Jewish Improv Games

  1. Warm up

Material: A piece of fabric (a small dish towel is fine)

Participants stand in acircle. The leader shows the fabric to the participants, saying "What could this piece of fabric be? We’re going to pass it around the circle and each of you will show us something that it could become." The leader demonstrates, turning the fabric into something (for suggestions, see list below) and stating what it is. The fabric is passed from person to person, with each participant sharing an idea.

Go around the circle a second time and make it Jewish!

  • A Kippah
  • Shabbat table cloth/ challah cover
  • Mat for Channukah Candles
  • Siddur cover
  • Kittle
  • Hamentashen
  1. African Chant- describe your job as a chant

Example: one person comes up with the chant and everyone else joins in.

“Jewish Role model

A dugma for teens

Planning programs

Education and fun”

  1. Genre

Tell a story in a different genre

Channukah- Wild West

Splitting of the Red Sea- Science fiction

Declaration of the State of Israel- valley girl

Joseph reunites with his brothers- vampires

Receiving the Torah at Mt.Sinai-through a child’s eyes

  1. Jewish Alphabet

Tell a Jewish story beginning each sentence by going through the alphabet

A long time ago

Before anyone of us was born

Came a young man named Avraham

Don’t know what bothered him but

Everyone else worshiped idols

For him, idols didn’t cut it

Go forth came a voic…

  1. Applicants

Pick a famous Jew and interview him/her for a job. Have two people act it out as the employer and employee

Example: Moshe as a web designer

Yaakov as an accountant

Heschel as a financial planner

Hannah Senesh as a social worker

  1. Ballad

Choose one participant as the subject and have each person step forward and sing one line of a ballad to him/her

Examples of ballad (love song): Tears in Heaven, Let it Be, Candle in the Wind, Everything I do, I do it for You, Love Hurts

  1. Therapist

2 people sit opposite each other. One person tells the other a challenge he/she faces. The other sings back some advice

  1. Inside the marriage of:

Act out a story from Jewish history between a married couple recommended by the audience.

Example: Yocheved and Amram debate what to do about baby Moshe

Isaac sees how Jacob deceived his brother and father and approaches Rivka about it

Tzippora accuses Moshe of not being there for his family

Esther talks to Achashverosh to plea for her people

Hannah complains to Elkanah about her infertility (mother of Samuel)

Golda Meir’s husband tells her she’s overwhelmed by leading the Israeli people and must step down

9. J-date

Audience calls out a famous Jew and a volunteer acts out a video dating profile. Others can “freeze” him/her and step in.

  1. Duet

One person calls out a Jewish story, concept person and 2 people must quickly come up with a theme song that would fit with that story, concept or person.

Examples:

  • Jospeh and Potiphar’s Wife- Can’t Touch This
  • Channukiah- Come on Baby Light My Fire
  • Exodus- I’m Free (Free Fallin’)
  • Tikun Olam- We Are the World, Heal the World
  • Tshuva- I’m Sorry, so Sorry
  1. Fashion (Role) Models

One person acts as the model and walks down a runway. Others comment on his/her fashion depending on the story/achievements of that person.

Examples:

  • Ruth- loyal, hard working, stands by her mother-in-law, works the fields
  • Rebecca- Impresses Eliezer by her grace and beauty.
  • AD Gordon- labor Zionist, worked the fields to build “Eretz Yisrael.”
  • Mordechai is paraded through the streets in the king’s finest garb
  • King David- from shepherd to king

12.