Causing a scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington
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0:09 - 0:12I started Improv Everywhere
about 10 years ago -
0:12 - 0:15when I moved to New York City
with an interest in acting and comedy. -
0:15 - 0:18Because I was new to the city,
I didn't have access to a stage, -
0:18 - 0:21so I decided to create
my own in public places. -
0:21 - 0:23So the first project
we're going to take a look at -
0:23 - 0:25is the very first No Pants Subway Ride.
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0:25 - 0:27Now this took place in January of 2002.
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0:27 - 0:29And this woman is the star of the video.
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0:29 - 0:31She doesn't know she's being filmed.
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0:31 - 0:33She's being filmed with a hidden camera.
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0:33 - 0:35This is on the 6 train in New York City.
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0:35 - 0:37And this is the first stop along the line.
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0:37 - 0:39These are two Danish guys
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0:39 - 0:42who come out and sit down
next to the hidden camera. -
0:42 - 0:44And that's me right there in a brown coat.
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0:44 - 0:46It's about 30 degrees outside.
-
0:46 - 0:48I'm wearing a hat. I'm wearing a scarf.
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0:48 - 0:51And the girl's going to notice me
right here. -
0:53 - 0:57(Laughter)
-
0:59 - 1:01And as you'll see now,
I'm not wearing pants. -
1:01 - 1:04(Laughter)
-
1:04 - 1:06So at this point --
-
1:06 - 1:08at this point she's noticed me,
-
1:08 - 1:11but in New York there's weirdos
on any given train car. -
1:11 - 1:12One person's not that unusual.
-
1:12 - 1:16She goes back to reading her book,
which is unfortunately titled "Rape." -
1:16 - 1:19(Laughter)
-
1:19 - 1:21So she's noticed the unusual thing,
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1:21 - 1:23but she's gone back to her normal life.
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1:23 - 1:25Now in the meantime, I have six friends
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1:25 - 1:27who are waiting at the next
six consecutive stops -
1:27 - 1:29in their underwear as well.
-
1:29 - 1:31They're going to be entering
this car one by one. -
1:31 - 1:34We'll act as though
we don't know each other. -
1:34 - 1:37And we'll act as if it's just
an unfortunate mistake we've made, -
1:37 - 1:39forgetting our pants
on this cold January day. -
1:39 - 1:44(Laughter)
-
2:06 - 2:07So at this point,
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2:07 - 2:09she decides to put the rape book away.
-
2:09 - 2:11(Laughter)
-
2:11 - 2:15And she decides to be a little bit more
aware of her surroundings. -
2:15 - 2:19Now in the meantime, the two Danish guys
to the left of the camera are cracking up. -
2:19 - 2:22They think this is the funniest thing
they've ever seen before. -
2:22 - 2:25And watch her make eye contact
with them right about now. -
2:27 - 2:31(Laughter)
-
2:31 - 2:33And I love that moment in this video,
-
2:33 - 2:36because before it became
a shared experience, -
2:36 - 2:39it was something that was
maybe a little bit scary, -
2:39 - 2:41or something that was
at least confusing to her. -
2:41 - 2:43And then once it became
a shared experience, -
2:43 - 2:46it was funny and something
that she could laugh at. -
2:46 - 2:47So the train is now pulling into
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2:47 - 2:50the third stop along the 6 line.
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3:03 - 3:06(Laughter)
-
3:06 - 3:08So the video won't show everything.
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3:08 - 3:10This goes on for another four stops.
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3:10 - 3:13A total of seven guys
enter anonymously in their underwear. -
3:13 - 3:16At the eighth stop, a girl came in
with a giant duffel bag -
3:16 - 3:19and announced she had pants
for sale for a dollar -- -
3:19 - 3:22like you might sell batteries
or candy on the train. -
3:22 - 3:25We all very matter-of-factly
bought a pair of pants, put them on -
3:25 - 3:29and said, "Thank you.
That's exactly what I needed today," -
3:29 - 3:31and then exited
without revealing what had happened -
3:31 - 3:34and went in all different directions.
-
3:34 - 3:36(Applause)
-
3:36 - 3:37Thank you.
-
3:39 - 3:41So that's a still from the video there.
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3:41 - 3:43And I love that girl's reaction so much.
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3:43 - 3:45And watching that videotape later that day
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3:45 - 3:47inspired me to keep doing what I do.
