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these two. (at iO Chicago)

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ladies and gents, say hello to Marzipan Beauty Pageant and Unsupervised Slumber Party!

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section 2 before our very. first. show! (at The Atlantic Bar & Grill)

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bella the labradoodle improvises with section 2. (at Studio BE)

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by the end of the show, there were chewed bits of deli meat, half-eaten donuts, and warm beer all stuck to the stage floor. this place feels like home. (at Annoyance Theatre)

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looking into my future (at Lake Michigan Steps)

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if we treat each other as if we are geniuses, poets and artists, we have a better chance of becoming that on stage.

del close

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week 1 reflections from my friend gabe

the first person i met in my class was gabe molinari from amsterdam. we found out we're staying just one block from each other, became fast friends, and have been biking to and from class and shows together nearly every day. he's also keeping track of his experience, and his reflections on week one are wonderful.

read more here!

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we did it! shiny new level one (week one) grads.

back row: jake, rick, beau, steve, andy, blum, phoebe, christine front row: caleb, maggie jo, kaitlyn, ryan, me, angela, colleen kneeling: gabe

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iO summer intensive, week 1, day 4.

last day of level one! those four days went by far too quickly...

random notes from the beginning of class - you can be a cartoon, you can make yourself anything -- the goal is clarity and convincing the audience that your reality is true - wackiness that still has one foot grounded in reality feels more believable and relatable - craig uhlir on wackiness: "just because you're a snail doesn't mean you can't still have a netflix queue." (truth.)

harold openings - verbal association - not as "performative" so it's not always as enjoyable for the audience, can seem like a train of thought happening onstage - take a suggestion, then the players start free associating one word or phrase at a time - take inspiration from previous word, tone/inflection, sounds - it's fine to repeat words

harold openings - invocation - more performative, invocation takes an ordinary object and transforms it into something we can have feelings for, be inspired by, etc. - take a suggestion for a word (often an object, e.g. a pencil) - (1) "i see..." describe the object - first statement almost always, "i see a pencil" followed by descriptive statements: "i see a sharp pencil, i see bite marks, i see a fresh eraser, i see a name written on the pencil," etc. - these statements are true for all of us, i.e. we're all seeing the same pencil. steps 2, 3, and 4 can be specific to you or your character. - (2) "you are..." talk to the object directly - characters start to emerge here: "you are what got me into college, you are my biggest fear, you are the reason i had to go to the ER when i was 12," etc. - (3) "thou art..." heighten the object to poetic significance - this is a very performative aspect, embrace the silliness of the language style and own it (many use hand gestures, look to the sky, take a knee, etc.) - can repeat "you are" statements with added poetic significance and tone: "thou art what didst get me into college, thou art mine greatest fear," etc. (and if you don't know all the shakespearean words/tenses, don't worry. just own what you're saying.) - (4) "i am..." you become the object and you're informed by all that's been said up to this point - in short: see it, talk to it, worship it, become it.

other random harold notes - more on this in weeks 4 and 5... - it's a monothematic, polyscenic piece - opening, first beats (1a, 1b, 1c), group game, second beats (2a, 2b, 2c), group game, third beats (3a, 3b, 3c) - first beats are all two-person scenes, inspired in some way by opening - use specific language from opening if it inspires you. this will help your scene partner connect to your offer. for example, if someone says in the invocation, "you are my light," a character may choose to repeat those exact words in a first beat scene. - a good second beat scene takes multiple callbacks from the first beats - second beats often incorporate time dashes, character dashes, or tangential scenes - third beat scenes build momentum and comment in some way on themes from previous scenes. third beats are also often "murky and mysterious territory" - don't always follow prescribed 3a, 3b, 3c structure. you could to a quick run of tagouts in a universe that's been created, break the fourth wall, etc. - use third beats to make connections for the audience and show them why you're doing these scenes in this order at this moment - group games act as palate cleansers

on emotion - no matter what the facts of the scene are, your emotional choice will ground you, because if you go into a scene with a strong emotional attachment, that will stay true regardless of your setting, other characters, etc.

scene painting - another way to start scenes is by creating the space in which you will play - see an object (or something about the environment), put your hands on it, and describe it ("there's an overstuffed recliner right here made of leather. it's ripped in a couple of places and the stuffing is coming out. there's a musty afghan draped over the back of the chair.") - exercise: paint a setting, do a scene, then edit, paint another setting inspired by previous scene, do a scene, edit, and repeat

other final notes for level one - if this is true, what else is true? - who are these characters to each other? what do they want from each other?  - how is today different? - more clarity almost always leads to more focus - relationship, relationship, relationship - emotion, emotion, emotion

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iO summer intensive, week 1, day 3.

steve says he is a "huge believer in and practitioner of false confidence." this is an eloquent way of saying, "fake it 'til you make it." be confident in your character, in your choices, in your point of view, in your relationship with your scene partner. 

another note on theme vs. detail: the thematic associations the audience makes are far more interesting than literal connections players make, i.e., a suggestion of bathtub followed by a scene about bathtubs is less interesting than one about the themes "baththub" can lead us to -- comfort, isolation, warmth, etc.

sound + motion around the circle - players in a circle, one person starts by making a motion accompanied by a sound - next person copies and heightens, keep going around and around and around... - copy what has just come before you. this game is about listening, connecting, energy, and heightening.

