Airport
Airport is an improv structure that uses the airport terminal as a setting for character-driven scene work and trust-building exercises. The airport provides a natural framework for dramatic encounters: strangers with different destinations, emotional states, and agendas occupy shared space under time pressure. As a scene game, players adopt distinct characters navigating arrivals, departures, delays, and the heightened emotions of travel. As a training exercise, the airport setting frames trust and communication drills where players guide each other through physical challenges. The structure appears across multiple improv and acting traditions, with variations ranging from scenic improvisations in waiting areas to guided obstacle courses using the metaphor of pilots and signalmen. The game rewards clear character choices, environmental awareness, and the ability to build layered group dynamics within a fixed location.
Structure
In its scene game form, players establish the airport terminal using chairs arranged as waiting area seating. Each performer enters the space as a distinct character with a specific reason for being at the airport: traveling for a wedding, returning from a failed business trip, meeting a long-lost relative, or fleeing an uncomfortable situation. Characters discover each other through incidental contact such as competing for the same seat, overhearing a phone call, or responding to a gate change announcement.
The game progresses through layers of interaction. Initial encounters establish individual characters. Subsequent beats create connections and conflicts between them. A disrupting event such as a flight delay, cancellation, or security incident forces characters into prolonged contact and reveals deeper motivations.
In its exercise form, as documented by Levy in 112 Acting Games, the structure takes the form of a guided obstacle course. Two teams line up at the start of parallel courses marked with cones, chairs, and other obstacles representing a runway. Two players serve as "signalmen" who verbally guide blindfolded teammates ("pilots") around each obstacle without physical contact. The first team to guide all members through the course wins.
Both versions conclude naturally: the scene game ends on a blackout or resolution of the character threads, while the exercise version ends when all players have completed the course.
How to Teach It
How to Explain It
"You are in an airport. You know which airport, you know why you are here, you know where you are going. Everyone else in this airport has their own story. Find someone. Have a moment."
Airport is valuable for teaching environment work, character specificity, and trust depending on the version used.
For the scene game version, coach players to choose characters with strong emotional stakes rather than generic travelers. A passenger who just received bad news on the phone creates richer scene potential than a passenger who is simply waiting. Emphasize that the airport provides the where, but the players must bring the who and the why.
For the obstacle course version, as described by Levy, the exercise teaches trust and specificity of communication. Coach the signalmen to give precise, measurable directions ("slide your foot forward six inches") rather than vague instructions ("take a step forward"). The pilots must surrender control and trust their guides completely.
A common failure mode in the scene game occurs when players ignore each other and perform solo character pieces. Coach the ensemble to seek connections: overhear conversations, share reactions, ask questions. The comedy and drama emerge from characters affecting each other, not from individual performances.
In the obstacle course version, a common pitfall is signalmen speaking simultaneously or giving contradictory directions. Use this as a teaching moment about clear communication and collaborative leadership.
How to Perform It
The scene game version works best with four to six performers. Each player should enter with a clearly differentiated character and a specific emotional stake tied to their travel. Vague characters who are simply "at the airport" lack the specificity to drive scenes.
The fixed setting eliminates the need to establish location, freeing performers to focus on character and relationship. Players should use object work to ground the environment: handling luggage, checking departure screens, buying coffee, or searching for a power outlet.
Pacing benefits from staggered entrances. Rather than populating the terminal all at once, performers enter at intervals, allowing the audience to track each new character and observe the emerging dynamic.
The game escalates most effectively through an external event that affects all characters simultaneously. A weather delay, a gate change, or a security announcement creates a shared circumstance that forces characters into new configurations and reveals how each responds under pressure.
History
Gavin Levy documents a trust-based version of Airport in 112 Acting Games, framing it as an exercise in which blindfolded players are guided through an obstacle course by verbal-only "signalmen." This version emphasizes trust, specificity of direction, and collaborative leadership.
Seraphin Eldredge describes an airport terminal improvisation in Mask Improvisation for Actor Training and Performance, where masked characters occupy a waiting area and interact based on their individual reasons for being at the airport. This version uses the airport as a rich environment for character exploration and relationship discovery.
The airport setting remains one of the most commonly suggested locations in improv, appearing across books by Bernardi, Kelley, and others as a reliable source for scene suggestions.
Worth Reading
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The Actor's Book of Improvisation
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Augusto Boal
The Young Actor's Book of Improvisation
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Sandra Caruso; Susan Kosoff
The Second City Unscripted
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How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). Airport. Retrieved March 17, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/games/airport
The Improv Archive. "Airport." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/games/airport.
The Improv Archive. "Airport." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/games/airport. Accessed March 17, 2026.
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