Improvoker

So, it’s been pretty quiet around the Improvoker parts of the globe, not for lack of news, but more for lack of time. I’ve gone from temporary improv hiatus, to full time improv employee. I now feel like improv is my second job. Let me explain.

Before I started my Billy Merritt 401 5 weeks back, I had dropped out of all my practice groups. I had sworn off all improv contact, aside from Harold Night at UCB, because I was just completely burned out. I was improvising 5 nights a week and felt utterly devoid of interesting ideas in scenes. Then 401 started, I joined a few groups, and I signed up for a few more classes. Now I am up to my eyes in improv and every evening at 6, I pack up from regular paying work, and head to my second job - improv.

Monday night my 401 class performed at New Team Harold and we surprisingly did better than we or Billy expected. He made us all state something before the show for the class to remember about improv and something we wanted to work on during the show. I had stated that back-line support and editing were critical for scenes and that I wanted to work on not changing my point of view in a scene to match my partner. Strangely, I seemed to have focussed on back-line support much more than not changing my point of view. I tried to support every scene I could, by raising stakes, and hitting implied game. Of course there were a few missed opportunities that really could have made the show better, a few awkward pauses, a few mistakes that weren’t woven into the fabric of scenes as well as they could, but all in all I think we outdid ourselves. Billy even remarked in notes after our performance “I’m really surprised by that show. Not as an insult, but I would not have expected that show from your classwork. You guys have your work cut out for yourselves for your next show.”

After New Team Harrold we saw Chicago originated 4 Square perform at the UCB and were humbled by their incredible performance. Absolute and total control over scenes. Not once did I feel that they didn’t know where they were going. It was an amazing show. All the players agreed to every initiation without question or hesitation. Scenes went to the far side of reality, but never at the cost of believability. Each successive move brought the audience along with perfect justification culminating in my favorite move of the evening when a picked on golfing John Lutz proclaimed,

“Well at least I have a video game about me.”
“Yeah, but that game sucks.”

To which 4 Square in unison started playing the video game which basically consisted of John Lutz walking across stage in a stiff walk and opening doors. It was a brilliantly simple move. The fact that they all were so in tune with each other really hit home that improv can be far more when a group trusts itself.

All of this underlines my new improv resolution, to perform more. While all this time in classes and practice is useful, after being on stage and then seeing 4 Square on stage, I realize that the only way to fully improve my skills is to do this stuff for real, without a net. I need to feel the rush of adrenaline with an audience watching me. I have been warming up for too long and every class show I have underlines for myself that I am capable of doing more.