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Detour Workshops -- Echoes: Theme and Meaning in Longform Improv
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Back to Detour: Improv Theater Festival
Sat, Mar 14, 2026
1 PM – 4 PM EDT (GMT-4)
Wean Hall, Room 4625
5000 Forbes Avenue, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
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Details
Some of the most powerful moments in longform come not from plot but when scenes echo each other in tone, image, or theme. This workshop is about learning to notice those echoes and follow them. You'll practice identifying the non-literal threads that emerge in a set, building the patience to let connections surface on their own, and making choices that deepen what a piece is about without explaining it. Whether you're looking to strengthen your editing instincts or just want to understand why some sets feel like they mean something, this workshop will give you tools to get there.
Topic: Non-literal longform connections
Please arrive at least 5 minutes early and check in with the NPP representative in front of the workshop location. If you can't make it, please cancel your reservation to allow others to register due to limited space. Thank you!
Dress Casual (jeans ok)
Speakers
Gretchen Eng
Gretchen Enghas worked in the Chicago comedy community since her salad days in the Second City Teen Ensemble. Following a brief stint studying classical voice and doing sketch comedy at Vassar College, she has been a producer and performer at iO for ten years, specifically with Devil's Daughter, The Armando Diaz Experience, and in her duo Jaymes Gretchky. She is a professor in Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts, teaches all levels of the training center at iO, coaches, and designs curricula for an array of corporate, non-profit, and educational organizations as the Director of Professional Development and Partnerships for the theater.