I filled out a fun questionnaire for an upcoming show I’m involved in, and this was the last question on the list. A Del Close award? (Yes that would be a HUGE honor but that wasn't it) I didn’t think very long about it before an answer came to me. My only dream is that I can still be performing when I am so old that I need a walker to get around. I had the honor of meeting and taking a workshop with Charna Halpern during the Vancouver Improv Festival this year. She warned us improvisers to stop going to super loud concerts and to protect our ears. She wears hearing aids and said that she can’t really listen like she needs to when performing on stage. She rarely does shows nowadays because of it. In a weird way, in her saying this I felt my mortality for the first time in my life. Not my life passing by, but my improv mortality rather.
I had another improviser (Aaron Merke) ask me if I could get in shape to do some crazy physical improv and I laughed and laughed. I’m not athletic and to say I’m too tall and awkward is an understatement. Now I know we are not professional athletes training for a marathon but I realize that if I do plan on performing I need to take care of myself. That or die young from a drug overdose. (Seems to happen way too much to some very talented performers) If you use the analogy of a flame; I definitely want to burn strong for a long time. Not flare up and burn out super fast. I’m sure you other improvisers out there will agree sometimes it’s hard to look after ourselves when we are doing a ton of shows. Especially if you are like me and work a full time day job on top of running a theatre. This kind of inspires me to start working some physical stuff into our warm ups……WOW what a great idea. I have thought for years that if you could get fit from performing improv I’d be the Incredible Hulk of the improv stage. LOL. Unfortunately this isn’t the case. We often eat crap food much too late and have a beer now and then (or 12). So that’s something I am going to start working towards because I NEVER miss a warm up. Incorporating simple work out routines into the warm up could definitely help. I promise no shake weights.
I’m only 31 and I am already starting to notice changes with how my body performs. I know that adjustments will have to be made as I continue to age. I will adapt and change and grow I’m sure. I also look forward to some of the challenges that are sure to come as my body decides what I can and can not do anymore. This is a bit scary because something I say all the time is “Let your body do the improvising.” What does the future hold for me? How will I perform when my body can’t? Will people pay to see an old man sitting in a chair on stage for an hour? I’m not sure. Asking myself these questions makes me think to the image of a Buddhist Monk riding a donkey backwards. We must always be moving forward, present in the moment and paying respect to the journey we have taken. (Thank you for telling me about that image Randy Dixon)
I truly love directing and know that I will be a bitter old man scaring new improvisers until they close the casket door on me, but it is performing that keeps me alive. I joke all the time that I will out live all the Vegans and Vegetarians because all the preservatives in the food I eat preserve me. I joke that I’ll out live em all, and to be honest I plan to. The theatre that is killing me is also keeping me alive. There is a balance created that can not be broken. It’s this balance that will allow me to live FOREVER! Well maybe not but I love the romance of it. I guess I better start taking care of myself now so there isn’t any reason I can’t do this for 100 years.
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Funny you say this. These thoughts smacked me in the face after this summer. At iO I learned in one class to "take care of yourself first" in terms of your physical self and choice as a character- I believe said originally by Mick Napier. I realized this does not just apply to an improv scene but to life.
ReplyDeleteI realized that health is not to be taken for granted and that we should maintain it for as long as we can. I realized that if I don't I might not be able to do what I love when I'm older - could get sick or be too out of shape to really move.
I have made big changes starting this past September, and the difference is huge. The first thing I do every day is have a healthy breakfast and exercise. I have also realized, that if I take care of myself first in life, it translates well into everything else that I do - how I feel as a person, the way I interact with others, the way I perform.
It is not an easy thing to do, but it is easy to motivate yourself when you realize how important it is. I mean REALLY realize it.
I have also noticed that my motivation and the way I eat and exercise day to day is a current reflection on how I'm doing that day.
We should start an improvisers physical training group... ha ha or a running group or something! We could free-associate and run at the same time!
PS: Noah Gregoropolous from iO gave the advice to take care of your body for the simple reason that people have to look at you on stage.
I guess the thing i would really like to do is start to incorporate stuff into what we already do. I won't go for a run but i surely can start to use improv as an exercise tool to help shrink the keg around my waist.
ReplyDeleteWe do have to take care of ourselves first. I remember you saying that and really having it make sense. My problem has always been finding time and commitment to anything other then improv. So combining the 2 makes perfect sense.
I guess we'll see...
*Improv baseball team -- I suggested that at lunch yesterday. I'm half-joking, but it could be fun, right? Taking us out of our element and seeing how well we do - with teamwork, ability to find the joy in the game, staying positive, playing the game, making snap decisions on impulse... oh hey, sports things but also improv things...
ReplyDeleteUnexpected Productions in Seattle have a slow pitch team and i just heard they are playing football against Jet City Improv this Nov. Also during the Seattle Festival they usually play a slow pitch game with the peeps from around the world. Sure would have been fun but we saw a Mariner's game instead. Perhaps this is something we should all give a try. It will would be great to just get out there and play. That or bowling?!?!
ReplyDeleteNot to worry Graham, you will perform improv as long as you want and as long as you have a passion for it. I'm near 50 and I am stepping way out of my comfort zone to try improv. If you keep your passion you will be performing long into your later years. I hope the same will happen to me if I prove to have some talent and continue to learn.
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