Sprezzatura #4
I'm back at home and recovered from Camp Zipzap Toronto. I got to spend a weekend with 30+ people who love to nerd out about improv. It's a slice of heaven on Earth and I'm completely drained at the end of each one. I spent over a week with Chris Mead eating everything we could get our mouths on. I got to hang out and catch up with one of my faves, Kirsten Rasmussen. I taught 29 students and watched them splash in a lake, perform in shows, and dance their faces off into the night. I saw Improv College people IN PERSON. I saw their feet!
But now I'm home, packing things up until next year. And there's something quietly lovely about putting things away that bring such joy. It's like putting the Santa wrapping paper away in the back of the closet, knowing that it'll be there when duty calls again in 12 months time.
What am I into this week?
TV: Girls5eva (Netflix in Canada)
I love musicals but I couldn't get into Schmigadoon (sorry!). What I did get into is Girls5eva featuring two huge Broadway stars, Sara Bareilles & Renee Elise Goldsberry, Paula Pell (SNL writer for 18 years!), and Busy Phillips (actress!). It's got that 30 Rock comedy rhythm (produced by Fey and Carlock so, yeah) and is about a teen girl group that reunites 20 years later. It's hilarious, the songs are great, and the cast knock it out of the park.
SONG: Owen Pallett's live cover of "Peach, Plum, Pear"
The lyrics to Joanna Newsom's "Peach, Plum, Pear" live deep in my heart, poetry that is summoned unbidden whenever it bubbles up. Owen Pallett (aka: Final Fantasy, or a violinist from Arcade Fire) takes the song, a violin, and a loop machine and turns them into something far more than the sum of their parts.
SILLY: Apple Bottom Jeans
Videos don't need to be elaborate to be hilarious. Short is sweet.
Improv Tip
One of the things I try to impress upon students is that they should never be shy about bringing a little bit of themselves to the stage. Love growing vegetables? Make your character a gardener. From Winnipeg? Set the location to be Portage Avenue. Fluent in Dutch? Start the scene in a Dutch class (great place for your scene partner who may not know one word of Dutch!).
The key is to not make your scene partner feel bad for not being as into your thing as you are. You're not there to expose your partner's potential ignorance. You bring these things you love to the stage because you can celebrate and BE SPECIFIC about them. Being specific is a superpower in improv.
A fundamental truth about improv is that the only thing you bring on stage is you. Your history, your experience, your knowledge, your emotions (and emotional baggage!), all of that mess that makes you who you are, is also what makes you unique. You're the only person in the world who can bring that to the stage. So embrace it.
Remember: the goal isn't to be accurate. No one cares if your scene accurately recreates a garden, Portage Avenue, or a language class (though you definitely want to be respectful of the language itself and culture!). The point is that the things you love and who you are can inspire you, your scene partner, and the audience to go to places no one else can.
Events
New Workshop, here in Montreal. I'm co-producing Nicole Passmore's 2-day intensive with Bad Dog Theatre and bringing her to Montreal. This week's Chris Mead workshop was a hit and I hope you know I won't bring in a teacher that I don't totally love. I've known Nicole for years, heck, she even created my favourite improv name: Piper Spaghetti!
She's going to offer two 5-hour workshops on Creating Complex Characters. You'll dive deep on breaking out of your default habits and find ways to amplify and reinvent your characters on stage. You also get snacks, and a bonus astronomy viewing with Plateau Astro. It's Oct 7-8 and has started filling up already. Get some improv into your Friendsgiving Weekend!
Registration and full details on our site
Improv College Returns! Online classes are coming. The announcement is nigh, but we'll have new teams, new teachers, new formats, new classes. Can't wait for you to see what we've got in store.
An Intersting Wikipedia Page: Dejima
L8r sk8rs,
Vinny