Quina Baterna

7 Things I Learned in Improv That Changed My Life

How I got into improv (by accident)

The story of how I got into Improv is a funny one. I had done my university class enlistment for my senior year online and was looking for electives that seemed useful to my life. I saw this one class called “Presentation Skills” and thinking it was about making great powerpoints and public speaking, I signed up for it right away.

When I showed up a week after the official start of classes because I was in New York for my internship with World Youth Alliance North America, you could imagine the shock I got when I found out that it wasn’t about powerpoints at all. It was all about the art of improvisation.

Being that it was too late to drop the class, I decided to just go through with it. For an entire semester, I had the pleasure of learning from SPIT‘s Missy Maramara and being a founding member of the improv group MAIS. It was probably one of the best decisions I’ve made during my stay at Ateneo. If you’re curious as to why, read up below!

 

1. Silencing the inner critic

As someone who deals with anxiety frequently, the concept of silencing the inner critic is a powerful one. Our inner critic is important because it protects us from doing things that might hurt or kill us, but it’s good to realize that oftentimes what we feel will kill us will probably not.

Being able to acknowledge the voice in your head trying to hold you back is the first step to knowing the difference of when to listen to it and when to tell it to keep quiet and shove it in a box until what needs to be done is done.

 

 

2. Acknowledge fear, but don’t be controlled by it.

It’s true that one can’t help when we feel anxious or scared, but it’s amazing how with a lot of practice, we can channel fear as a signal to move instead of being paralysed. I’ve learned to turn my symptoms of fear like fidgeting, cold feet and fast heartbeats into triggers of action.

Being an improviser means always putting yourself on the spot with no actual way to prepare for a show. The fear of not being able to perform properly never really goes away, but one does get more comfortable with accepting that one wont die from a bad show or two.

Before a show, I would think three things that would help me move. One is that this art brings me great joy, therefore I want to share it. Two, I worked very hard to be better at my craft, and I owe it to myself to test the waters of how well I can do. Three, there are people, whether it be my friends, family or strangers, who made an effort to take time that they can never get back to share in these moments of connection with me and because I’m grateful to share in the experience, I’ll do my best for them.

 

 

3. Fail Fast

One big fear that haunts all of us on stage (and even off it) is failing. For improvisers, there’s a steady source of fear from the fact that we can’t control the kind of audience we get (which in truth determines a lot of how our shows play out), the chemistry we may or may not have with our co-performers (especially when we’re jamming with a new group or if one of our co-improvisers is going through some personal things), or that overall you actually aren’t very funny.

But the sooner we get over the fact that we’ll probably still fail no matter how much we prepare for things, the sooner we can pick up where we fell short and move forward to try what else could work. Sometimes, it takes a while to build a rapport with the audience to find a common ground that will get them engaged but once you get that moment of resonance and recognition in their eyes, it’s incredibly worth it.

 

 

4. Commit

One thing about improv is that you can’t be half-assed. When you go into a scene, there is no room for questions. While in real life, there is room for questions that push forward the conversation, most of the time there are things you just have to chalk up to faith. When someone sets you up during a show and says you have to do 10 push ups, you do the push ups. It doesn’t matter if you’ve had a bad day or if you’re sick. If you commit to doing a show, you will go and do it 110%.

I’ve come to realize that if one routinely shows up on bad days, it will become a habit not to have excuses on good days as well.

 

 

5. Being in the moment

Part of committing isn’t only being there, but being there right at that moment. Coming from a generation that is constantly bombarded with stimuli, I was always used to being one place and having my mind somewhere else. Being present is a form of not only respect but love. It means that whoever you’re with is deserving of your undivided attention.

In a scene where there are no scripts, we have no room to lose focus. If we get stuck on what’s been done (whether it was good or bad) or think too far ahead, we may not be able to hear the cues being offered to us in the present.

 

 

6. Yes – And

Speaking of offers in the present, there is what we also call the “Yes-And”. There are two parts to this principle, which are obviously “Yes” and “And”. Broken down, the first part is always based on listening and understanding where the offer is coming from. A “Yes” is a simple way of saying that you’re actively paying attention to what the person in front of you is saying and reading between the lines for things that they aren’t.

Once you’ve acknowledged your partner, next comes the “And”. When we enter the “And” phase, we are consciously deciding to build on whatever we’ve been offered, to add value to what they give us and to constructively share something from our perspective. With time, this is a powerful principle that can be applied to every single conversation we have to build rapport and trust.

 

 

7. Explore and Expand

The next step once you’ve established rapport is being able to explore and expand. The concept of exploring and expanding is rooted from an agreement to keep “Yes-And”-ing each other. It’s recognising that each person has something to offer in a conversation and that when both of you focus on building each other up, you can create promising things. It’s always your job to make the person you’re in the same scene with look good.

When applied to daily life, imagine a team always working together to improve themselves and push each other’s pedestals higher. You can think that with this mentality, no man would ever be left on the ground.

 

 

Why I would recommend you take an improv class

While groups are often known for certain kinds of humour and the people that end up attending our shows are those who laugh at the same things we laugh at it, improv isn’t always about making people laugh. Improv is known for things like slapstick comedy, sarcasm, witty retorts, but we also tug heart strings though more serious notes. Every now and then, we touch on things like current events, mental health, personal truths and various other common grounds that speak to our audiences in the most non-intrusive of ways.

It requires a certain amount of introspection, practice and adaptation into our daily lives to be fully appreciated. In general, the skills you learn in improv help you to become a better communicator especially in the realms of active listening and conversation. Though most of us, including myself, no longer performs as regularly, we carry what we’ve learned at home, work and even in the little encounters with strangers every day.

At the heart of it, improv is an art. It helps speak about the human condition through humour, a way for both performers to express themselves and for the viewers to realise that they aren’t alone. 🙂