Commando
Commando is a high-energy physical game in which players navigate an imagined obstacle course or battlefield, reacting to called-out hazards and commands. The exercise demands full physical commitment and rapid shifts between actions. It raises group energy and breaks down self-consciousness through shared physical absurdity.
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Related Exercises
Obstacle Course
Obstacle Course is a physical exercise in which players navigate a real or imagined series of obstacles using their bodies expressively. The exercise may be used to build physical confidence, practice environment work, or warm up the body before performance. It trains spatial awareness and encourages bold physical choices.
Fistorama
Fistorama is a high-energy physical exercise in which players engage in exaggerated, theatrical "combat" using oversized gestures and sound effects. No actual contact is made; the focus is on committed physicality and dramatic reaction. The exercise builds physical boldness and the stage combat skill of making big without making contact.
King Lizard
King Lizard is a physical status and transformation exercise in which participants alternate between embodying two extreme physical archetypes -- the king, characterized by elevated posture, expanded presence, and unhurried ease, and the lizard, characterized by a low center of gravity, darting speed, and close-to-the-ground alertness. The exercise uses the contrast between these two physical states to develop performers' range of physicalized status and presence.
Honkasaurus Rex
Honkasaurus Rex is an energetic warm-up exercise in which players adopt the persona of a loud, honking dinosaur and move through the space interacting with each other through dinosaur sounds and physicality. The exercise releases inhibition through committed absurdity, builds group energy, and establishes a norm of full physical and vocal participation at the start of a session.
Honey Walk
Honey Walk is a physicality exercise in which players imagine they are walking through a thick, viscous substance like honey or wet sand. The resistance slows movement, demands physical commitment, and makes visible the relationship between physical tension, weight, and effort. The exercise develops sustained physical attention, full-body engagement, and the capacity to physicalize an imagined environment with enough specificity that it becomes visible to observers.
British Bulldog
British Bulldog is a high-energy physical game in which one player stands in the center of the space while the rest attempt to run from one side to the other without being caught. Tagged players join the catcher for subsequent rounds until only one runner remains. The game builds physical confidence, spatial awareness, and group energy.
How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). Commando. Retrieved March 17, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/exercises/commando
The Improv Archive. "Commando." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/exercises/commando.
The Improv Archive. "Commando." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/exercises/commando. Accessed March 17, 2026.
The Improv Archive is a systemically maintained repository. The archive itself acts as the corporate author.