Ten voice improv exercises

Guide · Acting · Updated

The funniest dub is almost never the one that copies the original: it’s the one that dares a voice, an intention, an idea. These ten exercises, taken from theatre and voice workshops, take twenty minutes in a row and work just as well alone in your room as in a multiplayer lobby.

Exercises to do alone

The aim is to have a “voice box” ready to go before you start a scene, and to react to the picture without thinking.

  1. The character gallery: pick a neutral sentence (“I think it’s going to rain”) and say it in ten different voices: the TV presenter, the grandma, the robot, the bored teenager, the pirate… Each voice should change three things: pitch, pace and where it sits in the mouth (nose, throat, lips).
  2. Same line, five emotions: take a short line from a pack and play it furious, terrified, in love, exhausted, then while holding back a fit of giggles. The words don’t change; everything else does.
  3. The commentator: play a silent video (a match, a wildlife documentary, a scene from your pack) and commentate live on everything that happens, without ever stopping. It trains you to talk over the picture with no gaps.
  4. The banned letter: replay a scene improvising a text in which you’re not allowed to say the letter “e”. It forces you to hunt for words and loosens up your vocabulary.
  5. The object’s monologue: pick an object in the room and make it talk for thirty seconds in the first person. The point is to dare a voice with no safety net.

Exercises to do in a group

In a multiplayer lobby, these games happen on voice chat before the takes, or between two scenes. They put everyone on the same level, shy players included.

  1. Yes, and…: the first player says a sentence, the next picks it up starting with “yes, and…” and adds an idea. No contradicting allowed. Three rounds, then dub the scene in the same spirit: accept what the picture offers.
  2. Relay dubbing: one player starts a line, another finishes it, without agreeing on anything first. In co-op with turns, you can play this exercise directly on TryToAct.
  3. Simultaneous translation: one player “speaks” a made-up language with great conviction, a second translates into English what they’re supposed to be saying. Perfect for scenes where one character talks for a long time.
  4. Interview the character: before dubbing, each player answers three questions as their character (“What did you have for breakfast?”, “What are you scared of?”). The voice turns up while you answer.
  5. Level 1 to 10: the same scene is played at energy level 1 (half asleep), then 10 (screaming), then at whatever level the group picks. You often find that 7 is funnier than 10.

From exercise to take

Before recording, decide one thing about your character: their mood right now, or what they really want. “He wants to leave”, “she’s hiding that she’s hungry”. One simple intention guides the whole scene and avoids the flat dub that just reads the lines.

During the take, watch the picture, not the text. The lines scroll by, but the facial expressions and body rhythm tell you when to speak and when to stay quiet. A well-placed silence on a look is often the most effective line of all.

After the take, listen back once without judging yourself. Note what made you laugh, not what “went wrong”. Then redo the scene keeping the idea that worked and changing just one thing. That’s how the dubs published on TryToAct get really good: through small tweaks, not perfect takes.

Three classic traps

A cartoon voice for everything: a single “funny” voice wears thin after two scenes. Vary your range, and keep your natural voice for at least one character.

Talking too fast: improv makes you want to fill every gap. Leave some silence; over a picture, silence is part of the performance.

Forgetting your partner: in a group, listen to what the other person just said instead of preparing your own line. The scene becomes a dialogue, and that’s where the surprises happen.

Frequently asked questions

How much time should I spend on these exercises?

Two or three exercises, five to ten minutes, before a session. What counts is doing them regularly, not for long.

I’m shy, where should I start?

With the solo exercises, recorded on TryToAct without publishing them. The character gallery and the commentator need no audience.

Do these exercises help in VS mode?

Yes: in VS, everyone dubs the whole scene their own way. Level 1 to 10 and the same line in five emotions help you find a version that stands out.

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