Occam's Razor and Improv

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When performing improv, every improviser has a desire to seem intelligent. If you are like me you've probably looked up to improvisers with lots of experience who seem to wow audiences with subtlety which turns into high spots of the scenes they are in. Perhaps, you think you need to be subtle, on purpose, in scenes to do the same thing. Improv doesn't work that way and Occam's Razor explains why.

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My 'Journal' Entry

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A postcard for 'The Journal' and a white russian.Here I am, with less than a week until my first performance in a long form improvisational comedy show. The show I'm in is called [The Journal][] and parodies the tragic romances of [Nicholas Sparks][]. I've had a weird experience with this show so I thought I would share it.

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My farewell show at Comedysportz San Jose

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As you may have heard, from recent posts, I am moving to Seattle for a new job. They wanted me to start October 31st but I wasn't having any of it. Not because it is Halloween, though I did love Halloween at Gaia, but because I had an improv show to do November 3rd and I wouldn't miss it for the world. I have had a great time training at Comedysportz San Jose and had a blast with my fellow improvisers so I had to see how we'd all do at a honest to goodness Comedysportz formatted show. For your information, we did great. Also, my wife got some shaky video of most of the show. So sit back, relax and have a laugh at my expense. [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=videoseries?list=PLE0AF645B4E373768&hl=en_US&w=640&h=360] BTW - 80's bands should have been my category. Next time I will not falter!

If you enjoyed this, you might also enjoy my previous show that I posted here during the summer. That is long form improv but still quite fun.

If you enjoyed this please tell all your friends by tweeting, posting to facebook, google plus, tumblr, myspace whatever. If you didn't enjoy this...shhhhhh...no one likes a whiner. ;) Seriously, I'd love to hear what you think of the show. If you have any samples of your own improv and/or stand up comedy I'd love to see them as well. Good alternatives for the game of 185? 80s bands that I should have said(this could be a long list)? Post them in the comments.

Obstacles vs Accessories

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Obstacle or accessory?It is not what happens to you that matters but rather how you respond to what happens to you. I could easily get metaphorical about this with the many things that have happened to me (especially in the recent past) but I've got two very specific things to bring up regarding this concept.

Parkour, Freerunning and overcoming obstacles

Almost 4 years ago when I first found out about parkour, I was drawn to the concept of training to overcome obstacles physically and using this training to help you overcome all obstacles - mental and physical. Well this year, in my new home of San Jose, I've decided to train parkour at a facility called Guardian Art. At Guardian Art they don't relate the same way to obstacles. In fact, they don't relate to obstacles at all. Everything is an accessory.

When I look up the word accessory, this is what I get:

1. a subordinate or supplementary part, object, or the like, used mainly for convenience, attractiveness, safety, etc.
2. an article or set of articles of dress, as gloves, earrings, or a scarf, that adds completeness, convenience, attractiveness,etc., to one's basic outfit.

For the sake of movement, obstacles can be treated instead like accessories. You can choose to use it or not to help you move through space. Knowing how to use an accessory in your movements makes your arsenal of motion more complete, adds convenience for you in getting from place to place and with practice your movements may even be pretty.

Yes, and...

One other thing I've begun training recently is improvisational comedy. I started taking classes out at DSI Comedy Theater in Carrboro, NC and am now training at ComedySportz San Jose. First off, I highly recommend everyone take an improv comedy class. There is something for everyone. Second, improv has given me practice in relating to whatever life throws at you as accessories.

When I'm on stage with my teammates doing improv, I have very little idea what is going to happen. However, we have been taught to take whatever each other does or says as a gift to help the scene move along. You'll often hear improvisers use the term "yes, and..." to describe what they do. This is because you always say yes to the reality someone is bringing into the mix and you add onto it. In other words, they bring something onto the stage and you use it as an accessory to help out the scene.

In conclusion

If you find yourself trying to overcome some sort of obstacle perhaps you could instead try to adjust your point of view. Can that obstacle be an accessory? Have you accepted the reality of your obstacle accessory yet? Can you add to that reality to create something even more amazing? I'd love to hear where these concepts have worked for you in some way. Please comment below to let me know how you can see this in your own life.

Sunday Funnies - Improv-A-Ganza

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I love improvisational comedy. I loved watching "Whose Line Is It Anyway." My wife could always tell when I was watching it because I would be truly laughing out loud and that laughter went to 11. I have also recently taken up studying improvisational comedy, first at DSI Comedy in Carrboro, North Carolina and now at ComedySportz in San Jose, CA.[ad#Google Adsense] Earlier this year when I found out Drew Carey was getting inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, the promo reel they played talked about his new show "Drew Carey's Improv-A-Ganza". It started this week on GSN and I'm looking forward to seeing more comedy gold from many of the same faces that I saw on "Whose Line Is It Anyway." Barring an unfortunate cameo by Mr. #winning#15minutesAreUp himself Charlie Sheen, it has been as good as expected. The following is a clip from the show that once again had me LOLing.

Improv 101 - My first class

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Dirty South Comedy Club LogoRecently my therapist asked me what I do for fun.  I tried to list out some things but my list seemed pretty sparse. In order to fill those gaps I signed myself up for an Improv class at my local comedy club, the Dirty South Comedy Theater. Going into the evening I was nervous, but in the best possible way.  I had no idea what to expect but I had a pretty good idea that it was going to be fun. After the initial meet and greet we circled up and got the ball rolling.  A friend of mine had told me that nothing from the real world exists in these improv classes and our first exercises made this clear. We did some very basic exercises to get into the mindset we needed for the class. After that we got into the rest of the night which was variations on the "yes...and..." theme.

The yes...and... practices were so much fun. The consisted of variations on 2 people on stage having a conversation where each following statement agrees with what the person said and adds to it, moving the story along. We still need some practice to know how to keep that story interesting but some very funny situation came to be on stage last night.  Lots of fun and it will only get better.

All in all, last night was awesome and I can't wait for next week's class. Thank goodness the Dirty South has improv shows I can watch between now and then.