-
3:47 - 3:50And really one of the points
of Improv Everywhere -
3:50 - 3:52is to cause a scene in a public place
-
3:52 - 3:54that is a positive experience
for other people. -
3:54 - 3:57It's a prank, but it's a prank that gives
somebody a great story to tell. -
3:57 - 3:59And her reaction inspired me
-
3:59 - 4:01to do a second annual
No Pants Subway Ride. -
4:01 - 4:03And we've continued to do it every year.
-
4:03 - 4:05This January, we did the 10th
annual No Pants Subway Ride -
4:05 - 4:08where a diverse group of 3,500 people
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4:08 - 4:10rode the train in their underwear
in New York -- -
4:10 - 4:12almost every single train line
in the city. -
4:12 - 4:15And also in 50 other cities
around the world, -
4:15 - 4:16people participated.
-
4:16 - 4:18(Laughter)
-
4:18 - 4:21As I started taking improv class
at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater -
4:21 - 4:25and meeting other creative people
and other performers and comedians, -
4:25 - 4:26I started amassing a mailing list
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4:26 - 4:29of people who wanted to do
these types of projects. -
4:29 - 4:31So I could do more large-scale projects.
-
4:31 - 4:33Well one day I was walking through
Union Square, -
4:33 - 4:34and I saw this building,
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4:34 - 4:36which had just been built in 2005.
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4:36 - 4:39And there was a girl in one
of the windows and she was dancing. -
4:39 - 4:41And it was very peculiar,
-
4:41 - 4:44because it was dark out, but she was
backlit with florescent lighting, -
4:44 - 4:45and she was very much onstage,
-
4:45 - 4:48and I couldn't figure out
why she was doing it. -
4:48 - 4:50After about 15 seconds,
her friend appeared - -
4:50 - 4:52she had been hiding behind a display -
-
4:52 - 4:54and they laughed and hugged each other
and ran away. -
4:54 - 4:57So it seemed like maybe
she had been dared to do this. -
4:57 - 4:58So I got inspired by that.
-
4:58 - 5:01Looking at the entire facade
- there were 70 total windows - -
5:01 - 5:03and I knew what I had to do.
(Laughter) -
5:03 - 5:06So this project is called Look Up More.
We had 70 actors dress in black. -
5:06 - 5:08This was completely unauthorized.
-
5:08 - 5:10We didn't let the stores
know we were coming. -
5:10 - 5:12And I stood in the park giving signals.
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5:12 - 5:16The first signal was for everybody
to hold up these four-foot tall letters -
5:16 - 5:17that spelled out "Look Up More,"
-
5:17 - 5:19the name of the project.
-
5:19 - 5:23The second signal was for everybody
to do jumping jacks together. -
5:23 - 5:26You'll see that start right here.
-
5:26 - 5:28(Laughter)
-
5:28 - 5:30And then we had dancing.
We had everyone dance. -
5:30 - 5:33And then we had dance solos
where only one person would dance -
5:33 - 5:35and everybody would point to them.
-
5:35 - 5:38(Laughter)
-
5:41 - 5:43So then I gave a new hand signal,
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5:43 - 5:46which signaled the next soloist
down below in Forever 21, -
5:46 - 5:48and he danced.
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5:48 - 5:50There were several other activities.
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5:50 - 5:52We had people jumping up and down,
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5:52 - 5:54people dropping to the ground.
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5:54 - 5:56And I was standing just
anonymously in a sweatshirt, -
5:56 - 5:58putting my hand on and off of a trashcan
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5:58 - 6:00to signal the advancement.
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6:00 - 6:03And because it was in Union Square Park,
right by a subway station, -
6:03 - 6:05there were hundreds of people by the end
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6:05 - 6:06who stopped and looked up
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6:06 - 6:08and watched what we were doing.
-
6:10 - 6:12There's a better photo of it.
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6:12 - 6:14So that particular event
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6:14 - 6:15was inspired by a moment
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6:15 - 6:17that I happened to stumble upon.
-
6:17 - 6:19The next project I want to show
-
6:19 - 6:22was given to me
in an email from a stranger. -
6:22 - 6:24A high school kid in Texas
wrote me in 2006 -
6:24 - 6:27and said, "You should get
as many people as possible -
6:27 - 6:29to put on blue polo shirts and khaki pants
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6:29 - 6:32and go into a Best Buy and stand around."
