Improv Class #1: Getting Out of My Own Way

What is it about scary that is so compelling?

Tonight I began improv class at BATS Theater. I thought taking a class like this would be a good idea because maybe:
a) it’d help me get more comfortable making a fool of myself.
b) I’d learn to trust my instincts more.
c) with any luck, I’d also experience a nice little confidence boost to top it all off.

And, if none of the above happened, well, at least I would have done something really scary and survived. I remember reading a quote by Madonna that went something like, “If it’s scary then I have to do it.” Signing up for improv class felt kind of like my Madonna moment.

And then I had to go to class.

I went braced with a bunch of embarrassing ideas in my head like:
a) I’d have to bark like a dog or some other animal or
b) I’d have to introduce myself by yelling my name as loud as I could while jumping up and down and scratching my armpit.

The list goes on, but the point is the feeling of utter humiliation with a captive audience. Over and over again.

But, you know, I was oddly surprised by this first class. There were forms of humiliation, yes, but here’s the kicker — they were totally self-induced. The exercises themselves were not, in and of themselves, that outrageous. And yet, I sure seemed to spend a lot of effort diminishing myself while I was acting.

My teacher, Barbara Scott, talked about how we feed, nurture and groom the negative voice in our heads – meanwhile hardly taking care of the positive one. I’m sure many of us know this on an intellectual level, but it’s a different thing to experience this dynamic in the form of an exercise designed to show you yourself. For example, in one exercise, I walk around the room pointing at objects and calling them something other than what they actually are:

ME (looking at a door): “Dog!”
NEGATIVE INNER VOICE: “That wasn’t very creative.”
ME (looking at a lock on the door): “Knob!”
NEGATIVE INNER VOICE: “That wasn’t much of a reach.”
ME: “Shut up. I’m trying to come up with ideas here.”

The more exercises we did, the more conscious I became of the negative talk — and how much it blocks me from accessing my own creativity and imagination. When we did exercises that not only made it safe to come up with an outrageous or silly idea, but actually encouraged this behavior (yes! and..!), I started to see the possibilities for imagination. What would it be like to get out of my own way and let my imagination flow, uncensored?!

I don’t have an answer yet, but I do have glimpses.

Stay tuned next week, and I’ll let you know what happens in class #2.

——–

This series is now complete. Read about the rest of my experience here:

Improv Class #2: An Agile Mind
Improv Class #3: Don’t Anticipate
Improv Class #4: Reach Beyond the Obvious
Improv Class #5: Choose Your Status