Istanbul, 23th of June 2026

👋 Greetings, dear readers.

Summer is finally here, and another heatwave threatens to asphyxiate London, so I’m bracing myself for my return home. That’s right, I’m still away, but I should be on my way back (in Istanbul, to be precise) by the time you get this newsletter.

Varna is a curious, small Bulgarian city by the shores of the Black Sea that definitely has its charm. The very low options to eat vegetarian is outweigh by the large number of stray cats wandering the streets. I walked every day with a succession of mini-heartbreaks every time I tried to approach them and they ran away after giving me a gaze of distrust. A few, however, were friendly. One night I was brought to a bar where you can enjoy delicious local draft beer surrounded by felines. I wish petting cats while drinking pints were the norm in every single pub in the world.

I think the only thing matching the number of cats is the large number of machines populating the streets dispensing coffee. They are everywhere. I did not dare to try coffee from them; however, there are many specialty places that cater to the locals’ love for the beverage. As a matter of fact, I’m writing these lines from one of those shops which I found excellent and my go-to every day.

I didn’t come here just to enjoy cats and coffee, though (those words could make a good beatboxing routine, by the way 🤔). I spent a few wholesome days working with the lovely community in Varna. I have to thank Stefka Dimitrova for that, one of my Playback Theatre leadership training sisters.

I facilitated a Level 2 Playback Theatre weekend intensive and an improv workshop. Surprisingly enough, the improv and playback communities in Varna overlap massively. I’ve spoken previously about how satisfying it is to teach Playback Theatre to improvisers, and the same applies the other way around when it comes to grounded improv thanks to the more developed sensitivity and artistic language of playbackers. We had a lovely evening creating scenes that felt truthful and deep, even finding a red threat of heartbreaks among them.

Like me, many people in Varna got into Playback Theatre, with a previous improv background. It was funny to hear some of their first impression of playback from them. Or I must say “unimpression” and skepticism about what was going on. On the other hand, many playbackers shared that, for them, improv was more fun to do than to watch.

There are instances of improv where I also feel that it’s enjoyable when you do it, but it might be boring (or unimpressive) to watch. It’s pleasant to touch the jelly soaps from a LUSH store, but it might look completely stupid to a regular bystander observing. One example that I can think of and resonates with me is soundpainting, an improvised form of collaborative art that became trendy around a decade ago and you can find prancing into a few European improv festivals. I’ve done it and I’ve seen it. Doing it, I was engaged; watching it, I just kept waiting for something interesting to happen, which might do… 5% of the times. You might tell me you enjoy watching it, fair enough, everyone has their kinks.

I’m pretty sure that you have stumbled upon someone who has told you that they were at an improv show and found it silly in a cringe way. This comes mostly from a “high-brow” audience, and indeed these comments might be a bit patronizing. Of course, everything is subjective and we don’t need to cater to everyone’s tastes. Aaah, the eternal struggle to find a balance between art and joyful entertainment…

With all of this, I’m not saying that Playback Theatre is infallible. It is not; cringe playback exists. So it’s normal to find improvisers who, facing that, might run away from the room, leaving a hole in the wall with the shape of their silhouette.

So, playbackers, let’s keep working on keeping things appealing to improvisers. Improvisers, let’s prove playbackers wrong. Let’s keep things interesting for each other.

Love to you all. 🫶

📆 What is coming up

• 🇬🇧 10th of July - Acaprov at Shoreditch Balls (London, UK). Stranded in the city with no holidays? So are we! Come and have musical fun with us. Get your tickets.

• 🇬🇧 14th of August - Acaprov at Shoreditch Balls (London, UK). August tends to be a void for those staying in the city, why not filling it with fun and music? Join us for a good time. Tickets here.

• 🇬🇧 11th of September - Acaprov at Shoreditch Balls (London, UK). For so many people, September is a time for another beginning. Kick off the academic year with a musical. Secure your sit.

• 🇲🇹 18th of September - Intro to Playback Theatre (Valletta, Malta). I´m honoured to be part of the facilitator roster attending the Improvizza! festival in Malta. I´m excited to introduce Playback Theatre to improvisers there. Tickets here.

📚 🎮 🎥 📺 The geeky dessert

In life, there are things that are better enjoyed in company. That’s what drives Swedish studio Hazelight to develop games that you cannot possibly play alone. Their first game, A Way Out, raised eyebrows with curiosity, while their second game, It Takes Two, became a phenomenon back in 2021. Last year, in 2025, the studio lived up to expectations by delivering Split Fiction, a shared adventure that entangled two charismatic, geek-appealing genres: science fiction and fantasy. And my partner and I recently got the chance to see it through its end.

The game puts you and your partner in the shoes of Zoe and Mio, two struggling writers looking for better opportunities to thrive. They find themselves trapped together inside a simulation where they have to find a way to escape by traversing their own stories.

While unfolding a compelling story and going deep into the characters' backgrounds, the game alternates constantly between genres while keeping the mechanics fresh every single time, turning it into the most fun gameplay sandbox you can encounter in a video game right now.

The only negative aspect of the game is that you have to match schedules with your partner to play, which may affect the pace. Otherwise, it’s an absolute, near-perfect gem available in most of the gaming platforms.