The Tao of Improv - Page 2


But, like most arts, what seems so easy and natural actually requires lots of hard work. Beneath the quips are hard-learned skills, and beneath these skills is a structure that's supple yet indiscernible. These are the rules of improv upon which the actors build their scenes and create the experience.

Improv is like its cousin jazz, in that what drives the musician isn't some impulsive, random banging of notes, but a careful, yet spontaneous, construction, built around chord progressions and melodic lines. It's like therapy: both goal-directed and unrehearsed—a different conversation from the one you might have with the neighbor you meet at Walmart.

Once Joe and I put the imaginary block down, we both stand with hands on knees, puffing like racehorses.

"Hey," says Joe, carefully walking around the "block" toward me. "I took a glance at the new invoices this morning. Doesn't look good. There's a bunch of bold print in a lot of them. You better let me take care of them."

"Whoa, thanks man," I say, patting him on the back. "The companies never used to do that so much. But now . . . . I was going through those receipts last Thursday—it just sneaked up on me. Right in the middle of the page, in something like 48-point font. Freaked me out! I had to put it down as soon as I saw it, and it took me forever to settle down." I shake my head as though trying to dislodge the memory.

"I know, I know," says Joe, hugging my shoulders. "Don't worry about it."

<< Start < Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next > End >>
(Page 2 of 13)