Armando style monologue opening - 40 seconds - 2 minutes in length - suggestion, then... "ABC makes me think of..." - when someone introduces an idea or theme in their monologue, feel free to play in a world where the opposite is true (this is still inspired) - a challenge for some: how do i get off the back line and initiate a scene in which my scene partner knows exactly what connection i'm making? i don't know that steve gave an exact answer, but for me, it's not imperative that your scene partner know that connection right away. the relationship between you and your scene partner is the most important thing, and coming in with intention and an emotional connection to the other person is the best gift you can give them.

steve waltien's on the spot hierarchy of importance in scenes: 1. be interesting. 2. be funny. 3. explore themes and dig deeper. 4. incorporate the suggestion. (see how far this is down the list? take inspiration from it. if you're inspired, you're inspired. don't feel pressure to force this in.)

he says that being funny comes from being interesting, honest, and genuine, and that we're funniest when we're not trying to be. more on suggestion: we're essentially inserting a suggestion to start a machine, and the pieces of that machine won't work unless we inserted that specific suggestion, that is to say... the subsequent scenes (machine parts) wouldn't have happened in that order if we hadn't had that specific suggestion. so whether you're conscious of it or not, the suggestion is inspiring something and you will never do that same show again.

on "yes, and" and saying "no" ... the actors can't say no or ask questions, characters absolutely can. example: two people have made a suicide pact. one says, "are you ready/we're doing this/etc." the other player can choose to play a character who's actually having a really great week and not really feeling the suicide pact anymore.

harold first beat scenes - let early scenes breathe and go on a bit longer. avoid too many tagouts at the top.

two person silent scenes - you can only say your scene partner's name - be careful of "talking without talking" - if you pursue an activity, it should inform your character, point of view, relationship... always.

more two person scenes... silent starts with big emotion - two people doing an activity - each makes a strong emotional choice - take in your scene partner and his or her choice, let it affect you but stay committed to your emotion - heighten, heighten, heighten... until one of you is compelled to speak - justify your emotions

this reminded me of jill bernard's emotional exercise using the four primary emotions of MAD, GLAD, SAD, and AFRA(i)D. i still go back to those very basic emotions because each has an incredible range and nuances within.

reflection scenes - two person scenes where each subsequent scene takes inspiration from the previous scene(s) - explore the themes within, and have fun with callbacks

to close... my pitiful attempt to summarize a really nice thing steve said at the end of class: "we may not always feel inspired, but 100% of the time, the right answer is editing well, getting out there, making a connection, and playing your side of the scene."

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iO summer intensive, week 1, day 2.

started this day with song spot. my non-enthusiasm for this game is known far and wide (and often misunderstood because hey, i love to sing!). so it's helpful that steve reminds us that first and foremost, this game is about support. - i'll say it again: it's about support - one person stands out front, the others form a line/semicirle behind - person on the spots begins to sing a song - as you are inspired, jump in, tap out that person, and sing a song that their song/tone/performance inspired. the person on the spot should not be left out for too long. support support support by getting them out as quickly as possible. - STOP THINKING SO MUCH (this is a note to myself primarily) - find a way to join in the fun and support both the person on the spot, and everyone else (clapping, stomping, with la la las and ooh aahs) - fun to think about themes from the round when it's over (repeated songs, artists, words)

marketing execs - whole group sitting around on stage (nice change to do this in a full group. i've done it in groups of four.) - all about "yes, and" - we're given a product and are tasked with creating a commercial an identifying a spokesperson, tag line, and jingle - lots of people pipe up with ideas and we all applaud and begin our statements with, "yes, and" as we build - everyone contributes multiple times (i.e. the commercial idea is built upon by many until you have lots of fun details for it) on "yes, and" -- you can do this in many ways, with your physicality, response, tone, and by literally saying, "yes."

then we made up our own short form games. these were a lot of fun. more in a later post! fun side note: i taught my new friend ryan from calgary "hesitation debate" and "good, bad, worst advice." he hadn't heard of either! oh, the things we're all learning here...

