Improspectives

Thanks for joining the conversation at Improspectives. I’ll post articles that touch on communication, improv, and business. Of course, if you’ve read my book, you already know I believe those three things are inextricably related.

I started Improspectives with a discussion of what improv is and isn’t. It’s always interesting to see how non-performers relate to improv, especially when they identify something as improv when it’s actually a scripted performance.

This February 18, 2010 article on CNN reinforces the benefits of improv in the office. http://www.cnn.com/2010/BUSINESS/02/18/improvisation.business.skills/index.html One interesting thing about the article is the first image in the accompanying photos. The picture lists stand-up comedian Robin Williams as a brilliant improviser. Williams is a brilliant performer who uses improv to develop his material, but he rarely improvises during important performances. Most of his seemingly impromptu forays into the crowd during his HBO specials were planned in advance so the camera operators would know what to expect. The hilarious radio sequences in Good Morning Vietnam were improvised, but they were the product of much more work than the two or three minutes of material that made it to the screen.

Live performances are extremely demanding, but the audience also tends to be more forgiving because they know the performers get one shot and that’s it. Television and film audiences have higher standards because they know the performers have more than one chance to make something great.