Cafe Improvisation - an activity

[Paul Levy]

Overview of the Acitivty

This is an activity for the workshop breaks. In some ways it doesn't seem like an activity at all but it can be more powerful in debrief than some of the more formal workshop activities!

Process

The process is simple. During a coffee break, invite participants to become more sensitised towards their spontaneity. Invite them to be more "in the moment" during the break. Suggest they attempt to edit themselves less and, when editing, to note why they edited. By editing I mean pre-rehearsing what one is going to say to another person before one says it. Of course we sometimes edit for good social reasons! Just encourage participants to use the break as a chance to be more spontaneous and improvisational - both in word and movement. 

Flow more. Let go a bit. Allow spontaneity is arise during the break. Don't force it. And don't worry too much about editing - just note it.

This can be very empowering for some and can actually bed in what may have been experienced and learned during the more formal workshop time. It may also free up those who are a bit more reserved during main workshop time. For others who "let go" during the sessions, they may find they edit more  - and this can point to blockages in applying improvisation skills learned during the workshop back into real life social situations.

Some guidelines for the activity can include:

- speak what first comes into your head without editing it

- just tell yourself it is okay to be more spontaneous during the break

- act on impulses (within respectful limits) - don't edit them

- see how spontaneous you can be

- see how Yes, and, offering and accepting can aid flow in social conversation

- enjoy the danger and thrill of diving into the social moment

Some unplanned results may emerge! The conversations may well become more playful and, initially, there may be more laughter, after some stumbling and awkwardness. Some people might take a lead, there may be some competitiveness. Others might experience a thrill in the moment. The use of breaks rather than a formal workshop exercise can free people up or, in contrast, block them more!

Debrief

Some possible debrief questions include:

- what did it feel like at first, and how did it develop?

- what did you notice about your editing?

- what kind of things triggered more or less spontaneity in you, and in others?

- how forced did it feel and how relaxed and easy did it become?

- what kind of things do you edit?

- how different were you from your usual social behaviour?

- what do we gain from being more spontaneous? What risks are there?

- what fears arose and what other emotions came up?

- what did you learn about yourself? What did you learn about others?

Discussion

This can be quick a shocking activity, and I believe that arises from its deceptive simplicity. Break times in applied improvisation sessions can be a small metaphor for the world after the workshop or event is over. We go, temporarily, back into social life so I feel the occasional break is an untapped resource, a place to put applied improvisation  learning into practice. The debrief can be as important as the activity itself! Of course, it is only a further, slightly unreal, activity, given that breaks are usually sandwiched inbetween sessions, but it is social time and therefore a chance to dive into improvisation and spontaneity with a peer group, in a mode that is closer to real social interaction that formal workshop activities usually are.

Your comments, as ever, welcome.