ‘how’ and ‘why’ of each working part. Openings will be tackled with a focus on creating group mind–discovering theme and tone through listening and joining. We will work on keeping the dynamism and physicality in our group endeavors. This workshop will work first beat scenes in a way that establishes a firm foundation for the rest of the show: initiating with specificity, making what’s happening now important, and keeping our scenework about character and relationship to give us numerous ways to heighten and explore these choices later in the show.

A variety of ways to attack second and third beats will be covered, as well as approaches to group games that fuel our energy as the show progresses. Next level ideas such as artful editing, meta patterns/breaking the fourth wall, and simply following the fun will also be be addressed for the Harold veteran who wants to up their game.

Friday 12 June, 2pm – 6pm £35 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1564653)

## Saturday & Sunday

### Dummy Masterclass

Ever wanted to do a two-person improvised show but didn’t know where to start, or are you currently doing a two-person show and have discovered obstacles to getting to where you want to be? Would you like to slow down, play with more patience, and show off your acting chops? Are you interested in doing shows that allow you the time and space to create rich characters and relationships?

The DUMMY Masterclass is an intensive workshop focused on the building blocks and execution of a two-person show. In this class we will be putting relationship and point of view front and center to build a rich and satisfying longform show. We will start with the basic tenets of a great two-person scene: making specific choices, listening hard for opportunities to react hard, speaking and behaving like human beings, bringing more of our own beliefs and experiences to the stage, knowing your character’s “want”, discovering how the characters relate to each other, and playing with emotion.

Then we will tackle how to play multiple characters to heighten the stakes and drive reactions, playing your scene partner’s characters by making and recognizing clear physical and emotional choices, making and recognizing internal edits, and heightening and exploring all the true things we have to drive towards a clear and satisfying end to your show. Attendees will receive loads of personal feedback as well as the experience of working long scenes and doing mini shows with notes.

Saturday 13 & Sunday 14 June, 10am – 5pm £120 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1564652)

## THE ITALIAN JOB – with Mico Pugliares

My body is bigger than my mouth! We often find ourselves witnessing improvisation lacking scenic awareness, as though the fact that they’re taking place on a theatrical stage had little importance. This workshop focuses on the importance of the character’s intention and on the concept that the text comes as a consequence.

Sunday 14 June, 10am – 5pm £45 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1564655)

# Shows

All shows take place at The Miller, 96 Snowsfield, London Bridge, EXCEPT for Thursday 11 June, when Slapdash will move FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY to THEATRE DELICATESSEN, 119 Farringdon Road.

You can buy a festival pass that gives you access to four nights and over 15 different shows for just £20 [Book Now](http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1433686)

### Wednesday 10 June – 8pm:
The Royal Stage Monkeys (GER), Improgrupp Jaa! (EST), International ensemble & Two Man Movie (UCB)(£8)

The Royal Stage Monkeys perform Friends, an improvised play. JAA! are from Estonia. JAA! means YES! in English. This should give you a headstart in conversations. Our solo improvisers from all over come together a bit like the Magnificent Seven. But with improv. In Two Man Movie, Neil Casey and Anthony Atamanuik from UCB's legendary improv team Death By Roo Roo will improvise an entire movie. With just two men on stage.

### Thursday 11 June – 8pm:
Close Quarters (BE & NL) and The Wunderkammer (DNAYS) (UK) (£8)

A two-prov about neighbours from Close Quarters. Do Not Adjust Your Stage's smash hit Wunderkammer at Slapdash 2015 promises to be an edition with some very special guests from Chicago.

**Remember this show is at THEATRE DELICATESSEN, 119 Farringdon Road.**

### Friday 12 June – 8pm:
Lusty Mannequins (CAN), Slapdash Players (UK), International ensemble and Teatribu (IT) (£8)

A packed night with a dark, wit-filled journey from the Lusty Mannequins, some of the UK's finest join forces as the Slapdash Players, plus the incredible English, Italian and silent improvised comedy from Milan. With a special late night This One Time, featuring a very special cast.

### Saturday 13 June – 8pm:
Improvisaatioteatteri Joo! (FIN), Renegade Saints (CH), International ensemble & Dummy (US) (£8)

A murder mystery by Finnish JOO!, multi-national improv in English from the Swiss-based Renegade Saints, and awesomely gross Dummy from the States, followed by a late-night treat will make for an brilliant Saturday night. Come say bye to Slapdash (until next year, of course. . .)

### Teacher Bios
Neil Casey has been working at the UCB Theatre since 2001 and teaching since 2007. He has performed improv on the Harold Teams Filth, Trillion, and Grenade vs. Washing Machine as well as the Weekend Teams Monkeydick and Death By Roo Roo. He is also a regular performer at ASSSSCAT. He currently stars in Paul Feig's Outer Space and has written for Inside Amy Schumer, Key and Peele, Kroll Show and Saturday Night Live.

Anthony Atamanuik has been writing, performing, and producing comedy for over twenty years, joining the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in 2002. Anthony has trained with Matt Walsh, Matt Besser, Owen Burke, Billy Merritt, Kevin Mullaney, Seth Morris and others. Anthony is currently performing with the critically acclaimed and award-winning weekend team Death By Roo Roo, ASSSSCAT 3000, his one-man variety show, the Tony and Johnny show, as well as making movie magic with Neil W Casey in the Two Man Movie.

Lusty Mannequins are Connor Thompson and Ashley Comeau. Connor has taught with The Second City Toronto and the National Film Board of Canada. Ashleye and The City of Brampton. They both teach corporate workshops also via Second City.

Dummy are Colleen Doyle and Jason Shotts who both trained at Second City, iO and Annoyance (Jason).

Domenico Mico Pugliares has been on stage since 1985. He has devoted himself to theatre, studying acting at the Cooperativa Theatre in Milan. Mico started his experience of theatrical improvisation at the Improvisation School of Milan “Teatribù”, where he become a teacher and subsequently becoming Artistic Director. Over the past 10 years he’s been teaching theatrical improvisation techniques and acting all around Italy and Europe, and has played a role in many shows of theatrical improvisation in Italy as well as in Germany, Turkey, Switzerland, United States, Ireland, Sweden and Finland.