Improvisation and Self Discovery

On a whim, I went to hideout theatre in Austin, TX for a improv beginner class a few years back. Over time, I have tried short and long form improv, and tried out musical/rap improv. Having no theatre/stage background, it has been meaningful to me how the lessons learnt from improv apply to life broadly. This year, I’ve been working out of a plateau in my improv journey which has been particularly illuminating.

Improv and Play

When I began doing improv, there was a 0-1 phase of growth. There’s a lot of good nuggets that we can learn from improv that we can apply in our everyday interactions. This includes saying yes-and vs no-but as a way to have a more collaborative conversation. In a scene, we reduce overthinking by going with the first thing that comes to mind. We put down the competitive hat and put on the collaborative one, as we succeed by helping our scene partners win.

It felt that I was learning lessons in communication that no one taught me. At the same time, I recognized people who are good at communication, and wondered what made them so good. Improv so often starts as way for people to get past stage fright, and getting more practice at being spontaneous goes a long way.

The traditional way to do improv is to join a theater. You go through levels of classes and in the process form groups that you can practice improv with and learn from experienced improv teachers. I did not go through the progression of levels through a theater, rather I’d experience improv by riffing at jams. This is a not a statement about the value that improv theaters offer, rather my failure to prioritize.

Hitting a plateau

It felt important for me to have an outlet that provided me a lot of joy without any pressure to succeed that I could do just on demand. I was very much a long distance runner in the pre-pandemic era, which I took seriously and took at least as much work to be a part-time job. Improv was a sanctuary where I could truly let go of any expectations.

Over time, my improv skills hit a plateau. The scenes felt stale, and while it still was a net positive for me, I felt that I was feeling bored on stage. That’s an odd feeling to have on a improv setting, with the pressure to perform, no idea how my scene partner would respond and all the more. It should make me anxious. And yet I was bored. I have been just going through the motions.

Breaking the plateau

Fast forward to June of this year, I learnt of a improv group kicking off at work. It was quite convenient, and it started to reform the habit. Only, this time there was more structure and instruction. Not only that, I started going to the Improv gym run by Ilan, the instructor. What is a improv gym you ask? Much like a regular gym, except we train at improv.

Over times a few things have stood out to me what held my improv scenes from being more fuller, and helping me realize why my improv skills flatlined.

The game of a scene

I’ve heard about the illusive game in improv and wondered what it is that people talk about. In improv, two people are establishing their characters and surroundings. Once that has happened, the key piece is to establish what that is absurd or particularly important about the circumstances that brought these two characters together at this particular moment. The game of the scene is the characters discovering this together. Here’s Keegan-Michael Key with a delightful metaphor.

Having agency

In improv, one way to create comedy is the radical difference in viewpoints between two characters. What is earth shattering to one character may be just a day in the life to the other. This characters usually take the roles of the voice of reason and the absurd character respectively. The person who plays the voice of reason and sanity is a great bridge with the audience. Without them, the audience can’t anchor themselves to the scene. Whereas the large character provides the thrust of the scene.

I’m a great voice of reason, as I’m analytical by nature. However, when my scene partner is also adapts the voice of reason, the scenes could fall flat. This is because while I’m great at yes-anding and supporting my partner, often what goes amiss is the agency of my own character. What are this character’s needs and wants? Without developing that, the audience is left wondering who the character is.

Working with conflict

When a no is in fact a yes.

Ever seen a movie or a show without any conflict? Me neither. As a beginner in improv, I would try my best to accept everything my scene partner brought to the scene verbatim. However, when an improviser brings up something genuinely odd in a scene, it’s the job of the other improviser to call that out. This is where people who are comfortable with initiating conflict have an advantage, the scene is calling for that conflict to play out.

The art of creating conflict in a improv scene is when the two characters are disagreeing vehemently, but the actors playing them are entirely on the same page. The natural arrival of conflict in a scene is a gift as both improvisers can really sink their teeth into their own feelings about the conflict while adding more details and acknowledging their partners contribution.

In parting

Understanding games and scene patterns helps develop richer scenes that can move the audience. Having more agency and being more comfortable with initiating conflict in a scene also helps to add a lot more depth and color to a scene. Understanding these helped me better understanding when my scene works well vs when it falls flat and helped break my plateau.

To be good at something requires a lot of investment. There’s folks to whom improv comes naturally. But to most, it needs structure and a ton of practice. I expect that there might be more plateaus for me in the future, but for now I enjoy this greater understanding.

To end, something that Ilan said really stood out to me.

“In improv, be a little more brave and a little more curious.”

What a great message for life in general. I am excited to explore more in improv and share in future write ups.