Training Using Drama: Successful Development Techniques from Theatre and Improvisation The use of training techniques originally developed for theatre and improvization within the workplace has increased enormously and the effectiveness of the approach is finding many enthusiastic followers. Sometimes actors themselves are brought into an organization to act as catalysts within a training/role-play setting, but increasingly, trainers use the techniques themselves. This guide to using development techniques from theatre and improvization shows how anyone can make use of them. Complete with 50 detailed activities, the book shows how to use storytelling, role-plays and coaching to improve creativity, leadership, teamwork and personal development.

Improvisation and Accompaniment for Social Justice How contemporary activists, artists, and academics oppose oppressive structures of power and unjust social relations to create a more decent and democratic future Insubordinate spaces are places of possibility, products of acts of accompaniment and improvisation that deepen capacities for democratic social change. Barbara Tomlinson and George Lipsitz’s Insubordinate Spaces explores the challenges facing people committed to social justice in an era when social institutions have increasingly been reconfigured to conform to the imperatives of a market society. In their book, the authors argue that education, the arts, and activism are key terrains of political and ideological conflict. They explore and analyze exemplary projects responding to current social justice issues and crises, from the Idle No More movement launched by Indigenous people in Canada to the performance art of Chingo Bling, Fandango convenings, the installation art of Ramiro Gomez, and the mass protests proclaiming “Black Lives Matter” in Ferguson, MO. Tomlinson and Lipsitz draw on key concepts from struggles to advance ideas about reciprocal recognition and co-creation as components in the construction of new egalitarian and democratic social relations, practices, and institutions. Insubordinate Spaces: Improvisation and Accompaniment for Social Justice is from the Insubordinate…

The Art of Making Sh!t Up: Using the Principles of Improv to Become an Unstoppable Powerhouse Work together to up your chances of business success The Art of Making Sh!t Up combines the lessons learned from a personal journey with the teachings derived from years of honing valuable skills through performing and presenting to thousands of people to demonstrate how working together has helped others found and grow several multimillion-dollar companies. By focusing on topics that serve as pain points and detailing the tools and techniques of improv, this book helps people and organizations utilize new skill sets to be more productive, more accepting, and more “all in” to create a stronger teammate and team. Remove the fear of failure Recognize when and how to trust your instincts Celebrate and embrace the ideas of others Listen effectively—to both people and your environment Thinking is hard. Listening is easy—and is most often the springboard to huge ideas. Find out how it can work for you with The Art of Making Sh!t Up.

Training to Imagine: Practical Improvisational Theatre Techniques for Trainers and Managers to Enhance Creativity, Teamwork, Leadership, and Learning Creating innovative products and game-changing processes and adapting to new cultures and communication styles have all become imperative for life and work in today’s environment. Today’s business and non-profit leaders, from Fortune 500 companies on down, have discovered the value of improvisational theatre techniques to develop creativity and the collaboration skills they need. Since publication of its seminal first edition, the principles and techniques pioneered in Training to Imagine have been widely adopted by organizations around the world, and have given rise to the field of Applied Improvisation. This new edition builds on the characteristics that made it the most comprehensive and most easy to apply resource for using improv in organizations. As before, this book translates the theories and exercises of improv into language that is familiar to organizational culture, and provides guidelines, case studies and exercises intended for use by individuals for self-development, for small groups, and for facilitation by trainers. This revised edition places more emphasis on the development of leadership, in particular adding activities designed for individuals to develop skills on their own, or outside formal training environments….

Foreword by Omar Argentino Galván Everything in favor is the result of the study, research and implementation of the philosophy of theatrical improvisation (Improv) through 25 years of experience as an actor, director and improviser of its author, Omar Medina. All in favor is also the author’s pretext to make a review and generate a dialogue between various authors of theater theory, literature, directors and emblematic improvisers of the Impro theater discipline (Johnstone, Brook, Brecht, Stanislavski, Meyerhold, Chekhov, De Tavira, Calvino, Close, Juvera, Galván, et al.). Everything in favor is a book about philosophy, theater and also about the way of life that improvisation involves, not only in the theater, but taken into the daily life of any reader.

