Improv, Weeks 4 & 5

Today was my last improv class, and I was left hungering for more. It seemed as if we, or maybe I, had just gotten into the swing of things when the workshop came to a close.

Last week, in class #4, just three of us showed up, giving us each more time to play, act and express. I "starred" in a comedy skit featuring two people who met shopping at Whole Foods and who were obsessed with reading food labels and with what they put into their bodies. In the course of our improvised dialogue, I invented a gadget called the iCombine, like an iPod for health nuts, which allows you to select images of various foods with a stylus and then the screen shows you if they combine in a nutritionally positive way or not. If anyone reading this likes the idea and can create it, let me know and I'll tell you where to send me my royalty checks.

One of the roles I played today was that of an illegal Mexican migrant worker who speaks no English, and the feds have come to check everyone's papers. My acting partner and I "escaped" being caught and possibly deported by traveling on the underside of a farm truck, hanging onto the axle and onto each for dear life. The coach then asked me to deliver a speech, in English and Spanish (which I speak, albeit rustily), to a crowd of thousands who were gathered to protest recent immigration legislation. I learned afterward, from my classmates and the coach, that the part of the speech I delivered in Spanish was much more emotional and powerful than what I had said in English, that my whole demeanor changed when speaking Espanol. Their remarks confirmed what I've felt ever since learning Spanish, that this language gives me access to parts of myself that seem to be somewhat locked up in English. It is truly odd to contemplate that, in some ways, I am more authentic when not speaking my native tongue, that English limits my expressiveness. Perhaps it is the nature of Spanish itself or that I feel freer using another culture's words, intonations and gestures, as they are not burdened by early conditioning about what can be said, and how. Hopefully I will be able to translate my Spanish self back into English.

To close, some thoughts on how to approach life itself as an improvisation:

1) Say YES! When life "offers" something, just as a partner in improvisation will offer up a scene or a plot, accept the offer. For me, this is a great form of spiritual practice, as my earlier "training" in life has had me saying "maybe", "I'll think about it", or just plain old "no." Somewhere along the way I picked up that being enthusiastic was not in keeping with (my idea of) being sophisticated, or maybe my ego would be unhappy that someone other than me came up with a great idea. It is time to let these notions drop.

2) Make offers! In addition to saying "yes" to another actor's offer, it is important to keep making offers oneself. If not, it is the equivalent of having your tennis partner hit balls over the net while you just stand there, watching them roll away, refusing to swing your racket. Most of us would not play tennis this way, but sometimes we play life this way. And sometimes I feel as if I am the one hitting balls across the net, only to have no one hit them back. It is hard to know if I've chosen the wrong partners or if I'm simply hitting the balls too hard.

3) Take risks! You could say that making an offer is taking a risk, but for people who are comfortable making offers, the risk might be to make new kinds of offers, or to behave in ways that are somewhat "out of character", as it were. Taking risks requires moment-to-moment awareness, stepping into a potentially scary space to try out new behavior. Easier said than done, but I intend to continue to try.