The Improviser's Way E-Book

Katy Schutte

• Herausgeber: Nick Hern Books
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2018

Beschreibung

An inspiring and interactive workbook to help you develop skills for longform improvisation, by one of the UK's top improv performers and teachers. Structured as a twelve-week course, this book provides techniques, advice and exercises that can be done on your own or in groups – with activities to complete as you go – for learning faster and becoming (more) amazing at improvisation. It draws on the author's own experience of performing and teaching improv around the world, with added gems of wisdom from key experts. Starting with the basics of improvisation, it moves on to explore areas of the craft such as rehearsals, character, editing, form and style; plus career advice including how to cope with bad gigs, jealousy, fear of missing out and your Inner Critic. The Improviser's Way is ideal for improvisers at any level – from those new to improv entirely, through those familiar with shortform who are looking to extend their reach, to experienced longform performers and teachers looking to refresh their approach and embrace new ideas. It is also invaluable to anyone looking to discover more about this popular, thrillingly creative and empowering form of performance. By the end, you won't just be a better improviser – you'll be a better person! 'Written with the calm and kind wisdom of someone who has been there and done that, here is a wealth of brilliant suggestions to help you improvise better and, perhaps more importantly, help you be better at the job of being an improviser' Lee Simpson (The Comedy Store Players, Whose Line Is It Anyway?) 'Katy Schutte is a leading light of the UK improv scene and this book is as warm, witty, compassionate and funny as she is' Tom Salinksy (Spontaneity Shop)

Leseprobe

NICK HERN BOOKS

London

www.nickhernbooks.co.uk

Contents

Preface

Foreword by Susan Messing

Introduction

What is Longform Improvisation?

My Origin Story

How to Use This Book

Curse of the Pioneer

Week One: The Basics

The Basics

Give Them What They Want (but Not What They Expect)

Be a Nice Person

The Solo Journey

Week Two: Trust and Practice

Why Rehearse Improv?

How to Rehearse With a Group

How to Rehearse Solo

Boundaries and Foundries

I Need a Hero

Get the Most Out of a Workshop or Coach

Week Three: You and Your Characters

Inside-Out, Outside-In

Making Characters

Bring Yourself to the Stage

What Are Your Superpowers?

Week Four: Editing and Openings

Editing

Jurassic Park III

Help! My Scene isn’t Working...

Suggestions and Going Lateral

Week Five: Theatre

Theatre

Props

Scenery

Costume

Suspension of Disbelief

Week Six: You

What Kind of Improviser Are You?

Clown, Thinker or Caretaker

Stretch

The Introvert and the Extrovert

The Inner Critic

Fear

Symptoms of Fear

Week Seven: Form and Style

Form

Styles of Play

Coens’ Gloves (or Why I’m Bored of Chekhov’s Gun)

What is Your Solo Show?

Twoprov

The Living Room Format

Your Format

Week Eight: Bad Gigs

A Bad Show

A Terrible Show

The Hardest Gig I Ever Played

I Want to Be Here Right Now

Week Nine: Recovering

Audience Versus Improviser

Don’t Congratulate Yourself Too Much or Berate Yourself Either

Conscious Incompetence (and Why It’s Your Friend)

Loving Your Crew

Week Ten: Community

Fear of Missing Out

Jealousy

Stop Gender-Casting Your Improv Show

How to Watch Improv

Ownership

Week Eleven: The Real World

Improv and Alcohol

Repurposing Improv

Don’t Take Improv for Granted

Twelve Tips on Casting for Improv Shows

Week Twelve: Inspiration

Get Your Shit Together

Vertical Strategies

Incredible Women (Who Changed the Way I Improvise)

Ten Ways to Level Up

Epilogue

There are written exercises throughout this ebookso I recommend reading with a pen and paper!

Preface

This book contains both exercises and philosophies of improv, some of which are my own and others that I have come across and want to pass on. Even the things I imagine are my own are sometimes an adaptation or perversion of some earlier creation. I have tried to credit the origin of games and theories, but improv is largely an oral or kinaesthetic tradition and the beginning of any one thing is nebulous.

If I were Thor (yes please) these would be my sagas.

I would like to thank the many teachers, directors and mentors I have had over the years as much of this work is from or because of them. They include Charna Halpern, Susan Messing, Rich Sohn, Rebecca Sohn, Bill Arnett, Brandon Gardner, Lee White, Jay Rhoderick, Tim Sniffen, Jet Eveleth, Eliza Skinner, Shad Kunkle, Dylan Emery, Alan Marriott, Chris Johnston, Nancy Howland Walker, Joe Bill, John Cremer, Marshall Stern, Alex Fendrich, Brian Posen, Mary Scruggs, Bina Martin, Claudia Wallace, Adam Whit, Al Samuels, Alex Tindal, Tara DeFrancisco, Jason Chin, Shannon O’Neill, TJ Jagodowski, Dave Pasquesi, Kevin McDonald, Anthony Atamanuik, Michael Orton-Toliver, Jill Bernard, Mel Cowan, Craig Cackowski, Julie Brister, Rich Talarico, Michael J. Gellman, Jorin Garguilo, Mick Napier, Adal Rifai, Farrell Walsh, Kristen Schier, Brian Jim O’Connell, Kevin Scott, Tom Salinksy, Michael Descoteaux, Ryan Millar, Nick Armstrong and Shenoah Allen.

