Forms are the mid-point, not the nexus
Improv forms are designed to provide direction and structure for learning skills
Learning a form can be daunting when you first start. When you’re trying to develop your confidence in just being up on stage, following a structure that dictates the type of scene you need to do can feel incredibly restrictive, turning scenes into mental arithmetic.
A likely reason is you haven’t developed the skills necessary to approach these forms confidently. As you gain more experience and knowledge, it all feels less daunting, and it becomes more apparent that these forms are really to give some structure and direction to your group’s performance.
While some try to move back to a montage-type format as quickly as possible, others see the mastery of a form as an endpoint.
Both these views can sometimes be down to performers and groups going through the motions. With little to seemly challenge them, it’s easy for them to assume they’ve hit the ceiling of improv.
It’s important to understand that improv forms are not just structures to follow, but also valuable training tools. They serve as a mid-point that helps point a group in the right direction in their development, providing guidance and support along the way.
While the length of time you should spend on a form is open to debate, it’s important to understand the skills and lessons you’re taking from them. At the very least, it should teach you that having a structure is a good thing, as all shows, regardless of their form, require it and benefit from it.
Usually, the ones that don’t tend to fall apart through zaniness and disconnected elements, which is very hard for an audience to follow.
Whether it’s the Harold, La Ronde or Monoscene, they’re designed to teach skills and embed certain habits into you. They’re a training tool incorporated into a show because stage time is the best teacher.
Forms are teachers, not masters
All forms have something to teach, and while it's not essential to do them, it's good to know why you're doing them. The following is subjective (obviously) and more to give an idea of what you're working on.
The Harold is designed to distribute the workload among six- to eight-person groups. The beats prevent anyone from monopolising the stage, the economy of it ensures you're moving briskly, and it encourages setting a strong premise and/or character (depending on your group focus) that you can refer back to later.
The La Ronde is about helping performers develop richer characters, adding extra complexity to them by placing each in two different settings.
Monoscenes help you develop stamina for your characters and relationships, pushing you to create the relationship further instead of searching for more things to throw out.
Similarly, the Pretty Flower fleshes out characters in a monoscene further, exploring details brought up throughout the show.
As mentioned, all forms focus on developing specific skills through a particular structure. Their purpose is for performers to learn skills from it and use them to build their own styles and structures.
That doesn't always happen, though. What I'm finding more common are teams adding an extra layer to an existing form, usually to make it more palpable to an audience. One I see popping up are shows based on a popular TV/movie property that use Harold as the base form.
This is a valid choice, but it's always worth asking what the goal is. Is it a way to effectively communicate what's needed to an audience to get them on board? Or has so much time been invested in a form that you placed a familiar property on top to bring non-savvy audience members in?
It's an obvious question, but it helps you move away from it potentially becoming a gimmick idea and creating a show greater than the sum of its parts. If you were to go down this route, you might find a modified version of an existing form may suit you better. Again, it depends on what your aims are, so adjust accordingly.
Forms are supposed to show you what's possible so that when you internalise their skills, you can take them and apply the parts that work into a new show structure.
Do take the time to learn forms and develop competency in them, but remember that the goal isn't to master them; it's to use skills and lessons to create something that best suits your group's strengths.