Improv Prompts: Explore Your Style

Improvisation is the act of creating without having a plan. It is what we have to do every day in conversations, in solving problems that life gives us, and many more situations that arise out of our control. Learning how to not only think on your feet, but enjoy it and be relaxed about it is a valuable life skill. So join me in exercising your improv skills: Go give yourself the gift of some yummy improv time. If you want to upload your moves, you have a chance to win a FREE month of membership here at AerialDancing.com. Either way, my goal out of this is to encourage you to play more! Read more in this blog.

The hardest part about improv (and why I suspect many people aren’t going to want to share their videos public this round) is that you have to set aside the ego. We all want the perfect polished piece, but what every dancer has to face is that there is a process to letting go so that you can pick up the tension again by choice. If improvisation feels weird or awkward to you, then it might just be the very thing you need! You’ve been working with too much structure. Put on the music and let the words inspire you. Let the beat guide you. Let the rhythm of the song be your flow.

In this blog, I wanted to talk a little more about possible prompts. These are good for you to use for yourself or if you are a teacher, for your students. In the video below, my prompt was to pick one wrap and explore all the ways I could move in, around and through that one wrap. I had to spice up the video a little to make it worth watching, but yeah…(You may notice the background from the aerial yoga videos. I made this back in 2011 when I was working on that curriculum.)

Other prompts to energize your improvisation time include:

– The add on game. This is best with a partner. One person starts by picking a move on the aerial apparatus. The next person adds on to the movement, modifying it, adding, subtracting, whatever they feel lead to do. (The goal is to try something that may seem unconventional). The first person goes again, repeating everything from the beginning and then adding on. Etc.

– Transitions. Pick two moves and find your way between them. How will you exit one and get to other? Can you start entering the second move even before fully exiting the first? What’s the most illogical pathway between the two? Try that path and see where it leads you.

– Try the other side. Pick a sequence that you know well on your dominant side of the body. Try the sequence on your goofy side. While going through the sequence, if there’s something that you feel lead to explore, chase those rabbits trails! This one has lead me down some awesome discovery paths.

– Work with characters. Give yourself a big ego. I’m talking over the top, “I rule the world”, “I’m a super-hero” ego. Try it on for size as you run through something you are familiar with. Other characters may include someone who is:

late for work (hurry!).
nervous (give yourself a tick).
shy (this one is easier for beginners who might really be shy–they get to exaggerate it and it helps them get into the caricature mood).
being really lazy and taking their darn sweet time with everything.
What other characters do you like working with? Feel free to share in the comments below!

– Work with verbs/adverbs. Here’s a few to try on for size. Make it fun for your students by having them pull one out of a hat and off they go. You could even make it into a game of charades by having people guess what their word was.

beam
claw
cringe
crawl
careen
circle
collapse
droop
dart
emerge
expand
exhale
explode
fidget
frown
fumble
fling
gaze
giggle
hover
hobble
hum
hurry
jab
kick
lunge
lean
loudly
melt
meander
pace
pause
proudly
punch
question
quietly
recoil
rave
relax
retreat
run
sail
scowl
shrink
spin
stand
shake
shiver
shyly
softly
sob
swim
shuffle
shudder
sway
slice
scatter
snuggle
slither
startle
surrender
sigh
struggle
stretch
swagger
squat
sing
swing
tip-toe
teeter
thrust
tip-over
turn
tackle
tilt
unfold
vent
worry
weep
wander
wave
wiggle
wrestle
walk
whisper
wring (out a rag)
yawn
yell
yank
zap
zip
zigzag

Alright, now go experiment! And if you have the means to video, we’d love to see what you come up with.

Word of Warning: While improvising, never attempt moves that are outside of your range of knowledge and/or expertise. Stick to moves that you know and explore within your limits. Be safe and happy flying!

Improv Prompts: Explore Your Style

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