So you’ve decided to start an improv theatre company! Brilliant! Truly brilliant! I wish you nothing but luck and hope you have fun building your team, growing your community and having unlimited amounts of fun and creativity that comes from producing improvised theatre!
But before you dive head first into all of that, here is a list of five things I wish I knew before I started an improv theatre company. All of these aren’t written to put you off in any way, but are a few realities and pitfalls that you may need to either accept, overcome or negotiate your way through in your improv journey.
1. Most People Don’t Know What Improv Is
This is one of the things I found hardest to grasp when I started getting into improv. I was so into it – taking classes, watching Whose Line, reading books etc. It really was quite a slow realisation mixed with a lot of denial before it dawned on me just how unknown improv still is.
I just couldn’t understand how I could be so into this thing and keep meeting people who didn’t have a clue what I was talking about. I’d tell people I do improv and they’d stare blankly back at me. Then I’d tell them that what I do is a bit like Whose Line Is It Anyway? and the penny would drop for a bunch of people. Others who don’t know Whose Line would continue to stare blankly as I’d fumble around explanations of a sketch show which doesn’t have a script and sometimes have rules which mean we can’t do certain things or have to do others…
Scratch that…long form! It’s like a play or musical which doesn’t have a script. More blank stares or lack of understanding of why this should appeal to them.
Most people will instantly understand what a play, musical or stand up comedy is, but I’ve come to realise that for many improv is still a relatively new concept. This is a hurdle to overcome, but don’t be discouraged by it. A mistake you can run into is that you approach your marketing or community building with the thought that everyone knows what improv is. They don’t and that’s ok. You just need to prepare for the reality that for many people you will work with and perform in front of that you may have to help introduce and educate them to what improv is and why it is great.
If you approach this hurdle as a challenge filled with potential successes for everyone you introduce to the fun that is improv I guarantee you’ll have lots of successes.
