When I mention having improv practice, a lot of people ask, “How do you rehearse improv? Isn’t that cheating?” Not at all! You can’t really cheat at improv, or I’d do it all the time. (Just ask my family members who stopped playing board games with me.) So, here’s the deal:
Howdy Stranger actually meets weekly with our coach, Christian Capozzoli. He runs games and exercises to teach us new skills or challenge our weak spots – Yes, we all have our kryptonites. Last week we performed scenes while sitting in the dark, creating complete stories with characters and environments using only our voices. We were awesome… until the lights came back on. Christian pointed out that we are unlimited and aggressive with our choices in the darkness, but when we are performing on stage, making eye contact with each other, we become too polite – allowing time for someone else to enter a scene, deliver a line or create the environment.
So – If you’re making an upcoming show, watch us rock the stage together while being completely impolite jerks!
I never understood why people would think that rehearsing is “cheating”. Ummmm… who PER SAY is BEING cheated?
would YOU want to go see improvisers the DON’T rehearse… DO YOU KNOW what that would look like….
imagine yoyo ma without fingers… HORRIBLE…
It sounds like fun! Can’t wait for the next show