#190 Absolute scenes
Back. Wack. Hack. Attack.
22 OCTOBER 2025
Hello.
It’s Chris Mead, here, just back from a wonderful improv retreat in Alicante with an exceptional group of Irish improvisers.
I am all aglow with the possibilities of what improv can be - both to an individual artist and a community.
But I’m hanging up my travelling shoes for now, mainly so I can concentrate on all the exciting things we’re doing with The Pretend Company here in the UK.
Onwards!
Rule of three
[AI] Personal Superintelligence
Like Suzy Izzard, I have Techno Joy - an unquenchable delight in all things technological. I am an early-adopter. I get giddy with the possibilities. I’m forever looking to the future and dreaming of where our techno-tinkering might take us. Having said all that - AI CAN GET IN THE SEA. It’s the first tech trend I haven’t got fully on board with in years. OH SURE, I’ll let it write the minutes for my Zoom meetings, but I don’t want it anywhere near image generation and I certainly don’t want it making VIDEOS WITH MY FACE. Anyway, the Zuckerbook recently used his Metabots to spew out a page of Time New Roman-inflected pseudo chin-wank about Personal Superintelligence. And then it was immediately ripped apart by this glorious art historian. So that was nice.
[Life hack] Bananas
Saw this in a smoothie shop the other day and it blew my mind. When cutting up a banana - peel one side and then use the underside of the peel as a handy organic chopping board. And if you do, all the roundels of banana won’t roll away because they are delicately cradled in the peel. Absolute scenes! YES OKAY I’VE BEEN AWAY FOR A WEEK AND THIS IS A BIT OF A STRETCH AS A RECOMMENDATION BUT IT REALLY IS A GOOD IDEA.
[Dinosaurs] The songs of Jurassic Park
I have long maintained that this is the funniest video on YouTube. But now another dinosuar-themed song has joined the conversation. Presenting Mr Swallow’s plot-explaining libretto to the score of Jurassic Park.
🎵 It’s Jurassic Park. It’s a massive park! 🎵
Spotlight
One of the key aims of The Pretend Company is to bring over the very best performers and teachers from the international improv scene. We’ve got a busy few weeks ahead of us with classes from some superb improvisers. See below for our current opportunities (plus a sentence or so of commentary from me).
Bianca Casusol | Make It Matter | 27th Oct
I took my first class with Bianca this year and was absolutely blown away. She’s a treasure trove of knowledge and craft and this topic feels incredibly aligned to the Pretend ethos.
Elana Fishbein | Let Yourself Be Vulnerable | 17th Nov
I haven’t had the chance to take a class with Elana yet (although I’ll be there for this one) but I hear extremely good things from people I trust.
Brian O’Connell | The Deconstruction | 19th Nov
Brian O’Connell | The Improvised Movie | 20th Nov
I am so so excited to be able to host Brian. Ever since meeting him at Improv Utopia, I have been a huge fan of his dedication to the art form and hyper-focussed teaching style. If you want to learn two foundational Chicago longform formats directly from the brain of a master craftsman then I can’t recommend these workshops highly enough.
Radio contact
Ground control to Major Radio!