Endings and Beginnings
This is a song about a couple of adult people who have spent Oh, quite a long time together 'Til one day, one of 'em gets restless and decides to leave Whether it's the man or woman who left is unimportant It's a breakup
Happiness Is a Practice
I had a hard, tiring week for a variety of reasons, so this week is going to be short and I am not, despite the title of this blog, going to beat myself up about it. The way I write, I tend to put little ideas into my drafts folder
Gratitude for Gifts
The night of my first jam, when I was just starting out—I think I was still in core classes, partway through 501 —I met this kid, Logan, who came in off the street: never improvised, never seen a show, totally fresh. He'd heard about improv and wanted
How to Get Reps When You Can't Be Reppin'
It's to the chagrin of many students that ultimately reps are what stand between you and mastery of a skill, but the reps you need may be all around you. Near the end of my core curriculum days, I was out with a teacher, and we got to
The Hangover
A few months ago, I was walking with another performer to Brass Tap, a bar/restaurant in Baltimore, after the shows. As a quick aside, I do frequently go to bars or other places that serve alcohol. If the existence of bars could, in and of themselves, make me drink,
Justification - Part 1
As I write this, I just got back from a 201 showcase, which is where the game is introduced in my theatre, and it was so much fun. It was off-the-wall bananas. One of the scenes was basically two rappers treating the Little Mermaid as a documentary, so
Framing - Part 1
And whatever they say on your page three mention Focus on the parts that make you feel good Be grateful for the attention —The Mountain Goats, "For Charles Bronson" I am such a good storyteller that I can convince myself that no one in my life likes me.
Game - Part 1
As I write this, I am recovering from a weekend of workshops given by Elana Fishbein in DC and Baltimore, so while I had a bunch of other thoughts about Game when I originally put this into drafts, I think a lot of those thoughts are still marinating in Fishbein.
Unusual Things - Part 1
If improv is a fire, the base reality is the fuel: The tinder, kindling, sticks, branches, and logs. The game is oxygen. The first unusual thing is the spark, the source of ignition. One interesting exercise is that unusual things can be found by yes, anding within the base reality.
On Base Reality - Part 1
Ambitious to call this Part 1, but I'm pretty sure I'll have other things to say about base reality eventually. I recently heard, at least in Alberta, that some people call "Base Reality" "Platform," which I think is such a great way
Your Note Is My Trauma
Before I dig into the topic, I want to make absolutely clear that I am not calling anyone out. If you have coached me or taught me, I have agency. I also want to make clear that I want the note! I want to get better. I signed up for
On Coaching and Asking Will Hines Questions
I've been fortunate in my short improv career to have taken—some would say too many—improv classes with Will Hines, both in person and via Zoom. I have emailed Will Hines. Will is free with email and actually responds, even if it's just with a