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Intermediate2+ players~15 min

Questions Only

Two players perform a scene using only questions. Any declarative statement, hesitation or repeated question structure sends you to the back of the queue. Sharp, funny and genuinely difficult.

Scene WorkFocusListeningShort-FormCompetitive

About

Questions Only (popularised by Whose Line Is It Anyway?) is a scene game in which all communication must take the form of a genuine question. It sounds simple but immediately exposes how much of ordinary conversation relies on statements. The game is as much a listening exercise as a comedy one: the questions must actually respond to what was just asked.

How to Play

  1. 1

    Two players begin a scene from an audience suggestion. Every line of dialogue must be a question.

  2. 2

    A player is immediately replaced by the next player in line if they: make a statement, repeat a question structure already used, hesitate for too long, or ask a rhetorical question that does not genuinely advance the scene.

  3. 3

    A new player joins from the side of the stage, and the scene continues.

  4. 4

    The scene should still have characters, a location and a developing situation - it is not just wordplay.

  5. 5

    The facilitator or a designated judge makes the call on violations.

Variations

  • -Competitive format: players score a point each time they send their partner out. Statements allowed: relax the rules for beginners and only penalise 'um', 'uh' or repetition.

Related games

Questions Only | On The Spot