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6:32 - 6:35(Laughter)
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6:35 - 6:38(Applause)
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6:38 - 6:41So I wrote this high school kid
back immediately, -
6:41 - 6:42and I said, "Yes, you are correct.
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6:42 - 6:45I think I'll try to do that this weekend.
Thank you." -
6:45 - 6:46So here's the video.
-
6:46 - 6:48So again, this is 2005.
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6:48 - 6:51This is the Best Buy in New York City.
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6:51 - 6:53We had about 80 people
show up to participate, -
6:53 - 6:55entering one-by-one.
-
6:55 - 6:57There was an eight year-old girl,
a 10 year-old girl. -
6:57 - 6:59There was also a 65 year-old man
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6:59 - 7:00who participated.
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7:00 - 7:03So a very diverse group of people.
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7:03 - 7:06And I told people, "Don't work.
Don't actually do work. -
7:06 - 7:08But also, don't shop.
-
7:08 - 7:10Just stand around
and don't face products." -
7:10 - 7:12Now you can see the regular employees
-
7:12 - 7:14by the ones that have
the yellow tags on their shirt. -
7:14 - 7:16Everybody else is one of our actors.
-
7:16 - 7:18(Laughter)
-
7:18 - 7:20The lower level employees
thought it was very funny. -
7:20 - 7:24And in fact, several of them went to go
get their camera from the break room -
7:24 - 7:25and took photos with us.
-
7:25 - 7:28A lot of them made jokes
about trying to get us to go to the back -
7:28 - 7:30to get heavy television sets
for customers. -
7:30 - 7:33The managers and the security guards,
on the other hand, -
7:33 - 7:35did not find it particularly funny.
-
7:35 - 7:37You can see them in this footage.
-
7:37 - 7:40They're wearing either
a yellow shirt or a black shirt. -
7:40 - 7:41And we were there probably 10 minutes
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7:41 - 7:44before the managers decided to dial 911.
-
7:44 - 7:47(Laughter)
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7:47 - 7:48So they started running around
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7:48 - 7:52telling everybody the cops were coming,
watch out, the cops were coming. -
7:52 - 7:54And you can see the cops
in this footage right here. -
7:54 - 7:58That's a cop wearing black right there,
being filmed with a hidden camera. -
7:58 - 8:01Ultimately, the police had to inform
Best Buy management -
8:01 - 8:02that it was not, in fact, illegal
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8:02 - 8:04to wear a blue polo shirt and khaki pants.
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8:04 - 8:06(Laughter)
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8:06 - 8:10(Applause)
-
8:10 - 8:11Thank you.
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8:11 - 8:14(Applause)
-
8:14 - 8:17So we had been there for 20 minutes;
we were happy to exit the store. -
8:17 - 8:19One thing the managers were trying to do
-
8:19 - 8:21was to track down our cameras.
-
8:21 - 8:25And they caught a couple of my guys
who had hidden cameras in duffel bags. -
8:25 - 8:27But the one camera guy they never caught
-
8:27 - 8:29was the guy that went in
just with a blank tape -
8:29 - 8:31and went over
to the Best Buy camera department -
8:31 - 8:33and just put his tape
in one of their cameras -
8:33 - 8:36and pretended to shop.
-
8:36 - 8:39So I like that concept of using
their own technology against them. -
8:39 - 8:41(Laughter)
-
8:41 - 8:43I think our best projects
are ones that are site-specific -
8:43 - 8:45and happen at a particular place
for a reason. -
8:45 - 8:47And one morning, I was riding the subway.
-
8:47 - 8:50I had to make a transfer
at the 53rd St. stop -
8:50 - 8:52where there are these two
giant escalators. -
8:52 - 8:55And it's a very depressing place
to be in the morning, it's very crowded. -
8:55 - 8:57So I decided to try and stage something
-
8:57 - 9:00that could make it as happy
as possible for one morning. -
9:01 - 9:03So this was in the winter of 2009 -
-
9:03 - 9:058:30 in the morning.
-
9:05 - 9:07It's morning rush hour.
-
9:07 - 9:08It's very cold outside.
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9:08 - 9:10People are coming in from Queens,
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9:10 - 9:13transferring from the E train
to the 6 train. -
9:13 - 9:15And they're going up
these giant escalators -
9:15 - 9:18on their way to their jobs.
