That Was Awesome: "100 points for naming her "Cabinet"

Kickass dudes - including two eager returners from last week, and one brought in by major glowing recommendations from one of the returners.

We had a really great time, I think. People had specific stuff in mind to work on, and I think we got to all of it, at least a little.

I'll say this: Three and Four-person classes may not be sustainable from a business point of view. But while they last, wow, I think they're great for the people involved. You get so much individual attention, and so many more times on stage than you do in your normal team rehearsal, or 18-person class.

And we're doing 3 hours, at that!

I really believe this class is worth perpetuating. If you think so too (or feel like it's something you want to check out sometime or other), I urge you to come out sooner rather than later. Big numbers now will help carry us through any lean weeks in the future.

The lean weeks are great, they truly are. But we need some bigger weeks to keep it worth the theater's while to keep us going.

Why did this get depressing? It's the weatheroutside today, I bet.

Last night was awesome. Everyone was game as hell, and we got to do the unprecedented combo of Solo Intervals followed by Pairs Intervals. All three guys loved it.

It's seriously such a huge joy for me to get to introduce the stuff I love in improv to people, and to see them see the beauty in so much of what we do.

Also, one guy had an iPhone, so we were able to check the Yankees scores during the break.

Thanks for another great week, you guys. I hope to see you (and all the rest of you!) and your friends in the next few weeks to come.

Wahoo!

Stuff we did included:

Word Smash
Crossing:
-Silent
-With asides
Turn Out
Silence
Emotion Chairs
Son of a bitch
This is Bullshit
Raw Intervals
Pairs Intervals


Notes I took included:

100 points for naming her "Cabinet"
Cabot?
Gender confusions
Fitler
W/ the fuckin Krinkles
I love the long ones b/c the change!
statements
single
"yesterday, today, and the day before"
Yay! not sefl-conscious [sic]


I find I'm taking less notes every week. Maybe that's me growing to trust my short-term memory more, as I get comfortable teaching. I don't think it's laziness...

See you soon!

Your pal,
Geoff

That was Awesome - Week 5: Rain Schmain

Sure, it rained all day and never really did stop at all. I feared the worst.

I shouldn't have worried.

We had 4 intrepid souls say screw the rain and make their way to us, and we had a great time. It was an international crowd - 1 from Holland, 1 from Russia, 1 with a very Greek name, and 1 from the Bronx. Which I believe is in central Asia.

It was a really, really good time. As promised, we did the silent exercise I'd planned, and wouldn't you know it, these awesome folks started working in awesome, seamless use of silence where appropriate throughout the next exercise we did too. It made a definite difference.

At a student's request, we also hit specificity nice and hard, playing one round of "I've got the Motts" and then transforming it in the next round into "Christmas Gift Exchange", which was an absolute blast. Just hysterical, which it wasn't even really intended to be. Learned something valuable on that one, I did.

We also got to try out the long-rumored, never-before-seen Pairs Intervals -- and they were great. A very different experience from solo Intervals - and it was observably enjoyed by all.

All in all, a fantastic week. And no one seemed put out in the least about the slight emergency time change, so I guess I was making too big a deal out of it. Sorry bout that.

Stuff we did included:
One Word Story
Word Smash (Thor-style)
Open Crossing
basic scenes:
-status
-relationship
I Got the Motts
Christmas Gift Exchange
Silence scenes
Whispered Secrets
Pairs Intervals

Notes I took included:
Time to shuck the oysters
great strategy in a pinch
very nice
beautiful pimpin
+ yay accept gifts
wonderful instincts <-> have an opinion
present it to him

Another awesome one. Can't wait for next week. Thanks to everyone who came out, you all did really good work.

See you soon, I hope!

Your pal,
Geoff

That was Awesome - Week 4 Blows the Roof Off

Holy macaroni!

Last night was fantastic. The.. burbly durbly. It ruled. 10 people - beating the previous record by a margin large enough that the margin itself would beat the previous record.

The margin between the margin and the previous record would itself be large enough to beat the previous record.

Free gin awesome.

And hoo, boy, they were game as could be.

