Maneuvering In The Unknowns

Vera Q. Wang
Jul 20, 2017 · 3 min read

I probably have shared with you here and there that my improv experiences were about being gutsy and self-stretching. As truthful as they are, I have to admit that it’s not the full story. Fortunately, I bought myself some time and reflected on the experiences, and some lessons can now be distilled into words and revealed to you. Here is what I discovered.


I. Control What You Can

Most people believe improv is horrifying because it operates upon the unknowns: expressions, reactions, and results all seem clueless and therefore scary. To combat such anxieties, my instructor Rick Andrews taught me this fundamental technique: to control what I can. In other words, an improvisor who wishes to control the stage must first establish a self as quickly as possible. The self includes a role he/she plays and a location he/she resides. Once the who I am and where I am is established and controllable, the rest of the unknowns like sequential acts will just be taken care of for themselves.

Think about it, a role really clues the improviser in what to say and a location hints even more. For example, you will be less afraid to improvise if I tell you that you are now going to play a fan of Michael Jackson in your house, than so without any of these clues. You feel equipped for the scene that used to deemed terrifyingly unknown, because clarity helps mitigate the fear of uncertainty. At least clarity simply enables one not to freak out immediately.

I’ve further thought about the two elements who and where, and believe that they actually help to solve tons of other real life events. Whether visiting a new country, giving a presentation to a new crowd, hiking on a new trail, or exploring new areas to name just a few, the two elements are the starting point that you need to navigate. The process is like solving a function with variables but you need to know the constants first. Let’s just call this function UKN function for now. It’s then smart to firstly make one element, if impossible for both, clearly defined before your solve the UKN function. To be even more specific, who = your values, and where = your grounds. It might now make sense to you why so many times people use the phrase where am I to help them refresh their minds, and the phrase who am I to re-remember their values.

II. Hear What You Should

You probably are shortsighted if you think that’s all about it. To maneuver in the unknowns, the third element you need is to open your mind and welcome possibilities through active listening, just as the best scenes occur only when two improvisers attentively listen to each other.

Walk yourself through this demonstration. If your scene partner calls you daughter, you should catch right away that the role he plays is your father; if he calls you honey, it will be a different relationship, and you’ll respond suitably different. The clarity of a relationship will surely help both of you to flow in, yet as ridiculous as it sounds, it takes mental efforts to simply hear it.

As an unsophisticated improvisor, I stupidly hold only onto the role and location I gave to myself, and forget about the rest of the world. I blocked myself from hearing important clues that I should, and committed flawed interactions. Not only such scenes would be unsuccessful, but also the attempt to solve the UKN function, because I burned the bridge to reality by not listening. Mistakes instruct that we need both clarity and reality to solve the UKN function — really, control what we can and hear what we should.

If you don’t want to risk things in real life events, you are welcomed to test it on stage. After all, improv is more than a comedy; it’s a life formula with which you can experiment around.


Thanks for reading. If you’re interested, please join me at the Weekly Metaphorá circle here .

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Vera Q. Wang

Written by

Slow thinker. Active reader. Amateur improvisor. Peer supporter.

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