Impro

I liked it!! However exactly half of it. In my opinion you could stop reading at the start of the mask chapters. I listened to the entire things but they made zero sense to me.

On the surface, Impro: Improvisation and the Theatre is a book for those interested in theatre and improvisation. Keith Johnstone assembled it as part autobiography, part practical advice with situational examples. At the same time, the book is about the liberation of the mind and collaboration. Don't overthink a situation, and don't try to control it; accept each interaction and build upon it.

Keith Johnstone explores Status, Spontaneity, Narration, and Masks as the leading aspects of improvisation. Most of the readers will find the chapter Status as a revelation. Each interaction is a transaction between statuses, where status is an individual's sense of self-esteem and power difference. In improvisation, status is not fixed or assigned to an individual permanently. Status interactions and transformations during scenes help create dramatic tension, conflict, and comedy. Once you get how it works, you will understand what makes interactions engaging and will look at improvisation in a new light.

Whenever someone offers an idea, you can either accept or block it. Keith Johnstone describes blocking as a form of aggression: "when in doubt, say 'NO.' We use this in life as a way of blocking action." The author teaches that for actors to develop a scene in improvisation, they must help each other by accepting. If we take the same advice out of improvisation, it holds in everyday life too.

In the last chapter, Keith Johnstone focuses on Masks and Trance. If taken out of context, you would think the author describes ghost stories, demonic possessions, and voodoo magic. I found the chapter perplexing because it was my first time reading about mask acting, and it only occurred to me after how masks can change an actor's senses and behavior. The chapter is an intriguing read, albeit it provokes some skepticism.

The book is a brilliant introduction to improvisation acting. It is also a guide to being more receptive to others and overcoming the fear of failure by releasing the desire to be in control.

This book is oddly popular in my non-theatrical circles, so I figured I'd give it a go. The first half is a man talking about the improv games he teaches and what they can teach about about interpersonal relationships. A lot of his message is that beginning improvisers need to be protected from themselves; that they need to be given permission to fail in order to take chances and become better. I find myself thinking about this a lot now that he's mentioned it.

The other big takeaway was in status games, and we as humans are incapable of doing things that are status-neutral. Everything we say and every action we take confers status, and by being cognizant of this we can use it to our advantage. Status isn't something we have; it's something we carve out when we need it. Most people have a preferred status that they play at, and it takes practice to get people to be able to play different statuses.

And then the last half is about letting gods into your soul or something. It mentions “possession cults” a little too often for comfort.