zaterdag 18 juli 2009

Impro!

“May I have a location for the upcoming scene?” My voice travels through the theatre. I have to narrow my eyes a bit to be able to see the faces of the people in the audience. People turn inwards and skim their imagination for a suggestion.

“The kitchen!” shouts a woman with vibrant red hair. She laughs a shy giggle.

This suggestion will create the framework eagerly improvised upon by a team of four actors turning it into visible reality.

For many years I have participated in this activity called Theatresports.

I joined the group on an impulse. That impulse, like is often the case with impulses, would change my life forever. It would become the playground that has opened doorways to many other adventures.

Except for several chairs the stage is empty, there are no other objects.

All the team members co-create a scene around the suggestion, in this case: the kitchen, create objects by using them, miming their presence.

It’s fascinating to realise that all the participants involved will create their own individual kitchen. Every individual, members of the audience included, will fill in the blanks with their own creativity and a story unfolds. I’m amazed time and time again that even though we all have a different kitchen in mind, it functions perfectly.

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Image 1: Creating a vase within the kitchen scène

some of the probable vases that could be created inside each audience member/actor

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Image 2: Some of the possible individual created vases as imagined by actors/audience

What attracted me so much to do improvisational theatre is that you never know what you will get and that you can’t make any mistakes, you can’t go “the wrong direction” there are no lines you can forget. And you create in the moment.

I guess I like it so much because of the remembrance it brings me of what happens in physical life.

Like with theatresports, the framework of physical life contains certain basic rules.

But within those boundaries there is so much space for improvisation, for filling in the gaps. It’s very liberating to know that you can always choose within the moment in what direction you will go now.

We tend to forget that at times, until there is a moment when someone reminds us of that aspect of life.

We tend to forget that life is the greatest improvisation of all: A great improvisation in consciousness.

This blog will be an account of my own improvisations in consciousness; it will be an account of adventures that are being created in the moment constantly. I’ll share my explorations of Self and the tools I utilize to do so.

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