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The third class was all about give and take, listening and awareness. We started off with George and Zip Zap Zoom to warm up. Then we passed around imaginary balls that helped us to focus and pay attention to what others are doing. Wow… then we played the mirror game. I love the mirror game because it is so simple, but it really illustrates give and take very well (it gets you out of your head and into the “zone”). Then thinks started to get weirder and weirder. We passed a move and a sound around in the circle. Then one person had to go in the middle and make a move and a sound, give the focus to another player, who had to copy the move and sound and then go to the middle and morph into a new move and sound. We played two other variations of this game. In the first everyone copied the person in the middle and at any point anyone could take the lead and change the move and sound into something else. In the second variation we didn’t stay in a circle and anyone could take the lead. These exercises feel weird when you do it the first time, but if you can let go and really pay attention to what others are doing and once again make them look good (in this case accept whatever they are doing and do it with them) it is a wonderful experience of connecting with others and being in the moment. We ended the class with Monster talk (Speaking in unison) scenes which is also a great exercise in active listening and give and take.

Key concepts:

Give and take – It’s all about giving up and taking control, and sharing and taking the focus. To do this well, you have to be aware and present so that you know whether the situation requires of you to take or give up control/focus.

Listening and awareness – In Improv often referred to as being in the moment. It requires you to be present, pay attention to what is happening around you and to focus. To do this you need to let go, get out of your head and into your body.

Thanks again to everyone’s whole hearted participation. Please share some of your thoughts here.

The focus of the second improv class was to introduce the participants to improv basics.  We started the class with two warm-ups (Hero’s and Pattern circle) to get everyone playful and focused.   The gifts game followed to illustrate accepting a blind offer.  We played Yes but and Yes and to illustrate the difference between blocking and accepting.  The questions game showed how asking questions can be a way of accepting without adding new information.   In Improv this is called wimping.  Then we played Blind offers to illustrate how physical movement can also be an offer.  The class was ended with everyone doing two person scenes.

Key concepts

Blocking – Not accepting another player’s offer.

Accepting – Embracing each offer made by other players to advance the scene (Yes and).

Wimping – accepting offers but refusing to do anything with them.
Examples are:
Asking open questions , thus leaving the action to be decided by the other player.
Waffling, babbling without accomplishing any action.

Talking heads – When players talk about what they are doing or want to do instead of actually doing it.  Too much talk, too little action.

Thanks for everyone stepping up and doing your first scenes in front of others.   Some of you commented to me after the class that you have learned a lot but that it was difficult.  Applying these basic improv principles are difficult at first because we have to break through our defence mechanisms that makes us want to block and not take the risk of taking action.  I also think it is because we are not used to being in a space where our partner is there to make us look good.  As we get to know each other better and build more trust it will become easier.  Please share your comment…

Last night was the first class in a series of 8 Improv theatre classes. The objective of the class was to get everyone in a playful mood and to let everyone connect and get to know each other. In order to do this we played some name games such as Name circle, Super Heroes and Bang Bang. To get more playful we played Bodyguard, Yes lets and Giants, Wizards and Goblins. We ended the class with a word association game (To do dodo).

Key concepts that came out of the class:

• To play you have to be present, focus on your fellow players and interact with your whole body not just your thoughts and words.
• Make your partner look good.
• We struggle to play because we are afraid of judgment so we try to hard
• It is okay to make a mistake. It’s often our fear of failure that causes us to fail.
• Everything is an offer even a mistake.
• Let go and focus on the process not the outcome.

What struck me about the class was how everyone really engaged and took part even though it was a first class. I would like to thank you all for that.

Please feel free to add your comments.

• What did you enjoy the most about the class?
• What was difficult for you?
• What new insight did you get?
• Anything else you’d like to share?

In ancient Egypt, there was a boy who was ugly, stupid and lazy. The only thing he cared about was playing his homemade flute. He would play it all day. His mother also thought he was worthless.  “Oh, that ugly stupid, lazy boy” she would sigh “he would probably just fall into the river one day and drown.”

