Workin’ With Walsh
I took a four-hour improv workshop with UCB founder Matt Walsh last night. I didn’t really know what to expect, because you hear a lot of stories about the old-schoolers and what they’re like, but who knows whether the stories are true, or whether they’re still true about them now. I’m happy to say I enjoyed it, and felt like I definitely took some nice lessons out of it. He was clear and direct and seemed like he was pleased with the general level of skill that’s coming up through the theater. I don’t know that you can ask for much more from a single day workshop, so I’m pleased. My two big realizations I hope to assimilate into my playing are:
The first insight was that you can have game going in a completely simple, unforced way inside of 30 seconds if you’re playing well. I’m defining playing well here as listening to your partner, being clear, and assuming a point of view that you stick to. It doesn’t have to be complex, it doesn’t have to blow anybody’s mind, but if you find that game early, you can start to build your relationship and the rest of the scene much faster. There’s something to be said for a slow-burn kind of scene, but there’s also a lot to be said for not wasting your time. Get out there, get that game, and start building the world through the game.
The second insight was elegantly phrased as “Create less, explore more.” I know I’m guilty of pulling out a ton of references or new additions to no avail if a scene isn’t going much of anywhere. Walsh urged us to treat each new “creation” in a scene as something significant that should be explored and examined before we move on to create something new. It’s easier and more satisfying for the improvisers, and it’s clearer and almost certainly funnier for the audience. That makes for better scenes.
There were some other minor tips I picked up as well, but those were my two big takeaways from the workshop. Both are things I would say I’d heard before, but they were illustrated well or spoken to in a very direct way. DCM has been extremely satisfying for me so far, and we’re not even into the Marathon proper yet. I’m really looking forward to it now; my shows, others’ shows, and the workshop I have on Saturday. Renewed vigor!