Picasso famously said that, "All children are born artists, the problem is to remain an artist as we grow up.” As children, we are pure creativity. We play games and make up the rules as we go without even thinking about it. We play for one reason and that reason is because it is fun. I think the same is true with improv comedy.
When I started improvising, I was 24 years old. I was living in Manhattan, had recently graduated from film school and signed up for a class at a place called The Upright Citizens Brigade Theater. That first class that I took was a blast.
Within a year, I made it through all the levels that the school offered. As I was moving forward, I noticed that I was thinking so much about the choices I was making on stage and the anxiety that it created became a constant part of the experience. I did one show and stood on the back line second guessing every single choice that I could have made and I didn’t even enter even one scene!
Of course there were flashes of joy but most of the time, the fear outweighed the bliss. If I didn’t have a taste of what I felt improv could be, I would have surely given up at this point but I couldn’t do that. I wanted to do everything I could to overcome the anxiety and have fun again.
In addition to UCB, I took classes at some other well known schools in New York and I even did a 5 week intensive at the legendary IO in Chicago. During that intensive, I found that the critical voice that tells you what you can and can't do got louder and louder. Sadly, I listened to so much of it and you know what? I believed it.
Within a year, I made it through all the levels that the school offered. As I was moving forward, I noticed that I was thinking so much about the choices I was making on stage and the anxiety that it created became a constant part of the experience. I did one show and stood on the back line second guessing every single choice that I could have made and I didn’t even enter even one scene!
Of course there were flashes of joy but most of the time, the fear outweighed the bliss. If I didn’t have a taste of what I felt improv could be, I would have surely given up at this point but I couldn’t do that. I wanted to do everything I could to overcome the anxiety and have fun again.
In addition to UCB, I took classes at some other well known schools in New York and I even did a 5 week intensive at the legendary IO in Chicago. During that intensive, I found that the critical voice that tells you what you can and can't do got louder and louder. Sadly, I listened to so much of it and you know what? I believed it.
I was one of those performers that was a total perfectionist. I had such a hard time making mistakes in front of other people. Of course this wasn’t just limited to the stage, my anxiety would make a frequent guest appearance in my life as well but then something happened.
In 2017, I made some major life changes, moved to Austria, got married, started learning German and for the first time ever, I found a work-life-balance.
Over the past year, the confidence that I thought was all gone slowly came back. The anxiety started to melt away as I stopped putting so much pressure on myself. That sense of needing everything to be perfect will kill you if you let it.
Part of that letting go of perfectionism is letting go of the judgmental voice within all of us. When I was able stop letting that voice control me, I noticed that my playful side began to come back. I started to be able to joke around again. It was in the small moments, like having breakfast with my wife, and with time, I felt the urge to improvise again.
At the recommendation of a friend, I connected with a team called The Pennyless Players which is based out of The University Of Graz. Of course I had my reservations about getting involved with improv but I decided to dive back into it and I’m so glad I did.
The people that I have been playing with are an expressive and thoughtful bunch and as we have gotten to know each other over the past five months, I feel so lucky to be able to not just call them people I improvise with but I can also call them my friends.
In 2017, I made some major life changes, moved to Austria, got married, started learning German and for the first time ever, I found a work-life-balance.
Over the past year, the confidence that I thought was all gone slowly came back. The anxiety started to melt away as I stopped putting so much pressure on myself. That sense of needing everything to be perfect will kill you if you let it.
Part of that letting go of perfectionism is letting go of the judgmental voice within all of us. When I was able stop letting that voice control me, I noticed that my playful side began to come back. I started to be able to joke around again. It was in the small moments, like having breakfast with my wife, and with time, I felt the urge to improvise again.
At the recommendation of a friend, I connected with a team called The Pennyless Players which is based out of The University Of Graz. Of course I had my reservations about getting involved with improv but I decided to dive back into it and I’m so glad I did.
The people that I have been playing with are an expressive and thoughtful bunch and as we have gotten to know each other over the past five months, I feel so lucky to be able to not just call them people I improvise with but I can also call them my friends.
Just last week I had my very first show with them and the energy was wild. People spilled out into the hallway and it felt so good to be back at it.
There was even a dog at the show!
There is something both thrilling and terrifying about improv and maybe that is what interests me so much about it. That being said, this time around, I set some new expectations for myself and above all, I have one rule: Improv should be about fun.
Not only do I want to have fun but I want the people around me to have fun, too. I want to them to have the time of their life when they are in a scene with me because I know that they are trying to do the exact same thing with me. I want to connect with them and unleash their potential as they unleash mine.
Improvising and making things up on a stage should be a celebration, not something to be feared and judged. Improvisation is about letting go of expectations and getting in touch with your inner Picasso by connecting with people that haven't forgotten how to play. When we get on that stage, we are artists. We are painting a picture together that will only be seen once and that is beautiful.
All photos by Nicolas Galani
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