You Are My Best Friend
You Are My Best Friend is a warm-up exercise in which players greet each other with the enthusiasm of reuniting with a long-lost best friend. The exercise practices heightened emotional connection and teaches performers to bring genuine warmth and excitement to their interactions. It sets a supportive, high-energy tone for the session.
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Related Exercises
Back Dancing
Back Dancing is a physical warm-up in which two players stand back to back and move together, each responding to the pressure and rhythm of the other's body. Without visual cues, players must rely on physical sensitivity to stay connected. The exercise builds nonverbal communication and physical trust.
Meet & Greet Walkabout
Meet, Greet, Walkabout is a physical warm-up and ensemble-building exercise in which participants walk through the space and meet each other in a series of brief, structured encounters. Each encounter follows a format set by the facilitator -- a specific greeting, a specific question, or a specific physical acknowledgment -- and participants move from person to person at a pace set by the facilitator. The exercise builds early ensemble connection and reduces the social distance between participants before more demanding group work begins.
Everybody Touch Someone Who...
Everybody Touch Someone Who... is a physical warm-up exercise in which a caller names a characteristic or experience and all participants who match it must immediately move to touch at least one other person who also matches. The resulting movement creates visible social maps of the group -- who shares which experiences -- while generating physical energy and a sense of collective discovery through quick, full-body engagement.
Good Morning!
Good Morning is a greeting warm-up in which players walk freely through the space and greet each other with increasing enthusiasm, variety of character, or specific emotional quality. The exercise breaks down social distance, establishes a culture of openness, and creates physical and vocal warm-up at the start of a rehearsal or workshop. Variations may specify a greeting style, an emotional tone, or a relationship context that the group explores through successive rounds.
Friendly Hands
Friendly Hands is a trust and connection exercise in which players reach out to shake hands or make physical contact with as many people as possible in a short time. The exercise breaks the physical barrier between participants and establishes a baseline of comfortable touch. It warms up the group's willingness to engage physically.
Slappy Face
Slappy Face is a physical warm-up game in which players gently tap their own faces and bodies to wake up their physical awareness, often followed by partner exercises involving light, controlled contact. The exercise raises tactile sensitivity and alertness. It is a quick way to bring performers into their bodies at the start of a session.
How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). You Are My Best Friend. Retrieved March 17, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/exercises/you-are-my-best-friend
The Improv Archive. "You Are My Best Friend." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/exercises/you-are-my-best-friend.
The Improv Archive. "You Are My Best Friend." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/exercises/you-are-my-best-friend. Accessed March 17, 2026.
The Improv Archive is a systemically maintained repository. The archive itself acts as the corporate author.