What is improvisational theater?
Improvisational Theatre, usually abbreviated as Improv in English, is a highly practical form of group drama. It is a popular drama form that everyone can participate in. Its most prominent feature is , that is, there is no ready-made script during the performance, and the dialogues, actions, stories, and roles are not arranged. The participating actors follow the techniques of improvisational drama and improvise the scene in a collaborative spirit as the atmosphere changes on the scene. , cooperation completed. Improvisational drama was introduced from the West and became popular in the United States. It has become an integral part of progressive education in the United States. The educational practice of improvisational drama has been carried out from children to universities. Both Stanford University and Harvard University have successively introduced and launched relevant improvisational drama courses. Popular with students. It is currently widely used in early childhood education development, classroom teaching, community theater performances, corporate training and organization, psychotherapy, new product development and many other fields!
The performance of improvised drama can be very free, removing the restrictions of props, stage design and stage background. In addition to testing the actors' performance skills and physical expression, it also tests the tacit understanding of cooperation and on-site communication between actors. , listening, and delivering information, improvisational theater actors can respond to current emergencies tactfully and respond in a timely manner.
Improv actors create live performances on stage based on propositions provided by the audience. Since there is no guarantee whether the "creative" can be successfully "shaped", make it new, current, unfettered, adventurous and unpredictable. The audience participates in the creation of the sketch story and explores the dramatic journey with the actors.
Improvisational theater technology is widely used in the fields of performance, screenwriting, drama therapy, community drama and other fields. There are thousands of improvisational theater exercises and game forms, and more are being developed. Training includes: physical expression, character creation, script creation, improvisation, acceptance, trust, listening, joy, etc.
We also perform improvisation in our daily lives. We do not think about the lines or rehearse in advance, but we "act" normally with the people, animals, plants and things around us.
Del Close (1934-1999) and other team members summed up one of the most famous rules of improv: Yes and. When you play on the basis of affirming the other party, the scene will go well.
Improvisational theater usually uses audience suggestions or keywords to make the audience more convinced that the performance is improvised, but not absolutely. Improvisational actors can use "the moment" (such as current emotions, the other party's posture, stools) 's shadow) started as inspiration. Improvisational drama is usually comedy, but it can also be tragedy or drama. The external methods of performance include dialogue-based drama, singing, dancing, etc.
The improvised drama mentioned here is traditional drama, including common dramas, musicals, operas, etc.; when comparing improvised drama and traditional drama, drama is mainly used as the benchmark.
Improvisational theater is as old as human civilization. Before the advent of writing, humans relied on improvisation to tell stories.
Over the centuries and throughout the history of human civilization, there have been many different styles of improvisational art. In the Western world, the originator of modern improvisational theater is "The Commedia Dell'Arte" (Italian Commedia dell'Arte).
Since the mid-fifteenth century (1550-1750), the "Italian Commedia dell'arte" troupe was born during the Italian Renaissance and has been popular in Europe for nearly two hundred years. The troupe and actors traveled through European cities, performing audience suggestions on the spot in public squares and temporary stages. The actors improvised plots and used the "situational" framework to produce dramas.
With the retreat of "Italian Commedia dell'Arte", improvisational theater gradually disappeared and was forgotten by people. Until the 1930s-1950s, Viola Spolin and Keith Johnstone successively appeared in the field of improvisational drama, creating courses and works, respectively establishing the model of contemporary improvisational drama. The theater style of unrestrained improvisation, free spontaneity, and allowing the audience to participate in the creation has been passed down to this day.
Keith Johnston, who grew up in the UK, has compiled a unique theory about creativity and spontaneity.
Later, this theory was brought to the University of Calgary in Canada where he taught.
He believed that theater had gradually evolved into a pretentious and artificial art. Ordinary people would never consider stepping into a theater. Mr. Joe Stone hopes to bring theater art into the eyes of people watching football games or boxing through an approachable theater, and has a group of fans like those in Shakespeare's time.
Improvisational theater is presented as a team sports competition. Improvisers form two formations and perform a series of improvisational theater sketches or excerpts, challenging each other. The competition is judged by three Olympic judges.
Through competitive improvisational theater, Joe Stone’s ideas have had a profound impact, directly or indirectly, on today’s mainstream improvisational troupes.
Fiora Spurling
Her theory is based on a simple and powerful idea: "playfulness" is innate in humans. The performative nature of dramatic art evolved from games. Aware of this evolution, Fiora Spurlin applied the form of games to theater education.
Improvisational games have received unprecedented acclaim, and her work has opened up interest in drama among people of all ages.
