Improv acting is about creating in the moment. Creating live, in the safety of a warm, comforting group of classmates, a multitude of characters and roles using monologues, physical shapes, vocalized sounds, songs, and even gibberish.As a new student of improv, there is a decidedly delicious moment you experience when you learn to let go of your inhibitions and simply follow your impulses moment by moment. In the carefully moderated environment created by the experienced teacher the student learns to think on her feet and lets go of the need for preparation, planning, and hence lets go of anxiety.
Improv is accessible to all. One needs no special preparation or aptitude for it. As long as a student is willing to trust the teacher and literally play the improv theater games that provide structure for learning, he or she develops skills of being present more fully in the moment.
The skills learned in improv class are ultimately life skills. How to be confident, express your creative self, think on your feet! I have been teaching improv for fifteen years now and have taught a very wide range of students, from artists to nuns, accountants to photographers, astrophysicists to Zen practitioners. They have all enjoyed the experience of learning improv and been pleasantly surprised to find how much it helped them succeed in their fields of work.
I think everyone should study improv. And if you happen to live close to Berkeley, come check out my class!
May the pulse be with you,
Abhay
Image: Cluster balloonist John Ninomiya's creation.
1 comment:
hello abhay, thank you for your tips. I am a choreographer for dance theatre, I have taught few dance classes even improvisation, but this is the first time I have been asked to teach acting improv, so I am taking the challenge and google and found you, I will try to follow your steps too on top of other ideas that I plan to incorporated!
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