Improv is fun, collaborative and gives your confidence a boost. Deana Luchia enjoys a watching brief...
I’m at The Archway Theatre, standing in a circle with a group of strangers. One by one, the group introduce themselves and then admit to something they’ve done wrong this week – something that makes them feel ashamed or embarrassed. Each admission, including mine, is met with a cheer and a huge round of applause.
Despite initial appearances, however, this is not some emotional group therapy session. This is Dingbats: an ‘improv’ – improvisational theatre – class, founded by local coach Ed Pithie. The unusual warm-up exercise, he says, is a way to “get people out of their head”.
“We want them to think ‘I can be wrong, stupid and silly in this group and that’s absolutely fine’,” he explains.
Improv is all about collaboration, with performers working together to create characters, scenes or songs, all without a script, often from ideas thrown out by an audience. Being funny helps, but quick wits are essential. Which is why I decide to sit down and watch rather than join in. I like to think I’m funny, but it takes me at least three weeks to come up with a rejoinder. Could someone like me ever be good at improv?
“I’ve never met anyone who couldn’t do it,” says Ed. “Everyone has an imagination. The only thing that gets in the way is fear, and the exercises we do in the sessions chisel away at these anxieties. As soon as you aren’t afraid of the contribution you’re going to make, or the thing you’re going to say, you generally come out with something good.”
Where to improv near you
- Woking Improv Theatre at The Maybury Centre in Woking: wokingimprovtheatre.co.uk
- Blanche Improv in Earls Court: blancheimprov.com
- The Man In The Moon, various locations in Guildford (acting classes with an improv element): themaninthemoon.co.uk
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Dingbats in Horley
Ed started Dingbats around ten years ago. He’d enjoyed improv at university and decided to set up his own group back at home after graduating. Now there are weekly classes (which get booked up quickly), monthly jams (with an audience) and courses for anyone wanting to delve deeply into the art form.
Our coach tonight is Dave Heron, who’s been with Dingbats for five years. He’s quick to praise each performer, first for mind-mapping exercises and then for a series of games, in which each person becomes something you’d find on a face, then in an arcade and finally in a children’s playground. Imagination abounds – players become an eyebrow, a discarded piece of chewing gum, a roundabout – as does warmth.
This is a kind, supportive group keen to ensure that everyone is included and has fun.
Dingbats classes are normally mixed, with beginners rubbing alongside more seasoned performers.
Tonight, however, everyone has been coming for a while. They enthusiastically share with me how much it means to them.
It’s not just about having fun, but it has helped with the loneliness that comes from working at home, with ADHD and with anxiety and stress. Nearly everyone mentions how it bolsters confidence.
“People come along and at first they’re terrified even to speak in front of the class,” says Ed. “But two hours later they’re on stage, making people laugh and feeling good about themselves. Then they come back the next week, which is really rewarding for me as a coach, as well as for them.”
The classes are different every week, covering topics such as character building, stagecraft, mime, facial expression and teamwork, and are attended by all ages (tonight the range is 20s-70s) and equal numbers of men and women.
“Age and gender have little bearing on improv,” says Ed. “You can be anyone the audience tells you to be. You’re just a blank canvas as a performer, which can be really fun.”
In-person classes and monthly jams aside, Ed does sessions via Zoom and runs corporate team building exercises.
“I’m hired to break down the barriers of fear, or fear of judgement, that people have in the workplace. Afterwards there’s a real sense of camaraderie.”
Back in Horley it’s time to work on larger scenes. I laugh loudly as everyone has a go at being a commuter at a bus stop, a parent at a children’s football match and a soldier about to receive a medal. They’re all imaginative, talented and incredibly fast, but I’m most struck by how rare it is to see performers this ready to let others shine.
I have to leave early, but I hear the group’s raucous laughter and generous applause as I make for the station. I’m not surprised they all keep coming back for more.
Classes held every Wednesday, 8-10pm, The Archway Theatre, Horley; £10 (classes in Crawley too). Online workshops are usually the first Tuesday of the month; £12. For more info or to book a class (essential): dingbatsimprov.com
