Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts

By Alyce Wilson

In Sunday's improv class with ComedySportz, we began working on scene work by reviewing some concepts we'd been taught previously.

First, we played a few games just to get warmed up. One of them was a game called Scorpion, where we all closed our eyes and one person was selected as the scorpion. They then had to try to zap all the other people. Boris was particularly good at this. The secret is to listen carefully to the sounds others make.

Then our instructor, Mary, had us pair up and do movement exercises. One of us would strike a pose and then the other would find a way to complete the picture. Then we tried a similar idea, where one person would strike a pose and the other would find a way to fill up the space.

After we'd done that for a while, she had us freeze and then start a scene. I was paired with Geoff, and I was paused with my arms out. He had his hands sort of between my arms, so I asked him how he thought the dress looked, as if he was the tailor helping with a fitting.

Then Mary refreshed us on the idea of "yes, and" in scenes. In other words, building on what somebody else gives you. So she started with just verbal exercises. We were ad executives working on a product, first deodorant. Colleen and I decided to develop one that would stink and only sell it to people we don't like.

Next, we did the same thing for movies. Boris and I came up with an action movie starring Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson.

We switched a few more times. In one of them, I developed a movie with Carol which involved worms. Also, Colleen and I developed a movie about Cheez Whiz which could be contained in a bottle that you could spray on people.

Then we moved on to doing some action along with the "yes, and". We built sand castles, first by saying "yes, and" every time and then by just doing it. I made a sand castle with Megan which became a Frank Lloyd Wright inspired castle, with cantilevers.

From sand castles, we expanded our activities to include a range of others. First, we were siblings decorating for a party. I was paired with Boris, and we ended up setting up for a big dance party with a disco ball, loudspeakers and, of course, a keg of beer.

I was paired with Carol, and we were coworkers making lunch. We ended up making far too many sandwiches than we could possibly eat, as we talked about a new client we had and how they weren't happy with us. We wondered if anybody would lose their job over it.

Next, I was paired with Geoff, and we were partners in a basement, trying to find a photo album. While we didn't talk about exactly what we were doing, i.e. "I'll look in the drawer", we did talk about why we were looking for the photo album and where it might have gone. It emerged that his father might have stolen it because he found some of the photos embarrassing.

With Megan, we were roommates cleaning our bathroom. As it turned out, we talked about how dirty the bathroom was. I expressed displeasure by her not cleaning enough and then demanding that we clean because her boyfriend was coming over. I told her if she was going to do that, she'd have to get me a boyfriend, too. She suggested her boyfriend set me up with one of her friends.

These exercises were a nice, easy way to refamiliarize ourselves with "yes, and". Then we worked on the concept of the platform, which is who, where and what. Mary had us get in two lines. Much like in certain dances, two people would pair up, do a quick scene and then move to the other end.

We started by creating a sense of where. You had to do it first non-verbally. One person would come out and make an offer, and the other person would try to figure out where they were and enter the scene.

I had an easy idea: I shivered as if it was cold, then grabbed some ski poles and headed down the slope. Megan headed down with me. It was obvious we were at a ski resort.

Other people did things like going to the beach, walking in the rain, or driving. Next, we had to do the same idea but you could talk.

Then we moved on to creating a sense of who you were and your relationship with the other person. That was sometimes more difficult. There was a brilliant moment with Megan, though. First, I tried to be a dog walker and she was an innocent passerby. The dog got out of control and then she stomped on my dog! It got laughs, but it wasn't what we were trying to achieve, so Mary had us start again.

This time, she advised me to just look at her and see what came into my head. I looked at her and, with deliberation, tied a rain hat over my head. She came into the center of the stage and put a rain hat on, too. I started moving forward with my walker, and she started doing the same thing. We were old ladies together! It was great.

Sometimes it was easier than others. For example, Liza was paired with Lori, which was giving her troubles. Lori can be very exuberant and daring. She'll dance across the stage, singing, and Liza often didn't seem to know how to react. She still seemed self-conscious, so that probably held her back. But there were a few moments where she responded more spontaneously, so I think she's beginning to get more comfortable working with us.

Geoff and I did one where he was the instigator and he yelled at me, "Susie Q., get your posterior in the car right now." I complained I didn't want to get in because I didn't do my hair and "Bobby will see me!"

In another scene, I was the instigator and acted like I was holding a steering wheel. To Geoff I said, "No, Officer, I have no idea how fast I was driving." He immediately became a police officer and issued me a ticket.

We then did "what" which is similar to "where" in some ways, because in order to create a sense of place, we often were doing activities. I jumped into a pond with Megan, among other things.

After doing this exercise, I think I need to remember to listen to the other person and respond genuinely, rather than trying to get something funny out of it. Mary gave us several other tips, as well, as we did the exercise. It was a great way to get back into the idea of doing scene work, in a low pressure situation.

Everybody seemed to really be getting into it and having fun. We're much more relaxed this time around than we were in the beginning class, which makes a big difference. I think we have more inherent trust of the other people, and we don't feel as much internal pressure to be perfect.

After all, as Mary says, there are no bad offers in improv. Just say yes!

More Musings from improv class:

Improv Class Musings Index

Copyright 2006 by Alyce Wilson

Musings Index

What do you think? Share your thoughts
at Alyce's message board (left button):