27th May 2010

Getting away with murder

Why do some improvisers get away with murder (not literally), and others who know a million tricks and skills fail? Everyone can have an uncharacteristically good or bad day, but is it more than that?

22nd Feb 2010

Round and round

La Ronde Peeps
La Ronde Peeps

La Ronde for Improv and Writing

Those who have heard of Arthur Schnitzler’s play La Ronde (or Reigen in the German) might think that this is going to be about sex. It’s not. Not really. While it’s true that La Ronde deals largely with themes of love and sex, it’s the form the play takes that interests me.

6th Feb 2010

Getting past the fear

Paths to Fear
It’s comfortable in the dark. Let the fear keep you safe.

Every writer, every researcher, anyone who is involved in a creative endeavour knows The Fear, or to give the beast its full title, The Fear of Being Wrong. When a writer states at an empty page, when an improviser freezes on an empty stage, it is The Fear that is at work, telling us that “if you don’t play you can’t lose.”