Freeze

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Acting Improv
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Freeze is an Acting Improv game.

Participants

• Two actors, who get replaced as the game goes on.

How does it work?

The initial two actors get into the center of a circle, and begin acting out a situation with movements (this is especially important). At any time during the scene, someone on the outside of the circle may say "Freeze!" and the actors must immediately stop what they are doing and remain frozen in position. The person who said "freeze" then comes in and taps one person. That person goes out, and the new actor assumes the position that they were in. The new actor then begins acting out an entirely new scene using the positions that the last two actors were left in (the person who didn't get tapped out plays along). This continues until someone else says "Freeze!" and the process repeats again. This is meant to be a quicker AI game, but the current actors should be given time to develop their ideas while also making sure that the next Freeze comes quickly enough for fast gameplay.

Since the experienced actors don't want to keep going in, and the people who come only as audience also dislike entering, there often ends up being a "random poses time," at which the participants stop acting and simply dance around making silly movements.

Notable Moments

Lancaster

"Ashook him too hard!" (06.2) - This was a pun on an actor's name. Ashok had just frozen in into a lying position and had just begun his scene whereupon Jeffrey Sachs immediately froze in into a standing position above Ashok. Kneeling down, he yelled, "Nooooo!! He was my friend!" followed by the memorable line while shaking Ashok. (Note: Ashok's name was actually pronounced "Ashoke," but it was mistaken for "Ashook" occasionally and it made the joke so much better.)

Alcove Shirt (07.2)- This year Freeze was the subject of the Alcove shirt, depicting the passing of the Alcove. It is based on Jeff Sachs's description of the game, during which he would explain "it could go from ballroom dancing to swordfighting in an instant."

Gondolas-For many sessions, it has become a customary joke to make a "gondola" during Freeze. When an actor is on the ground, stomach down, one shouts "Freeze!", stands on this person, and yells, "Hey, Look! It's the [Insert name of person on ground] Gondola" and proceed to row around the grass. In 2011.1, Ajay Nadig accompanied the joke by singing "That's Amore!"

Notable Gondolas:

2009.2- The David Rips Gondola

2011.1- The Joey Fridman Gondola

During 15.1, many freeze games led to the participants doing pushups, situps, or some other kind of physical activity. There would be many cries of "don't Freeze" whenever this happened. There would also be many freezes which would seemingly lead to a birth situation. Example by David "Frank" Natanov and Victoria Provost:
(crawling on the ground)
Victoria/David: Braaaiiinnsss...
David: I just realized- I'm not a zombie!
(backs away from Victoria)
Peanut gallery: FREEZE!
(David is lying on the ground with his legs spread apart. Victoria, a few yards away, is reaching towards him. Everyone is dying of laughter.)

"I thought you said Netflix and chill!" (15.2) - Ashley Wells. This became one of the running jokes of the session, after an interesting set of events involving pushup contests and a new version of BLT culminated with Ashley and Jasper Barnett being in a rather suggestive position, and Ashley uttered the immortal words, "I thought you said Netflix and Chill," followed by an eruption of laughter from all those present.

Stanford

At Stanford 06.2 in baby CTY, the Elements of Drama class learned Freeze as an acting game to help with their writing. (And just something to do at break.) When Jenny came back during break one day after being sick, she took Jane's place (being chased around by Erin). It went something like this:

Erin: Hi, Jenny! (walks over, shakes hand)

Jenny: Hello, Erin!

Erin: How you doin'? You want to buy a sandwich? (Inside joke- it's always time to buy a sandwich.)

Jenny: No. Do you want to buy hot boy?

Erin: No. Do you want to buy a sandwich?

Jenny: Do you want cool boy?

Erin: No. Wait- Carlos, get over here! You're a prop! (puts hand on Carlos) Do you want a Halloween boy?

Jenny: Hot boy? Cool boy? Hot boy? Cool boy?

Erin: Do you want to buy HALLOWEEN boy? Do you want to buy a SANDWICH?

Then, to save us from histerics, the TA and teacher called us in, saying break was over. But that day's remained implanted in our heads, and no one from Elements of Drama that year will forget it.