-
9:20 - 9:22[Rob wants]
-
9:25 - 9:27[to give you]
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9:29 - 9:32[a high five!]
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9:32 - 9:34(Laughter)
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9:34 - 9:36[Get ready!]
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9:38 - 9:40(Laughter)
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9:40 - 9:42[Rob]
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9:42 - 9:47(Applause)
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9:49 - 9:50Thank you.
-
9:50 - 9:53So there's a photograph
that illustrates it a little bit better. -
9:53 - 9:55He gave 2,000 high fives that day,
-
9:55 - 9:58and he washed his hands
before and afterward -
9:58 - 10:00and did not get sick.
-
10:00 - 10:02And that was done also without permission,
-
10:02 - 10:04although no one seemed to care.
-
10:04 - 10:05So I'd say over the years,
-
10:05 - 10:09one of the most common criticisms
I see of Improv Everywhere -
10:09 - 10:11left anonymously on YouTube comments
-
10:11 - 10:14is: "These people have too much time
on their hands." -
10:14 - 10:17And you know, not everybody's
going to like everything you do, -
10:17 - 10:20and I've certainly developed a thick skin
thanks to Internet comments, -
10:20 - 10:22but that one's always bothered me,
-
10:22 - 10:24because we don't have too much time
on our hands. -
10:24 - 10:26The participants
at Improv Everywhere events -
10:26 - 10:29have just as much leisure time
as any other New Yorkers, -
10:29 - 10:30they just occasionally choose
-
10:30 - 10:32to spend it in an unusual way.
-
10:32 - 10:33You know, every Saturday and Sunday,
-
10:33 - 10:35hundreds of thousands of people each fall
-
10:35 - 10:38gather in football stadiums
to watch games. -
10:38 - 10:41And I've never seen anybody comment,
looking at a football game, -
10:41 - 10:45saying, "All those people in the stands,
they have too much time on their hands." -
10:45 - 10:46And of course they don't.
-
10:46 - 10:49It's a perfectly wonderful way
to spent a weekend afternoon, -
10:49 - 10:51watching a football game in a stadium.
-
10:51 - 10:53But I think it's also
a perfectly valid way -
10:53 - 10:56to spend an afternoon freezing
in place with 200 people -
10:56 - 10:58in the Grand Central terminal
-
10:58 - 11:00or dressing up like a ghostbuster
-
11:00 - 11:02and running through
the New York Public Library. -
11:02 - 11:04(Laughter)
-
11:04 - 11:07Or listening to the same MP3
as 3,000 other people -
11:07 - 11:10and dancing silently in a park,
-
11:10 - 11:12or bursting into song in a grocery store
-
11:12 - 11:14as part of a spontaneous musical,
-
11:14 - 11:17or diving into the ocean
in Coney Island wearing formal attire. -
11:18 - 11:20You know, as kids, we're taught to play.
-
11:20 - 11:23And we're never given a reason
why we should play. -
11:23 - 11:25It's just acceptable
that play is a good thing. -
11:25 - 11:28And I think that's sort of the point
of Improv Everywhere. -
11:28 - 11:31It's that there is no point and that
there doesn't have to be a point. -
11:31 - 11:33We don't need a reason.
-
11:33 - 11:34As long as it's fun
-
11:34 - 11:36and it seems like it's going to be
a funny idea -
11:36 - 11:39and it seems like the people
who witness it -
11:39 - 11:41will also have a fun time,
then that's enough for us. -
11:41 - 11:43And I think, as adults, we need to learn
-
11:43 - 11:45that there's no
right or wrong way to play. -
11:45 - 11:47Thank you very much.
-
11:47 - 11:49(Applause)
- Title:
- Causing a scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington
- Description:
-
Charlie Todd causes bizarre, hilarious, and unexpected public scenes: Seventy synchronized dancers in storefront windows, "ghostbusters" running through the New York Public Library, and the annual no-pants subway ride. He shows how his group, Improv Everywhere, uses these scenes to bring people together.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDxTalks
- Duration:
- 11:58
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington | ||
TED Translators admin approved English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington | ||
Ivana Korom accepted English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington | ||
TED Translators admin edited English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington | ||
TED Translators admin edited English subtitles for Causing a Scene with Improv Everywhere | Charlie Todd | TEDxBloomington |