IMPROV QUOTES
"Everything that's not the 'odd thing' in a scene, should be exactly as it would be in real life. Blue doesn't show up well on blue."
--- Ian Roberts
"Fall, then figure out what to do on the way down."
--- Del Close
"The truth is you can acquire any quality you want by acting as though you already have it."
--- Joseph Murphy (You can play a capable surgeon, once in a while.)
"The more you know, the more you can make fun of."
--- Del Close (Work at the top of your intelligence.)
"For the skilled improviser, however, time slows down (rather like in The Matrix). They see a palette of possibilities in front of them and make instant connections, using what they have."
--- Julie Sheldon Huffaker, Brad Robertson, Gary Hirsch and Rob Poynton in the article "Improv Culture: Using Practices from Improv Theater to Help Organizations Evolve Successfully Over Time", OD Practitioner, Vol. 35, No. 3.
"Many people have the idea that to improvise you have to get up on a stage and 'make it up.' While it’s true that that’s the bulk of it, it could also be said that the bulk of driving is pointing the car, so let’s allow five-year-olds to do it. Bad idea. To master the art of improv can take many years, and a great understanding, not just of improv’s tenets, but those of many different disciplines. Because there are fewer parameters than any other performing art, one must be prepared for anything that comes your way. That includes forays into the worlds of writing, directing, design, dance, music, singing, mime, stage combat, and especially acting. Once you’ve got all of these down, then you can say that improv is easy."
--- Jeff Catanese, Improv Review
"The only rule is that there are no rules."
---Del Close (Play without fear.)
"Don't think."
--- UCB Motto
"A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, that’s teamwork."
--- John Wooden (It's about sports, but still applies.)
--- Ian Roberts
"Fall, then figure out what to do on the way down."
--- Del Close
"The truth is you can acquire any quality you want by acting as though you already have it."
--- Joseph Murphy (You can play a capable surgeon, once in a while.)
"The more you know, the more you can make fun of."
--- Del Close (Work at the top of your intelligence.)
"For the skilled improviser, however, time slows down (rather like in The Matrix). They see a palette of possibilities in front of them and make instant connections, using what they have."
--- Julie Sheldon Huffaker, Brad Robertson, Gary Hirsch and Rob Poynton in the article "Improv Culture: Using Practices from Improv Theater to Help Organizations Evolve Successfully Over Time", OD Practitioner, Vol. 35, No. 3.
"Many people have the idea that to improvise you have to get up on a stage and 'make it up.' While it’s true that that’s the bulk of it, it could also be said that the bulk of driving is pointing the car, so let’s allow five-year-olds to do it. Bad idea. To master the art of improv can take many years, and a great understanding, not just of improv’s tenets, but those of many different disciplines. Because there are fewer parameters than any other performing art, one must be prepared for anything that comes your way. That includes forays into the worlds of writing, directing, design, dance, music, singing, mime, stage combat, and especially acting. Once you’ve got all of these down, then you can say that improv is easy."
--- Jeff Catanese, Improv Review
"The only rule is that there are no rules."
---Del Close (Play without fear.)
"Don't think."
--- UCB Motto
"A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, that’s teamwork."
--- John Wooden (It's about sports, but still applies.)