tagouts - by tagging a player out of a scene, you indicate that the person staying remains the same character - why: to show context, raise the stakes, show depth of character, show passage of time (or go back in time) - helps to fill out the world you're creating - stay away from plot and use tagouts to heighten and advance the scene - think about this character's work/play/home and what you can add through a tagout to further develop their character - explore rather than explain. explaining paints a really simple life, and we're striving for depth. people are complex. characters can change and evolve, and in many cases, characters become self-aware and try to change in some way. they don't always succeed.

soundscapes - everyone lies down on the stage - get a suggestion of a location and create that location's soundscape - build on what's being created (snippets of dialogue are ok) - we created a summer night and an aircraft carrier bridge

the "i love..." list - back line exercise, get a suggestion - one person steps forward and starts a short story with "i love..." - each player taps him or her out and starts another story with "i love..." that is inspired by the previous story or stories

other notes - follow theme, not detail. what's the overarching theme and how many different ways can you apply it? - use activity to get to the meat of the scene. hint: the meat is the relationship. - it's much more satisfying (and easier, frankly) to do scenes with strong relationships. if people are strangers, give lots of detail initially (e.g., "listen, i know you're a crossing guard, but i gotta talk to someone about my marriage. you're married, aren't you? i see you out here every day..."

steve told us a story about ronald moore (who wrote for battlestar galactica and star trek) and his "idiot stick" in the writers' room. if anyone had an idea that they thought was stupid, too farfetched, too impossible, etc... he or she could grab the idiot stick and speak with impunity and without fear of being lambasted. (do we still lambast? let's not.) i love this idea. i'd like to walk around for an entire week with the idiot stick, use it liberally, then leave it at home one day and see what happens. 

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iO summer intensive, week 1, day 1.

my instructor for level 1 was steve waltien. he's warm, calm, amiable. i could link to any number of articles and bios, but this interview he did with jimmy carrane on improv nerd is wonderful. i hope you enjoy it. here are my notes from day 1.

introduction to longform improv - this level is primarily about listening, agreeing, and building on things. - we say that every idea is a good idea, but even half-baked ideas are ones that provide something that can be built upon. - the secret to improv is breaking the notion that you have to spend your time thinking about what to say next. a really good conversation works the same way. when we listen intently, we instinctively know what to say in response without having to think about it. - we all want to look good, smart, funny... that's normal and human. acknowledge it so that you can put it aside and just play.

we start with a name game. for posterity, my classmates are gabe, christine, angela, maggie jo, kaitlyn, beau, phoebe, jake, caleb, blum, andy, colleen, ryan, and rick.

conducted story (i love this game.) - get a suggestion of anything at all. one person "conducts" the story and the other players form a semicircle - the players tell a story as a group, one at a time (when pointed to) - take your inspiration from what was just said, rather than pre-loading ideas - if someone is cut off mid-syllable, pick up right where they left off, rather than repeating - don't feel pressure to add a lot of new details; you will already have plenty of information to build on. take the opportunity to add depth to characters that have been established. - stories we told: The Heavy Crane, Little Vader, October, and The Melting Pot

shared monologue - players are in a line. one person begins telling a true story, and one by one, the other players tap in and continue the story, transforming it into something fictional.  - good for establishing the who, what, where, why... improv involves answering unanswered questions, and each piece of information leads to more interesting unanswered questions.

cocktail party - four pairs on stage, each with a different topic of conversation (politics, music, travel, etc.) - one by one, each pair talks about their topic for a short bit - after each group has a turn, one pair takes focus and the pairs give and take, yielding focus to whoever begins speaking - listen to the pair that is speaking and see what connections are made among the various conversations - play with the pace (one pair talks for 30 seconds, the next only has one line, etc)

jibberish - two-person scenes, begin with two-line scenes: one person opens with a line in jibberish, conveyed with emotion (spacework and movement can be used), the other person responds in english - person speaking in jibberish should have an idea of what he or she is saying - next, on to three-line scenes: person 1 starts in jibberish, person 2 responds in english, person 1 responds in english - finally, three-line scenes all in english - also good for establishing the who, what, why. try to do this in the first few lines.

confession - 2-person diner scenes - first person says, "i have a confession to make," then confesses something - second person also makes a confession - your confessions should inform your character, point of view, and relationship to the other person - dialogue follows always look for opportunities to make scenes about the relationship. remember that we have a natural drive to create conflict. it's not necessary.

regarding establishing the who, what, why early on... the audience needs to at least think that they know what's going on in order to more fully enjoy what's happening (there are, of course, exceptions). there will always be opportunities to surprise the audience and turn a scene on its head. there's no reason to keep them in suspense at the top of the scene to try to surprise them with a reveal.