Interview Switch
Interview Switch is a scene game in which the roles of interviewer and interviewee suddenly reverse mid-conversation. The performer who was asking questions is now answering; the performer who was answering is now asking. The power shift catches both performers off guard and changes the scene's relational dynamics in an instant. The game trains the ability to adapt to a changed status dynamic, to find and occupy a new position in a relationship immediately upon the reversal.
Structure
Setup
A suggestion establishes the interview context: a job interview, a press conference, a therapy session, a police interrogation, a celebrity interview, a medical consultation. Roles are established -- interviewer and interviewee -- with the clear status and power differential implied by the context.
The Interview
The scene begins with the established roles. The interviewer asks; the interviewee answers. The scene builds the relationship and the specific dynamic of this particular interview.
The Switch
The host calls "Switch!" Both performers immediately reverse roles. The former interviewee now asks; the former interviewer now answers. The content of the scene continues -- the same interview, the same subject -- but the power dynamic has inverted. Both performers must find who they now are in this new configuration.
Continuation
The host may call additional switches, inverting the roles again. Each switch resets the power dynamic and requires both performers to adapt.
Ending
The scene ends after a set number of switches or when the dynamic reaches a satisfying resolution.
How to Teach It
Objectives
Interview Switch trains rapid status adaptation -- the ability to move from a position of power to a position of subordination (and back) within a continuous scene -- and the skill of finding the new relational dynamic without needing time to establish it.
How to Explain It
"Same scene. Same conversation. But when the switch happens, your roles completely reverse. If you were asking, you're now answering. If you were the authority, you're now under it. Find that new position immediately."
Scaffolding
Ensure the initial interview context has a clear status differential before calling the first switch. A context where both performers have similar authority produces an uninteresting reversal; the game works when the power gap is wide.
Common Pitfalls
Performers sometimes maintain their previous status after the switch rather than fully inhabiting the new position. The coaching note is that the switch should be complete -- not a gradual negotiation, but an instant arrival in the reversed position.
How to Perform It
Audience Intro
"We need a suggestion for an interview. Any kind of interview -- job, TV, medical, police. When you hear 'Switch,' everyone in this scene is now on the other side of the table."
Cast Size
Exactly 2 performers: one interviewer, one interviewee.
Staging
A table, two chairs, or a clear spatial separation reinforces the interview structure. The physical arrangement should make the power dynamic legible to the audience.
Wrap-Up Logic
End when a switch lands a particularly strong reversal, or when the accumulated switches have brought the scene's relationship to a new, unexpected equilibrium.
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How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). Interview Switch. Retrieved March 17, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/games/interview-switch
The Improv Archive. "Interview Switch." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/games/interview-switch.
The Improv Archive. "Interview Switch." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/games/interview-switch. Accessed March 17, 2026.
The Improv Archive is a systemically maintained repository. The archive itself acts as the corporate author.