One day the boy roamed into a part of the city that was unfamiliar to him and he climbed a wall that was also unfamiliar to him. On the other side was a beautiful garden. But more beautiful than the garden was the girl sitting by a pool in the centre of it trailing her fingers in the water.

He knew that no one as ugly stupid and lazy as himself would make much of an impression on her, so he sat on the wall and began to play his flute. He played out all his dreams and hopes and fears to her.

The next day he did the same and the next. She never looked at him or acknowledged him, but simply sat there day after day by the pool. He dreamed of sliding off the wall one day, taking her in his arms and whisking her away to a little hut by the river where they would live happily ever after. But he didn’t’t.

One day he heard some villagers talking about the daughter of the Pharaoh and they described the garden where she spent her days. The boy realized that he had fallen in love with a princess. A princess would never love a poor boy that was ugly, stupid and lazy. Heartbroken, he wandered all night.

At dawn he passed some merchants talking. One of them said “you know the magician Habeebee? He can do anything”.

“Anything? The boy asked. “Can he change a man’s soul?”.

“Habeebee can do anything”

“Where do I find him?”

“If you walked in that direction for three days, you will find him”, said the man pointing into the desert.

With nothing but his flute, the boy began to walk out into the desert. He walked three days without stopping until he came to a little hut by an oasis. He knocked on the door. An old little man opened. “Are you Habeebee?” asked the boy.

“I am”.

“Can you change a man’s soul?”

“I can, but it is not cheep and once done, it can never be changed back again.”

“All I have to offer is my flute”.

“That’ll do” said the old man holding out his hand.

Without hesitation, the boy gave the magician his home made flute. After a few days, the boy’s mother assumed he was dead, thought he had fallen into the river and drowned. She held a little funeral.

Three years passed. During this time the Pharaoh’s enemies attacked him and he lost most of his land and half of his wealth. Desperate for the war to end, he got up one morning and went outside, ready to surrender. When he looked up over the desert, he saw a handsome, powerful man dressed in black riding across the desert into his camp. He told the Pharaoh that he was the Black Prince and if the Pharaoh would let him lead the army, he would win back the Pharaoh’s lands. In return he asked only to be given his heart’s desire. The Pharaoh agreed. Within weeks, the Black Prince  did as he promised and the Pharaoh was restored to power and wealth.

The Pharaoh was pleased and asked the Black Prince to visit him in his palace. He would gladly give him whatever he wanted even half of his kingdom and all the wealth the Prince won back. “I will be back in one month”, the prince said, and left.

At the appointed time, the Black Prince arrived. The girls had been preparing for weeks, buying new dresses, putting on make up and picking out their finest jewelry. The young boys had been playing with their wooden swords taking turns to be the Black Prince slaughtering his enemies. As the Prince rode into the city the women scattered flowers at his feet and everyone gathered to catch a glimpse of the powerful warrior – or hoping he would catch a glimpse of them.

When he arrived at the palace, he saw the princess seated next to her father. The Pharaoh once again thanked the prince and offered the Black Prince all the wealth and power he wanted. The Prince said he only wanted his heart’s desire. When the Pharaoh asked what that was, the Prince said that he would like to marry the Princess.

The Princess stood up. “I will do as you command, Father,” she said and turning to the Black Prince continued,  “but I must warn you, I could never love you. My heart belongs to another”. And then she told them her story.

“Three years ago before the war, a young boy came to my garden to play to me on his flute. Every day I would listen to him wondering how his music could express so clearly my own dreams, hopes and fears. I used to wish he would slide off the wall, take me into his arms and whisk me away to a little hut by the river where we would live happily ever after. One day he stopped coming and I had my servants enquire about him. They found out that he had drowned and his mother had given him a little funeral. I could never love like that again.”

The Black Prince looked at the Princess “I knew love like that once,” he said “I couldn’t love me either if I were you”. He turned and left the palace, never to be seen or heard from again