Ms. Spurling’s son, Paul Sills, continued his mother’s methods and became the leader of the development of improvisational theater centered on the University of Chicago in the mid-1950s. Paul Hills and two others: Del Close and David Shepherd, *** co-founded "modern improv comedy" with the appeal of attracting ordinary people on the street. The goal of "Modern Improvisational Comedy" is to create a theatrical art that is as approachable and suitable for each individual's growth as Joe Stone's competitive improvisation and the Italian Commedia Commedia troupe during the Renaissance. ?
The Compass Theater Company "The Compass" quickly emerged. Many audiences who had never seen a theatrical performance were brought into the theater, and the Second City Theater Company "Second City" was born. Through the success of Compass Theater and Second City Theater Company, Spurling's theater game continued to influence an entire generation of improvisational theater performers.
Improvisational Theater Classification
?1. ?Short Form is a short (usually a few minutes) improvisational form. Skit improvisation is more game-like and gimmick-like (Gimmick). Improvisational games have their own game rules in order to achieve comedy effects, such as the half-time reenactment of "Half Time" and the unknown lines of "The Flying Pigeon". Gimmickry It’s a trick technique). The game's structure, gameplay, and gimmicks are decided in advance. You can use narrative/story, or you can play it like a game. A "skit show" consists of a number of skits, each of which is not related in story, character or game.
2. Long Form is a long (usually 30 to 90 minutes) improvisational form. Long play improvisation generally tells a complete story, with no or less use of games and gimmicks. A "long play performance" consists of multiple scenes, which are related to each other in terms of story, role or theme, and each scene evolves together to complete a complete story or theme narrative.
3. Sketch is an improvisational form in which actors first improvise content, record it, and then revise and polish it into a script. Generally, after appropriate rehearsal, it is presented in front of the audience. . Sketch dramas usually contain one or more brief scenes of 1 to 10 minutes in length. Each scene can be independent or connected to present a larger narrative. Therefore, sketch plays can be either short plays or long plays. In addition, the script of the sketch drama can reserve a part for improvisation, such as 10% to 30% or other flexible proportions; within a predetermined framework, the actors perform this part according to the rules of improvisational drama.
In addition to sketch plays, improvisational theater is an unrehearsed product produced on site through improvisational methods. It is used for public performances and even commercial performances. It usually gets suggestions from the audience at the next second. show. This is the great difference between improvisational theater and traditional theater. There are a large number of commercial improv troupes in the United States, which have formed a sound industry.
Taiwanese drama master Li Guoxiu (1955-2013): "The so-called 'drama' is acting, and 'drama' is story: in a fictional story, the characters are played realistically and sincerely, which is called ' Drama'. "Improvisational drama is a special kind of drama. It has elements of acting, but it more reflects the spontaneity of the improviser and achieves "drama", that is, story-telling.
Benefits of Improvisation
1. Improvisation improves your ability to listen and observe, tell stories and give lectures. Because the story has no presets and will suddenly change direction, listening and observation are essential, otherwise you will quickly get lost, and you will naturally develop the ability to live in the moment; at the same time, improvisation teaches you how to Express your ideas quickly and efficiently, learn the structure of stories, and practice your storytelling and public speaking skills while having fun.
2. Improvisation boosts your confidence. Improvisation uses all-round positive thinking principles and proactive adaptable behaviors to eliminate shyness, timidity, hesitation and doubts, and gradually enhance the performer's self-confidence. Examples include salespeople feeling comfortable dealing with customers, company managers confidently handling relationships with employees, and people better able to face life's twists and turns.
3. Improvisation makes you braver and more adventurous. Improvisation encourages bravery and encourages mistakes. "Please, make a mistake" is such a tenet of improv that performers even celebrate mistakes. Try choices that are not your default and see where they lead. You'll take more healthy risk-taking behaviors and embrace the belief that the only way you can fail is by not trying.
4. Improvise to develop your creativity and innovation abilities. As we age, imagination often becomes rusty from disuse. Improvisation helps us generate new ideas, as well as collaborate with others and generate their new ideas.
5. Improvisation makes you a team player and inclusive. In improv, appearances such as ethnicity, gender, age, appearance, physical ability, etc. are not important. What is important is what is inside. Playing improv together can help different types of people learn to accept each other, and you will become more tolerant.
6. Improvise your leadership skills. Improvisation teaches high and low profile concepts and role play to help you understand interpersonal dynamics.
7. Improvisation allows you to experience joy, explore your true self and become a better version of yourself. There is no script to daily life, we are all improvising all the time. On the one hand, your current life experience and inner state will be reflected in improvised games or scenes. When it is presented to you, you will change yourself again through reflection. On the other hand, improvisation provides many imaginary experiences in situations and dialogue, which in turn can help you optimize your social skills in real life. Life will also be more fun and less stressful!
Note: The classification of improvisational drama and the benefits of improvisation are referenced from Su Guanghui’s book "Improvisational Drama"
I am also very grateful to Bright Su for his revisions on the history and development of improvisational drama. Opinions~