Repeating Yourself in Improv

I don’t know the definition of “blog post,“ but I’m not sure this qualifies. This is more like a tweet posted on a blog:

Don’t be afraid to repeat your thoughts, feelings, and beliefs in improv. Repetition isn’t boring or lazy. It’s helping us understand your character.

Have a great day!

Overthinking is Natural (don't beat yourself up)

Whenever I’m teaching I encourage students to stay in the moment, be present with their partner, and don’t worry about where the story is going.

But…honestly…that’s hard. I think it’s very human to want to figure things out. We love a good plan and sometimes that leads to overthinking. Don’t be frustrated with yourself if you catch yourself planning…it’s a great instinct…but improv is different. It’s not about preparing for the future, because the scene rarely matches our expectations.

And, that’s a good lesson I had to remind myself today. My expectations and ruminations are not reality.

This week I have to get the floors in my home replaced. ALL the floors throughout the house. Long story short, moisture barrier problem, and the floors are ruined. The flooring company said it would be a 5-day process and they could move the big furniture, but I am responsible for the small items throughout the house.

Well, this is where my planning, forecasting, and expectations went wild. I bought 2 dozen boxes to pack everything. I cleared out my garage to have space for the furniture in case it rained, and extra storage. I spent the weekend sorting, lifting, and moving hundreds of books, games, and cables into the garage. I had a hard time sleeping because the desk in my office is wider than the door, so I worried I’d have to dissemble it… when would I have the time???

Well, turns out…I don’t need to worry about finding the time.. The flooring team showed up today and said, “oh we’ll just slide your furniture over 5 feet, replace the floor, and then slide it back.“

Simple. Easy. Logical. They knew what they were doing because they were the experts. They didn’t need to use the garage, and they weren’t annoyed about the desk, and they didn’t need me packing up everything I ever owned and getting it off the ground.

In my mind, in my plans, in my fear, I made it complicated, daunting, and stressful. My expectations of what WOULD happen consumed me for the last few days. The unknown stressed me out, and I opted to expect the worst.

It was far from the reality.

So….before this gets any longer…let me add a quick little TLDR: every improviser, regardless of experience can begin overthinking. Just take a second to note you’re trying to plan, don’t judge yourself and get back to being present with your scene partner. That’s more fun, and improv can be so much fun.

Have a great day!

New Improv Location in Roseville

I’m so excited to announce we’'ll be offering Improv Playground at the Courtyard by Marriott in Roseville!

We needed a larger space…which is a good problem. We started getting so many improvisers it got cramped. I literally couldn’t run all the improv games and exercises I wanted to because it was packed.

Well…move aside space limitations because Courtyard by Marriott has an amazing conference room!

In fact…it’s so large we can also have a stage.

Is it just me or is there something special about having a stage? Even if it’s just some black material on the floor, a stage does something for you.

So, we have the space, the stage, and the amazing improv community.

Come out this Tuesday, say hello, grab a drink, and improvise with us!

I want to make the transition to the Roseville Courtyard location as easy as possible. Fortunately, there’s plenty of parking…so that won’t be an issue.

And…I think the location will be a quicker commute for many. But…a couple of tips because I know the Roseville traffic can be awful

Here’s a link to Courtyard on Google Maps

If you’re heading East on I-80, exit at Eureka.

If you’re heading West on I-80, take 65 North and exit Galiera Blvd.

If you’re heading South on Highway 65 exit Galliera Blvd.

If you’re heading North on I-5 you are very far away from our location. Good luck. I’d just use Google Maps. It’s smarter than me.