IT MAGAZINE IT MAGAZINE - DECEMBER ISSUE | Page 35

INSPIRATIONAL
TALES
In our improv classes, we guide our
students how to strip away those layers and play truthfully... so take a risk and be
open with them.
of ‘you can’t’ and ‘you shouldn’t’ and
instead replace it with one of the basics
of improv: ‘yes, and...’ Acceptance.
Acceptance of a suggestion, acceptance
of a scene, acceptance of your
teammates’
offers
and
more
importantly... acceptance of yourself. ‘But what if I don’t know how to play a
’50-year old accountant from Minnesota
who has an addiction to slippers?’’So
what. Try. And if you fail, fail
spectacularly and with conviction. The
audience will love you for it!
Another quote by Del Close was “Fall,
 In improv we work as a team, so you
will have teammates who can support
and catch you... and you will do the same then figure out what to do on the way
down.” I like that. Too often in life, we
fear about ‘what will happen if I do this’
for them. We provide a supportive
environment where it is ok to fail, where
you are encouraged to take chances. We
help our students get back to ‘acting like
a child’ where all possibilities are open
and you can say what pops into your and then we wind up never taking the
chance. I say take that chance and see
what happens.
mind.
Even after all of this, I still get the
same questions from students: ‘What if I
fail?’ So what. You’ll learn from it and get
better. It’s a great opportunity to
grow!‘What if the audience doesn’t
laugh?’So what. Your job isn’t to make
them laugh; it’s to connect with them.
The best way to do that is to be honest 
IT Magazine / December Issue
33