Improvisation for the Spirit: Live a More Creative, Spontaneous, and Courageous Life Using the Tools of Improv Comedy Wish you could gag your Inner Critic? Feeling blocked creatively? Want to make a big change, but fear taking the leap? Comedy improv requires quick thinking, collaboration, getting out of your own way, and being in the moment without being a perfectionist. Katie Goodman, an internationally touring improv comedian and comedy writer, uses her witty and encouraging style to show you how to acquire the skills of improv comedy and apply them to every aspect of daily life. Along the way Goodman shares hilarious and insightful stories from her experiences onstage, as well as step-by-step exercises from her popular self-discovery workshops and retreats. Packed with creative, original, and, most importantly, fun exercises, Improvisation for the Spirit offers a truly transformational guide for anyone wanting to get more out of life. “A practical, fascinating, and funny guidebook. I’ve already begun applying hints from Improvisation for the Spirit, and I’m hoping that from now on, when people point and laugh at me, it will be for more appropriate reasons. A delightful read, filled with wonderful strategies.” ― Martha Beck, Life Coach Columnist for O,…

An immensely valuable resource book for drama leaders, House of Games is a how-to book for building up drama troupes and keeping them creative. House of Games is sure to take its place alongside the most established drama method texts. Following on from Keith Johnstone’s famous Impro and Augusto Boal’s Games for Actors and Non-Actors, Chris Johnston’s book provides ideas and guidance for drama groups of all kinds.

For 20 years, Piolo Juvera has dedicated himself to the art of theatrical improvisation, which consists of telling, acting and singing stories. Stories and songs that have not been previously written or planned, which are created on the spot based on contributions from the public. In this book he shares how the teachings of “Improv” can be applied to one’s own life, which is the maxim of improvisations. The skills that must be developed to accomplish these stage feats are the same ones that the author chose as his life philosophy and that he now addresses in the book: listening, acceptance, decision, adaptation, speaking loudly and clearly, being in the here-and-now, play seriously, follow fear, fail in new ways, be the protagonist that your story needs, use error to your advantage. Improvisation is not an indecipherable entelechy. It can be an art. But it is also a technique. It has a methodology and rules that anyone can learn. The first and most important of those rules: the YES-AND. I say “YES” to your proposal “AND” I add something to make it ours. Commonly loaded with comedy, theatrical improvisation can also surprise us with stories that move and excite, that inspire…

Improv for Democracy: How to Bridge Differences and Develop the Communication and Leadership Skills Our World Needs While much has been written about what democracies should look like, much less has been said about how to actually train citizens in democratic perspectives and skills. Amid the social and political crises of our time, many programs seeking to bridge differences between citizens draw from the surprising field of improvisational theater. Improv trains people to engage with one another in ways that promote empathy and understanding. Don Waisanen demonstrates how improv-based teaching and training methods can forward the communication, leadership, and civic skills our world urgently needs. Waisanen includes specific exercises and thought experiments that can be used by educators; advocates for civic engagement and civil discourse; practitioners and scholars in communication, leadership, and conflict management; training and development specialists; administrators looking to build new curricula or programming; and professionals seeking to embed productive, sustainable, and socially responsible forms of interaction in and across organizations. Ultimately this book offers a new approach for helping people become more creative, heighten awareness, think faster, build confidence, operate flexibly, improve expression and governance skills, and above all, think and act more democratically.

This guide provides educators, professionals, and parents with an easy-to-follow and comprehensive approach to utilizing improvised theatre as a tool to teach social and communication skills to individuals on the autism spectrum. Opening with the philosophy of the curriculum and the considerations of mental health, play, and environmental factors on individuals with autism, the book then breaks down specific activities, suggests course sequencing, and explains how each activity works and applies to desired outcomes. Packed with dozens of activities and explanations, the book includes all the information necessary to design a full curriculum or create an at-home learning program for parents. By combining the fun and engaging atmosphere of improvisational theatre with the systematic teaching of social skills, professionals and parents can cultivate learning in a way that keeps students engaged while providing long-lasting improvements in social interaction, self-confidence, and communication.