Ace
Ace (Advance, Color, Emotion) is a storytelling exercise in which one player narrates while a caller directs them to advance the plot, add descriptive color, or express emotion. The commands train improvisers to balance narrative momentum with sensory detail and emotional depth. It develops well-rounded storytelling instincts that translate directly to scene work.
Structure
Setup
- One player narrates an improvised story or scene.
- A caller stands outside with three commands: Advance, Color, and Emotion (ACE).
- An audience suggestion establishes the subject of the story.
The Three Commands
- Advance: the narrator must move the story forward in time or action. Something must happen. The narrative cannot remain static.
- Color: the narrator must add sensory or descriptive detail. A smell, a texture, a specific visual element, the quality of light, the feeling of a surface.
- Emotion: the narrator must voice the emotional state of a character, either through characterization or through direct narrative statement.
How the Exercise Works
- The narrator begins telling the story.
- The caller interrupts with one of the three commands at any moment.
- The narrator must execute the command immediately without losing the thread of the story.
- The caller varies the commands to train balance: a story that only advances has no texture; a story that only colors has no momentum; a story without emotion has no stakes.
What It Trains
- Advance develops narrative economy and the ability to recognize and produce story movement.
- Color develops sensory specificity and the ability to ground abstract narrative in concrete detail.
- Emotion develops the connection between events and their human significance.
How to Teach It
How to Explain It
"You are telling us a story. When I call 'advance,' something must happen. The story moves. When I call 'color,' you give us a detail: something we can see, feel, or smell. When I call 'emotion,' you tell us what someone is feeling. Keep the story going no matter which command I call."
Common Notes
- The narrator should not pause to process the command. The response should feel as though the story was always going to include that element.
- The caller should diagnose what the story is missing and call the command that addresses the deficit. A story with rich emotion and detail but no narrative movement needs Advance.
- Beginning narrators often default to Advance and neglect Color and Emotion. Callers should counteract the dominant pattern.
Common Pitfalls
- The narrator treats each command as a full stop, completing one element completely before resuming the story. The commands should be woven into the ongoing narrative, not appended to it.
- The caller calls the same command repeatedly, training one skill at the expense of the other two.
- Color becomes lists of adjectives rather than specific, singular details. One precise detail is worth more than a paragraph of general description.
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Related Exercises
Advancing and Expanding
Advancing and Expanding is a scene technique exercise in which players practice the dual skills of moving a narrative forward and deepening the current moment. A caller instructs performers to either advance the plot or expand on the present beat with more detail and emotion. The exercise builds the storytelling instinct for when to push forward and when to linger.
Automatic Storytelling
Automatic Storytelling is an exercise in which a player tells a story as rapidly as possible, following the first narrative impulse that arises without planning or editing. The technique bypasses the conscious mind's desire to control and produces raw, surprising material. It trains the instinct to trust one's first offer.
Color/Advance
Color/Advance is a storytelling exercise in which a narrator tells a story while a caller directs the narrative with two commands: 'Color' adds descriptive detail and texture to the current moment, while 'Advance' moves the plot forward. The exercise reveals and corrects individual storytelling habits, training balance between descriptive richness and narrative momentum.
Believe It or Not
Believe It or Not is a storytelling game in which one player tells a story that is either true or entirely invented, and the audience or fellow players must determine which. The storyteller delivers the narrative with equal conviction regardless of its veracity, making the game a test of performance commitment and audience perception. The game rewards detailed, specific delivery and the ability to sell a narrative through confidence, body language, and emotional authenticity. For audiences and fellow players, the game sharpens critical listening and observation. Believe It or Not functions as both a performance game and a training exercise, building skills in storytelling, character conviction, and the relationship between truth and believability in performance.
Narrative, Color, Emotion
Narrative Color Emotion is a scene-building exercise in which performers construct a scene by layering three distinct types of contribution in rotation: narrative (plot-level information), color (sensory or atmospheric detail), and emotion (a felt response to the circumstances). The structured rotation prevents scenes from stalling in pure action or pure feeling, and trains performers to build scenes that are simultaneously propulsive, vivid, and emotionally alive.
Anecdotes
Anecdotes is an exercise in which players take turns telling short true or fictional stories in response to a theme, prompt, or partner's contribution. The practice develops narrative structure, personal voice, active listening, and the ability to find the essential shape in real experience. In its paired version, as documented by Max Dickins in Improvise, two players build a shared fictional memory using "Yes, And" to co-construct the narrative. In its solo version, players practice distilling personal experiences into concise, engaging stories with clear beginnings, middles, and ends. Strong anecdote skills feed directly into monologue-based long-form formats such as the Armando and the Evente, where a performer's personal story serves as the source material for subsequent scenes. The exercise is also widely used in applied improvisation settings for developing communication, listening, and storytelling skills in professional contexts.
How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). Ace. Retrieved March 17, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/exercises/ace
The Improv Archive. "Ace." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/exercises/ace.
The Improv Archive. "Ace." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/exercises/ace. Accessed March 17, 2026.
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