Austin Improv

From today's Dinosaur Comics:



As much as "lampshade hanging" is used in bad fiction, it's even more used in improv as an audience release valve to call out the absurdity of a scene's basic premise/game/tilt/whatever.

I'm kindof pissed that I now have a name for it. I'm not even sure it's a bad thing, but it's definitely a crutch sometimes, at least for me.

Personally, I enjoy "lightshade hanging"* -- when it's done sparingly and well, out of genuine playfulness rather than a defensive need to downplay commitment to a scene. I think it's possible to acknowledge the artifice of a story while still committing to it unreservedly, and I think that the tension between the two can be a lot of fun for the audience.

(For what it's worth, Roy, I think you hang your lampshades with impeccable taste and judgment.)



*Shouldn't this be "lantern hanging," as in "hang a lantern on your problem"? Silly dinosaurs.

Curtis + computer wrote:Personally, I enjoy "lightshade hanging"* -- when it's done sparingly and well, out of genuine playfulness rather than a defensive need to downplay commitment to a scene. I think it's possible to acknowledge the artifice of a story while still committing to it unreservedly, and I think that the tension between the two can be a lot of fun for the audience.

(For what it's worth, Roy, I think you hang your lampshades with impeccable taste and judgment.)



*Shouldn't this be "lantern hanging," as in "hang a lantern on your problem"? Silly dinosaurs.

I totally agree with Curtis. Sometimes if you know the audience is sitting there thinking "What the fuck is going on here?" and you can playfully acknowledge their confusion/discomfort/whatever, it can be very delightful. The other night in Lola I was doing a flashback scene with Topping. I said something like "I'm sorry I missed your fifth birthday." Topping proceeded to lay into me in a very adult manner. I was feeling the audience was thinking she was still a child, as was I, so in response I said "You're very verbal for a five year old." Big laugh, as the tension/confusion was released from the audience. The real trick is knowing when something like that is a strong call and when you're just being a jerk.

They have a whole section on TVTropes devoted to this.

In a similar boat with Shannon and Curtis, I like Lampshade Hanging when it's done well. Defensive Lampshade Hanging seems more like a comfort thing, but when somebody makes a joke to deliberately make fun of, deconstruct, or parody the situation, that's usually funny or thoughtful/thought-provoking.

For example, Defensive Lampshade Hanging:
Improviser 1: Ok, Tyrone, since you're the old know-it-all soldier with a photo of his family in his pocket and this is your last mission before retirement, we're sending you into the dangerous base first.
Improviser 2: Gee, it's almost like you're asking me to die on this mission.
Audience: Well, duh!

And Deconstructive Lampshade Hanging:
Improviser 1: Ok, Tyrone, since you're the old know-it-all soldier with a photo of his family in his pocket and this is your last mission before retirement, we're sending you into the dangerous base first.
Improviser 2: Alrighty. Let's split up. I'll search all of the dark rooms and abandoned stairwells while inspecting creepy and threatening noises. After all, what's the worst that could happen?
Audience: Amusement!

To me, Deconstructive Lampshade Hanging is like hitting the bullseye of the Circle of Expectations with a firework shell: it does exactly what the audience is thinking will happen next in a pretty, or at least eccentric, display.

But unlike Curtis, I not only think there's not enough Lampshade Hanging, I think Lampshade Hanging can be incorporated into an entire universe if done properly (one of the ingredients to Post-Modernism). For one of my RTF finals, I had to write a TV show pilot, and the entire show was Lampshade Hanging ("Hi. I'm going to be your best friend for the next 23 episodes!"/"I know what'll solve this! I'll use DEUS EX MACHINA IN A CAN!" "But it'll destroy the previous plot and character development!" "It's the only thing we can do! The writers ran out of ideas!"). In fact, the entire Yu Gi Oh Abridged Series and Order of the Stick are two web series that thrive on Lampshade Hanging. In fact, Metal Gear Solid and its sequels can be equally called "Lampshade Hanging: The Video Game".

Inversely, I find it ironic Roy says Lampshade Hanging is mostly reserved to bad fiction, because aside from the fact there's a lot of good fiction that do it, I don't think there's enough of it in bad fiction: even the Defensive Lampshade Hanging, unless it's the dreaded, "Gee, what are the odds of this?" or, "This had to be a coincidence!" lines, because those lines are the sign of either bad writing or a universe ruled by coincidence, which is usually the result of bad writing.

I think the best advice I ever got on this front is that when you're asked to do something ridiculous, don't just talk about how ridiculous it is. DO IT, and then while you're doing it, talk about how ridiculous it is.

It's one of the simplest lessons I've learned, but one of the hardest for me to remember while on stage.

as long as calling out doesnt come from a place of weakness or as a means of control or separation from the other players, this can work magic. i unfortunately am constantly calling out ace for mispronouncing words and hate myself for doing it so often.

beardedlamb wrote:as long as calling out doesnt come from a place of weakness or as a means of control or separation from the other players, this can work magic. i unfortunately am constantly calling out ace for mispronouncing words and hate myself for doing it so often.

I think that's different. I mean, I can see why you don't want to do it, but a word has an actual pronunciation offstage, whereas Topping's identity as a five-year-old is completely dependent on the players' agreement to and investment in that idea.

DollarBill wrote:DO IT, and then while you're doing it, talk about how ridiculous it is.

It's one of the simplest lessons I've learned, but one of the hardest for me to remember while on stage.

I finally remembered to do this last night. In the scene I was being asked by a cab driver to pay for a cab full of strangers that I wasn't allowed to get in. I handed over my credit card and driver's license and gave my PIN before mentioning how unfair I thought it all was. Pretty decent laugh, and I was highly proud of myself.