Comedy School presents
Term 1: IMPROVISATION
BEFORE STARTING THE COURSE YOU NEED TO HAVE ATTENDED ONE OF THE TASTER SESSIONS
Taster Session 1 - Tuesday 24th January 6.30pm - 9.30pm
Or
Taster Session 2 - Tuesday 31st January 6.30pm - 9.30pm
8 week Course starts 7th February to Tuesday 28th March - Performance/sharing 2nd April - EIGHT TUESDAYS 6.30pm to 9.30pm
Term 2: STAND UP:
18th April to 20th June with showcase on 25th June - TEN TUESDAYS 6:30 to 9:30pm: plus SHOWCASE PERFORMANCE
Term 3: TEN TUESDAYS (SUMMER / AUTUMN 2023)
As part of each course a visit will be organised to a comedy club to watch professional comedians perform live.
Comedy for Veterans will be part of our Wellbeing Project which uses group work to foster key skills of problem solving, developing team-working skills and building confidence. These sessions will encourage you to challenge your own perceived limitations by stepping outside your comfort zones within a safe and respectful environment.
As a form of story-telling, comedy naturally encourages the improvement of communication skills: by stretching language and the imagination, listening to others and using humour to see experiences in a new light, very positive results can be seen in a short space of time. Through working in team-based interventions, this can improve self-esteem and develop a sense of belonging.
The Programme will be led by industry professionals & overseen by Keith Palmer MBE, Director & Founder of The Comedy School.
Training will take place at The Comedy School in Camden, London. 15 Gloucester Gate, London, NW1 4HG.
Terms One and Two of this pilot version of the course will be part of an evaluative study (study IRAS number: 320361) organised by Op COURAGE, London, part of the NHS Veterans Mental Health and Wellbeing Service and the Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust, who are sponsoring the course.
Taking part in the study will involve completing a number of widely used psychological questionnaires (including the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale and the Patient Health Questionnaire 9). These questionnaires will be completed at the start of the first course session, at the end of the final course session, and then three months after completion of the courses. Some veterans will be asked to take part in an interview in which they describe their experiences of the courses.
Participants are requested to commit to attending both terms for study purposes. Subsequent iterations of the course open to all veterans are planned and term three is open to all interested veterans.