Thanks to all of The Maydays (past and present), to Steve Roe and the whole of Hoopla, to Rachel Blackman (my duo partner for over a decade), to Project2 and the many other groups I have had the pleasure of playing with. Thanks to Liz Peters, Jenny Rowe, Shem Pennant, Megan Ford and Sarah Coleman who took the time to read and feed back on sections and drafts of this book. Thanks to Victoria Hogg for copy-editing, proofreading and constructive insight, and to Fred Deakin who generously designed the cover and typeset the book over many painstaking hours. Thanks also to my husband and favourite person, Tony Harris.

This book is dedicatedto both Jason Chin and Chris Johnston;each one an inspirational teacher,mentor and friend.

Foreword

by Susan Messing

So, the lovely Katy Schutte invited me to share a few words about her, which means she trusts me. This is a woman whom I love love LOVE. She immediately endears herself like a leech who is uninterested in sucking your blood, for she is already full. Where I am a gutter full of soggy Autumn leaves, she is fresh Spring green, still attached to the tree. In a world where one can feel overwhelmed by all it has to offer, good and bad, Katy is full-fledged sunshine with no burn. She is an explorer with no judgement. She finds delight in everything – the beauty, the horror, all of it.

When I have had the luxury to perform with Katy, she gobbles up everything: the onstage world is a rich landscape just ready to be tapped, with twistedly delightful characters. Her joy is contagious. Her audiences rejoice because you never ever have to worry about her. She is a partner in the truest sense. We have always had too much fun together.

At this moment, I am missing my friend, Katy.

Did you know that a paragraph only has to be three sentences?

That last sentence is NOT a paragraph.

I have always admired Katy’s absolute hunger to learn and to share what she knows. She has travelled the world, studying and teaching and performing. She ascribes to no one school of thought as the ‘right’ path, but picks and chooses from the buffet what works for her and helps others, and most important, honours her journey of discovery. You know from the moment that you meet her that she is the real deal: someone who celebrates completely not only the joy of her own path, but everyone else’s as well. Her great attitude alone is a damn fine reason to read this book.

OMG I think I am in love with Katy. I have to have a talk with my husband. NOW. Now THIS is a life-changing paragraph.

It is beyond difficult to express the ephemeral excitement of improvisational comedy in a book, but if anyone on this planet can make it interesting and helpful on the page, it’s going to be Katy. She is a mine of ethically sourced diamonds, at the ready to polish them up, give them to you as empathetic support, and send you on your merry way. Her opinions matter so much because she is that good at what she does, but without the ego that someone normally demonstrates at that proficiency level. She is here to give you courage – for she could not be a better person to understand the struggles that improvisers often face in the performing trenches every week.

So here you are, you supa-cute lover of the art, thinking: “Just get on with the fucking book and shut the fuck up, Messing. Get out of my way so I can read this stuff and apply it like a salve to my burnt performer soul.” I get it. I’m in love with her. Relax your crack. I’m almost done. My husband just asked me if Katy’s hot.

I have taught Katy, but really, to be completely honest, this lady has taught me far more than I have taught her. She reminds me that learning is never complete, that unintentional comedy is just as valid as intentional, and that if you constantly reapply joy to the mix, you will be making love to Success. This bitch has the goods.

Read this. Then read it again and buy it for a friend and then read it again because you forgot what you read and then read it again and highlight the juicy bits and then read it again and add Bible verses on the side so that you can appear religious. Then go out there and have too much fun on stage and then you can be more like Katy, because Katy is a rockstar and we’re getting married.

Susan Messing

Comedy Doula

Susan is an American improvisational theatre performer, teacher and author associated with the Annoyance Theatre and iO Chicago.

Introduction

This is a twelve-week course in improvisation and improvisational thinking. Improvisation is the art (yes, I said art) of making things up as you go along. We will be looking at dramatic and comedic improvisation for the stage.

This book is intended for relative newcomers and experienced longform improvisers to use as a manual for group and/or individual practice.

What is Longform Improvisation?

To people who are brand new to improv:

Longform is a piece of theatre that is made up as we go along. It can be a comedy show but it doesn’t have to be.

To people who have come from shortform improvisation:

Shortform improvisation normally either has a director or one of the cast step out to direct a single game. That director tells the cast and the audience the rules of the game.

It might be something like “Every time I say ‘new choice’, you will alter the sentence you’ve just said by changing the last word.”

“I’m going to Aldi.”

“New choice.”

“I’m going to the forest.”

“New choice.”

“I’m going to hug you.”

This final declaration will become the new reality and the scene will continue. However, in longform, the director is no longer a showman to the audience and a cattle driver for the performers; she is everyone in the show and she is doing the directing internally. If there is a game, it will be discovered as the actors play or it will be suggested in one line of character dialogue at the beginning of the scene (like a secret language).

An example of a longform game might be: I might mention a Twinkie and my scene partner gets excited about the film Ghostbusters. Then I try and mention lots of famous foods or props from films and my scene partner can reminisce about those films, getting more and more excited about them. That will be our game that we find or create. In finding it I notice that my scene partner gets excited about Ghostbusters when I mention a Twinkie, so I try and prompt her with other films. If I am suggesting the game, I might telegraph the idea like:

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollst?ndigen Ausgabe!