The Winding Path
An Improv Fable (and improv round up Monday 12 June)
(With thanks to Pirate, Robot, Ninja for aesthetic inspiration)
You are walking up a path on the side of a hill; the great Hill of Improv Proficiency. It is a long path, seems reasonably straight, a few dips here and there but progressing forward until your ultimate destination - The Peak of Improv Performance. You feel like you’re about halfway, maybe closer; you started a year or so ago and have gone from curious newbie, to enthused convert, to improvisor-in-the-audience and workshop regular. You’re loving it and can’t wait to hit that peak.
You can see someone standing just over the next dip, waving at you from further long the journey, just underneath The Peak, encouraging you to keep going. It’s a friend, or maybe one of your teachers, or perhaps it’s just someone you met through improv that you know has been doing this a while and likes to encourage those still on their way. It seems like a pretty straight line to where they are, give or take, so you keep trekking. It takes another little while to get to where they are…
Except you’re not there yet. Because the little dip in the road? It’s not so little. You couldn’t see it from the other side, you could only see upwards - but now at this mini-peak you can see more of the path ahead and it’s, uh… it’s kind of potholed. And overgrown in places. It doesn’t look like the easy trek you had at the beginning. It’s definitely doable! You can see the paths people have taken to get from where you are to where your friend is. It’s just not as straightforward as you thought.
You wave back at your friend, and they wave again, and gesture out to the open spaces beside them. Your gaze follows - and you realise the path isn’t The Path at all. It’s A Path. There’s various Paths criss-crossing the landscape, all trending upwards via peaks and troughs, across bridges and through chasms. And there’s no one Peak either - there’s several mountains here! There’s signposts pointing to the different summits; one reads “Short-Form Games”, another reads “Grounded Realism”, and another “Genre Long-Form” - here’s more, you can’t make them out yet but you’re certainly curious Some of the mountains are connected by swing bridges, and you realise if you scale one, you may be able to jump across to another with minimal adjustments. Near the peaks is a beautiful meadow, full of people and picnic blankets. It’s a space of connection and community for the improv mountaineer, a place to breath between attempts to climb one of the many peaks.
Behind them all is an impressively lofty mountain signposted “Improv Cloud Nine” - its peak is obscured by clouds, but there is a chairlift guarded by a particularly etherial gatekeeper. They do not take payment, but every so often a mountaineer gets a look in their eyes, a flow in their body and mind, and they walk up to the gatekeeper who nods and gives them a seat on the lift. The person ascends into the clouds, and soon after comes skiing down, landing perfectly and blissfully. Afterwards, people ask them what it was like - sometimes they can describe it, other times they say “I honestly don’t remember what happened”. It can happen to anyone, at any time, no matter how long you’ve been in the meadow.
You look again at your friend, hoping they give you some advice for the best way forward to get to them and to the field, and to the many peaks. But they don’t know what equipment you brought, and they can’t tell you what path to take. They don’t know which parts of the path are going to trip you up, or which parts you’re going to sail through - they might be able to call out advice from their perspective, or to direct you to another person on a similar path who can help, or point to a shortcut they spot close by you if they can see it. Getting to the meadow and choosing a direction to go is going to be up to you.
snippets
I was sick and then I was just knackered. Therefore, I didn’t get to tell y’all about (or go to) this show that happened the other week - Wet Soup! Honestly such a ruckus show, and I hope it was as bonkers time as I imagine it was. Luckily, there’s another one coming up…
BATS Theatre has made two recent announcements: one, that pitches for Spring 2023 (Oct-Dec) are now open (closing 12 June) and two, the theatre will be closed over July and August for some much needed maintenance. Wait! There’s a third announcement - they’re having an AGM and Community Hui. Thursday, 29 of June 2023, 6:00 pm, RSVP here.
Austin Harrison is lining up a month of gigs at Circus Bar during BATS’s closure. He says: “The show is 7pm a Circus Bar every Friday night from June 30 - July 28. Duos are invited to pitch an idea for a 20-25 minute slot. It can be a well-honed act or something brand new. Cast duos will receive a $100 koha to recognise their time and talent.” Click here to read more and register your pitch.
Have you booked for Patti yet? Honestly, DO IT. Talk to me if you aren’t sure.
Have you pitched for NZIF yet? Teachers and directors, this is your moment!
coming up…
shows
Graduation Showcase (Improv Connection). Monday 12 June, 7:30pm at The Pow Wow Room, tix $5-15.
Late Night Knife Fight: 50th Show and 7th Anniversary (Locomotive). Saturday 24 June, 8pm at BATS Theatre, tix from $18. Seven years of shows! I’m so proud of this little show. To celebrate our 7th year we will be having a sweet pizza party after the show in Lumen - join us!
PopRox at the Sprig & Fern (PopRox). Wed 28 June, 8:30pm at Sprig & Fern Berhampore, tix from $15.
Wet Soup Experimental Comedy (Wet Soup). Thursday 6 July, 8pm at Pow Wow Room, tix from $15.
workshops
Foundations of Improv: Koha Taster Class (Improv Connection). Tuesday 20 June, 6:30 at 12 King St.
Foundations of Improv: Power of Authenticity (Improv Connection). 8 Tuesdays from 27 June, 6pm-9pm at St Paul’s Lutheran Church. $339 with payment plans available.
Improvise Freely Tour with Patti Stiles (hosted by Locomotive). Improvise Freely workshops on 8 and 9 July, Teaching Improv workshops on 15 and 16 July. Start from $125 for a full day, if you haven’t booked yet GET ON IT (and if you know people in Christchurch and Dunedin, let them know too cos they’ve got stuff going on there).
The Joy of Improvisation (WIT). 8 Thursdays from 27 July, 7:30pm - 9:30pm at Wellington High School, $185.
Improv Theatre 102: Build Your Platform (Locomotive). 8 Mondays from 7 August, 7pm-9pm at Thistle Hall, registration from $180. Great for people who just took IT 101 or who want to get back to basics for a bit!
Scenework Intensive (Locomotive). 6 Mondays from 23 October, 7pm-9pm at Thistle Hall, registration from $70 (earlybird pricing!). A fun workout co-taught by Jennifer O’Sullivan and Matt Powell
WIT Tuesdays (Wellington Improv Troupe). 6-8pm, Te Auaha, various teachers. Drop in, koha. Check the most recent newsletter (at the link) for info on this week’s session.
Improv Movement Class (Java Dance). 9-10.30am Tuesdays, join the FB group to stay in the loop.
Help me collate all the upcoming improv and improv-adjacent events and useful news - tell me about yours!
ka kite anō
That’s all for this week; let me know what I missed in the comments, and stay safe and well xx
