An Improv Game for Writers

Viola Spolin’s Writing Game Any number of players and one sidecoach Materials: 4 pieces of paper or one divided into quadrants, pen or pencil Label each paper 1, 2, 3 and 4. Title #1 My Dream, #2 How To, #3 A Story and #4 A letter (or any 4 disparate subjects or...

Transcending the Game

Giving our full effort is, in effect fulfilling our potential. By testing our limits we ever increase the possibility of going further and further. It is in our nature to explore via play. Remember that in all games, the rules are made to be broken – we forget this....

The Layers of the Onion

Silent Tension without Who, What and Where* It had been maybe two years of Wednesday afternoon workshops with Viola before we did an exercise called Silent Tension without Who, What and Where. “I don’t do this one right away.” she said to us....
The Genius of Preoccupation

The Genius of Preoccupation

Spolin’s pathway to the Unknown The [Spolin’s Theater Games] exercises are artifices against artificiality, structures designed to almost fool spontaneity into being–or perhaps a frame carefully built to keep out interferences in which the player waits. Important in...

Counteracting Fear

What if…? “What if I can’t do it?” That’s where it starts for me. I get afraid. “Afraid of what?” “Not being able to do it? Then people will laugh at me?” “Hey! I’m in an Improv class, isn’t that what I want?” the voice in my head is having a discussion with another...