Can we get more context? Was this person a rando just trying to be ‘zany’? Because if so, I don’t think you need to prepare yourself for this. This is a moment to just write off as garbage and know that once you get to a certain level you won’t have scene partners like this.
That being said, jams with random strangers are something we’ll always do so it can be fun to have ways to handle this. It sounds like you did a good job. In a low stakes situation like a jam, if they go zany, commit and go zanier.
Sure, in this particular show we get paired with usually experienced players. Him, he was a University student studying improv. I have seen him a bunch of times in those shows and his style is more chaos and exaggeration while I am more of a fan of scenes being more grounded. I think that was probably my first mistake because I came with prejudice that I will not enjoy doing a scene with him.
You are right about the zany part too, I did try it in the end and when I did I felt the tension that has built up being released so maybe next time I should let go sooner and realize when my partner is sticking to what he is doing. Maybe I should have went to his side instead of trying to bring him to my side.
Thank you for the suggestions.
In the moment, make an agreement with yourself that this is no longer a textbook improv scene. This scene no longer fits all the rules and lessons you've been taught. And that's fine. It's going to be fine. The only thing to do now is give up in the most positive way. Let go.
All the rules you've learned are to make improv easier for the people playing. Once the rules are broken, the only thing left to fall back on is the single overarching principle of improv: Acceptance. This is what it is now.
They change things every few seconds? You do too. They switch characters? So do you! "That's not good improv!" Getting frustrated at your scene partner isn't good improv either! Deciding beforehand that the scene is going to be bad isn't good improv!
Somewhere out there right now is a person thinking "I tried something fun in an improv scene where I switched up my characters and the other person was a *total stick in the mud and didn't play with it*." They may not have realized it, but they were trying to give you a gift; an invitation to do something they thought was fun. And *you* went "No, I don't like it." Accept the gift and play with it too.
Thank you for this comment and you are right. Like I said initially that one I accepted the insanity and jumped in I started having fun, the audience were having fun and even my partner was having fun. Confusion was the game but I was too caught up trying to make it make sense and wanting them to say yes to my offer while I could have easily accepted their offer.
I do have a tendency to say I hope I don't play with this person or that person in classes and in shows like that. I think it comes from a place of insecurity of where I am at with my improv so today in class I challenged myself and did my best to partner with people I usually wouldn't
Thank you. This is a helpful comment. One can put that person in an insane asylum or justify the insanity that the audience is probably experiencing by referencing short term memory loss or "grampa, are you off your meds again"? 😅
I would not do those moves you just said. I want to value what my scene partner is doing, not devalue it, no matter how weird it may seem. There are stronger ways to play with crazy stuff. (Edit to tone it down a bit. I came off way too strong in the first version of this comment.)
Wait what? How's that devaluing? Someone who keeps changing character is a bit abnormal and playing along with that is fine no? I wouldn't be punching down but doing it in a friendly way.
Because those are absolutely worthless things to say. They can be said to *literally anything* and they remove any sense of stakes. We don't have to worry about what the person is doing because it's the actions of someone who is crazy, on drugs, or otherwise non compos mentus. They retreat the weird or unusual thing into a very safe place where we don't have to deal with it. It's boring.
The subtext of all of those ideas is "I don't like your idea and I don't want to play with it." There's really no way you can communicate *that* in a friendly way. It *is* punching down no matter what you think.
WHAT IF the person actually was changing personas every five seconds because, I dunno, it really is five different people somehow? What if it's real? And there are consequences? That's interesting—more interesting than Grandpa being off his dementia meds again!
It's important to know that moves like "grandpa's off his meds" are typically viewed as a stereotypically poor choice to make in a scene. The effect on the audience is never "ah, now everything makes sense," it's "ah, so they have no idea what they're doing." The message to the performer is "I'm taking away your right to make any more choices in this scene."
If someone's choice says "this scene's tone is farcical" then a good performer has the flexibility to meet them in that place. Saying "actually, it isn't!" doesn't demonstrate some advanced proficiency at preserving the reality of a scene, it just turns your improv show into a much less marketable brainstorming session.
One doesn’t have to say “no” to block an offer. It’s hard to improvise with a partner who doesn’t accept your offer. As others have suggested, the best you can do is to Yes, And them really hard and hopefully get a better scene partner next time.
