Holiday Hits! A Musical Improv Workshop

Any holiday can be a great excuse to put on a show! Learn how to craft unique holiday hits that’ll have everyone singing along. You don’t need any musical background, just come ready to laugh, sing, and enjoy the fun side of musical improv, no matter the season.

This workshop isn’t just for the winter holidays—it’s perfect for celebrating Halloween, New Year’s, Valentine’s Day, the Fourth of July, or any holiday you love! With musical improv, you’ll learn to create unique and funny lyrics that bring life to any holiday, from Pi Day to Groundhog Day, proving that every day deserves a song! Get ready to play with your creativity in a festive, fun, and supportive environment!

We’ll explore song structure, melody, and lyrics, focusing on a variety of exercises like: list songs, metaphor songs, and philosophy songs. You’ll play with holiday themes by using what you already know.

List songs will help you draw from familiar holiday elements, leading to funny and relatable moments, while metaphor songs allow you to take any holiday item and turn it into something more personal or a completely unrelated comic twist . Philosophy songs help you to discover your character's perspective and values. You’ll learn how to turn those ideas into lyrics, exploring themes that go beyond the holiday itself.

Additionally, we’ll touch on storytelling genres: learn how to deconstruct different narrative styles and use those elements to shape your holiday songs and bring your stories to life.

After the workshop, we’ll send you a detailed explanation of all the games and exercises, so you can keep coming up with holiday tunes long after the event.

No past musical improv experience required.

Suggested: some improv experience OR some singing experience.

About your facilitators:
Brian and Casey have been teaching musical improv together for many years with the Baltimore Musical Improv. They make improvised musicals together in the Baltimore-based musical improv group Bad Karaoke Experience (BKE). In a given show, you’ll see them both alternating between singing on stage and doing back-line instrumental accompaniment (Brian on piano, Casey on accordion). BKE has played in DC's Improvapolooza, the New York City Musical Improv Festival, and the Baltimore Improv Festival (BIG).

Brian Young (he/him) is also a member of other Baltimore improv teams, including A++ (an all-Asian-American comedy group), and Ready Set No (a D.A.R.E.-style school assembly satire duo). Brian and the cast of Belle! An Improvised Tennessee Williams Play created a series of unique one-act shows at the 2019 Charm City Fringe Festival with encores at BIG in early 2020. Brian holds a BA in Piano Performance from Bowie State University.

Casey Watts (he/him) is a long-time teacher, including: musical improv, dancing, web development, and technical skills. Casey can play Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance on at least 15 instruments — and he owns an instrument in every color of the rainbow. Imagine someone walking down the street singing, dancing, and blowing bubbles - that’s Casey!
Notes about the venue:

You can enter St. Mark's Lutheran Church from the patio doors on the St. Paul Street side of the building. The parking lot at the corner of 20th and St. Paul is free to use for all participants. Please arrive on time so we can easily let you in and start the activities. The entrance, workshop area, and restrooms are all accessible.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

St Mark's Lutheran Church, 1900 Saint Paul Street, Baltimore, United States

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