Speakers Charlie Todd: Comedian
Charlie Todd is the creator of Improv Everywhere, a group that creates absurd and joyful public scenes.
Why you should listen to him:
Bored by a temp job, and tired of waiting for someone to give him a stage, comedian Charlie Todd decided to make his own. So he walked into a bar and pretended to be musician Ben Folds. It went so well that it inspired him to create Improv Everywhere, "a New York City-based prank collective that causes scenes of chaos and joy in public places."
Todd has produced, directed, performed, and documented the group’s work for over ten years. In that time they've run over 100 'missions,' some involving hundereds or thousands of 'agents,' each one creating a wonderful and irreproducible experience.
He's a performer at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York City, and is the author of Causing a Scene.
Watch our photographer's view of the TED2012 prank ... and see how Improv Everywhere pulled it off with the help of a few willing TEDsters ...
"The great delight of the Improv Everywhere events is that they let subway riders slip out of the psychic silos that they normally travel in."Jim Dwyer, The New York Times
Quotes by Charlie Todd
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“One of the points of Improv Everywhere is to cause a scene in a public place that is a positive experience for other people. It’s a prank, but it’s a prank that gives somebody a great story to tell.”
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“The participants at Improv Everywhere events have just as much leisure time as any other New Yorkers, they just occasionally choose to spend it in an unusual way.”
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“There is no point and that there doesn’t have to be a point. We don’t need a reason. As long as it’s fun.”
— on Improv Everywhere
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Charlie Todd: The shared experience of absurdity
- 12:04 Posted: Nov 2011
Charlie Todd on the Web
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