Fortune Teller
Fortune Teller is a scene game in which one performer plays a psychic or fortune teller reading another character's future. The fortune teller's predictions set up scenes that the ensemble then performs, testing whether the prophecies come true. The game provides a natural framing device for a series of connected short scenes.
Worth Reading
See all books →
The Applied Improvisation Mindset
Tools for Transforming Individuals, Organizations, and Communities
Theresa Robbins Dudeck; Caitlin McClure
Spontaneous Performance
Acting Through Improv
Marsh Cassady
Drama Games and Improvs
Games for the Classroom and Beyond
Justine Jones; Mary Ann Kelley
112 Acting Games
Gavin Levy
The Young Actor's Book of Improvisation
Dramatic Situations
Sandra Caruso; Susan Kosoff
The Triangle of the Scene
A Simple, Practical, Powerful Method for Approaching Improvisation
Paul Vaillancourt
Related Games
Fortune Cookie
Fortune Cookie is a scene game in which performers receive slips of paper with fortune cookie messages that must be incorporated into the scene at key moments. The random text injection forces creative justification and produces unexpected narrative turns. The game trains the skill of making any external input work within the scene's logic.
Book Club
Book Club is a scene game in which performers play members of a book club discussing a fictitious book, with each player having a wildly different interpretation of the same text. The game generates comedy through misunderstanding, strong opinions, and the social dynamics of the group. It rewards distinct character voices and the ability to commit to an absurd premise.
Bermuda Triangle
Bermuda Triangle is a short-form scene game that uses character swapping or rotation to create confusion and comic momentum. Players cycle through roles or positions during a scene, forcing rapid adaptation to new relationships and contexts. The game tests memory and the ability to maintain distinct characters through repeated switches.
Oracle
Oracle is a short-form game in which one performer plays an all-knowing figure who answers audience questions with improvised wisdom, prophecy, or absurd pronouncements. Supporting performers may embody the oracle's visions or act as attendants and interpreters. The game rewards deadpan authority, pseudo-philosophical rhetoric, and the ability to make any response sound profound regardless of its content.
Character Switch
Character Switch is a scene game in which a caller signals performers to rotate characters, each inheriting the role of the player to their left or right. Unlike Character Swap, which involves a single exchange, Character Switch cycles all characters simultaneously. The game demands close observation and the ability to pick up another performer's character instantly.
Newsreader
Newsreader is a short-form game in which one performer plays a television news anchor delivering headlines while other players act out the reported stories in real time behind or beside them. The anchor may be unaware of the physical comedy happening nearby, or may react to it. The game rewards deadpan delivery, strong physicality, and the comic contrast between formal reporting and chaotic action.
How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). Fortune Teller. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/games/fortune-teller
The Improv Archive. "Fortune Teller." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/games/fortune-teller.
The Improv Archive. "Fortune Teller." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/games/fortune-teller. Accessed September 29, 2026.
The Improv Archive is a systemically maintained repository. The archive itself acts as the corporate author.