Stuff we did included:
Rubbing the google (copyright Kevin Scott)
Slap Daggers
Word Smash (Thor-style)
Open Crossing
This is Bullshit
Emotion Chairs
Basement/Unbasement
And
Raw Intervals

Notes I wrote included:
Very realistic w/ the One sided dialogue then appropriate
& varied degrees
DARK OK
The Birth of Fred Schneider!!!
Bruce Lee & Bruce Willis

Everyone stretched themselves in one or more of these exercises, and a lot of truly spontaneous, unplanned, surprises, and dynamic work ensued.
I really felt like I got to see people getting in touch with their instincts -- and even better, people letting go of that "outside eye" that we improvisers use to evaluate everything we do while we're doing it.

I'm proud to have helped this class to happen.

Now, jumping from 3 awesome people last week to 10 awesome people this week was a big adjustment, and there are a couple of adjustments still to be made. I'm going to break up the Intervals to make sure no one has to sit too long, and definitely reduce the time we spend on warmups to 15 minutes or less.

Please, anyone who's taken this class or who is thinking about checking it out, don't hesitate to drop me a line here, on facebook, or at my email, with your questions, concerns, suggestions, threats, or recipe requests. I'm good with eggs and meats.

Thanks to everyone for coming out, and I hope to see you (and you) next time.

Wahoo!

Your pal,
Geoff

That Was Awesome -- Week Three Made Me Happy

Well well well! How the pendulum has swung! Last night was really great. 3 awesome people came out, and we worked our asses off.
They were each game as hell and threw themselves into everything we did; and let me tell you, they really made beautiful work out of every bit of it. Each of them spent at least one exercise working on stuff that is a challenge for him/her. Everyone stretched themselves, and everyone got into the flow of things and starting having stuff bubble up out of themselves whose origin they couldn't really identify.
Which is the main point of this class.
So Kudos!! To Ann, Athos, and Patrick. You guys did really, really good work yesterday.
And also left me really, really happy.


Stuff we did included:
Word smash, Thor-style
Phone tag
Open crossing
Emotion chairs
And a glorious hour of Raw Intervals

Notes I wrote included:
No real reason to do it
ah well, we're learning to teach
30s scene
Chinese takeout
cocktail cabinet
awe- can b + or -
jealous is not peevish
Nice!
Silence to be used
Filter - Apply it to multiple things
Allow it to ⇑⇓ in intensity
⬑MAYBE NOT
Yay! Being oblique - nice
Neat! jovial-faced suspicion
Mathematics
Neat! two-person scene of all asides
Crisper transitions
Falafels → that's your right in the intervals
Arc
swirl -- spiral!
(Bus stop)
that just happened
Intervals can go dark
No need ever be funny
+ NEW RULE whoever goes 1st gets to go again at the end
Able to twist OK!!! this does that to you now
Hand car -- in head at 28
3 towns so organic!
(right?)

Seriously, this class was frigging great last night. It was an awful lot like my fondest dreams of how this class can go.
You three, come back. And you who haven't come yet, or haven't made it back, come on out. The Thursday drop-in is getting better and better.

Your pal,
Geoff

That was Awesome - Week 2

Well that was awesome. Attendance was a little low, but the class dynamic was awesome and people have told me they plan to come soon. We shall see...

Stuff we did included:
Raw Intervals
Character Slip Intervals
Nogoodnicks
Silent Crossing
Basement/unbasement

all with the emphasis on organics.

Notes I took included:
Yeh uh huh typical teen
timid "Russian" Groceries to Mommy
Brian?
I no hung up
Cheaters!
woman
Curser Phone Breaker
Follow it, each of you

It really was a ton of fun and I think everyone involved had a great time. As usual, I learned a ton, and was able to pass on a few things if I do say so myself.

Two days til Week Three - I am super looking forward to it.

Come on out!

Your pal,
Geoff

That was Awesome - Week 1

That was awesome.

Stuff we did included:
Basic Scenes.
Raw Intervals.
Character slip Intervals.
Directed Reaction Moment Scenes.
Basement/Unbasement.

Notes I took included:
Alpha Sigma Phi?
Kerstin <---YES!
So wrong we like it better
Sob story - Yes!
-Reality-
If it's weird, you can call it weird
Whimsical
extremity- solve with quiet + silence, + solemnity
YAY F1
Composure - Self-awareness
Show us - i.e. tell us, + then live w/ it
give us happy
Jail! YAY!
"You're pissin' in the wind, you try and come after me"

I had a really good time, and learned quite a bit. I hope you guys did too. Thanks for coming out, and I hope to see you coming back.

Your pal,
Geoff