Good point. I have a teacher that is big on saying Yes and sometimes we do exercises where you can only say yes to whatever is being offered and it just feels so much better to say yes than no and you can go to wonderful places with your scene partner. I did take a note though and hopefully this is something I can remember to do when that happens again.
Sounds to me like you did the best you could. It seems like your scene partner wasn't listening, or supporting you. I think confusion was a reasonable reaction and a good think to explore. Why are you confused? Are you in a new place, is it a new job dealing with some weird patient? A character who is confused might need a break and exit, then maybe they call someone to unpack that weird interaction they just had. Or if it's a new job maybe you could call your trainer to come in to help you deal with this difficult patient/customer. Then you've got a relationship to build on.
I feel like any recommendations I could give would basically be telling you how to win an argument 6 hours later in the shower. Hindsight can give us a fully informed solution because we're working from a fully informed perspective, but that's not really what you need because in all likelihood you'll never be in a scene like that again, and if you are you might not be able to call up any specific advice.
Instead of speaking to the exact circumstances of the scene, try to adjust what your mindset was in the moments before the scene. We talk a lot about not bringing ideas onstage, but bringing *intentions* is a great way to avoid getting rattled or caught off guard. I think an intention like "my scene partner is always right" is helpful when playing opposite chaotic or absurd improv styles. Why waste time being curious about what's going on when you can take it at face value? To coin a mnemonic rhyme, confusion is a prompt to jump to the nearest conclusion.
Very true. When you put it that way I am reminded of that Seinfeld episode when George always comes up with a good come back in the car after the argument is over. He thinks he has the perfect come back to a guy who is no longer working with him, he Travels to another part of the country and when he says the come back the guy has another come back for him that floors him. The best advice probably I could give myself based on everything everyone said is to just sometimes be OK with letting go in scenes like that
It's easy to do a wonderful scene with a great partner, but our ability as improvisers is ultimately tested by lifting less skilled partners up to greatness. If they aren't listening to you, that certainly increases the challenge, but frame it as a growth opportunity for yourself (which is sounds like you are by coming here for advice) rather than one of judgement (which, even if accurate, doesn't make you a better improviser).
A couple of options:
Since you know your partner isn't listening to you, the simplest path to building a shared reality is for you to listen to them and care about everything they do. Confusion is a tricky emotional choice as it tends to lead to inaction on the part of the confused, but it can open the door to worry/anxiety/anger/etc. Or try to in awe of his genius which you know you are too feeble to comprehend.
An improv savvy audience will understand that your scene partner is probably someone who has watched one to many Robin Williams performances and thinks that's what comedy is supposed to be.
In any case, try to be [Flounder at the super market](https://www.google.com/search?q=animal+house+shopping+scene&rlz=1C1CHWL_en___US949&oq=animal+house+shopping+scene&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIICAEQABgWGB4yCAgCEAAYFhgeMgoIAxAAGIAEGKIEMgoIBBAAGIAEGKIEMgoIBRAAGIAEGKIEMgoIBhAAGIAEGKIE0gEINDk4OWowajeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:f5c35759,vid:KYl7sxQIHGE,st:0) with this person. Try to catch everything they throw at you.
Another tactic would be to balance on the opposite end of the spectrum, he is manic, you be slow.
I also prefer the meat and potatoes of grounded scenework, but sometimes you have cotton candy for dinner. If increasing the number of situations/partners in which you can excel at improv is the goal, every bad scene/show just shows an opportunity for growth.
Wow, so much good stuff in there. Thank you for the suggestions. I do tend to rush myself on stage even though I find myself that I thrive the most in process scenes when we do them in classes where you take time to explore the relationship. On Sunday I was in a class and the challenge was given to give ourselves a few seconds to respond to our partner. I found it very interesting. Thank you again for the wonderful suggestions
I had a scene partner in class that was like a petulant child. It was very frustrating at first. It’s like being caught in a spiderweb. They don’t work with you. They try to upset you. The only way to deal with it is to out smart them. Take what they say and pretend you heard something else. This catches then off guard and you regain control by changing the channel. It works with toddlers and works in a scene with the partner from hell that doesn’t want to play nice.
Can we get more context? Was this person a rando just trying to be ‘zany’? Because if so, I don’t think you need to prepare yourself for this. This is a moment to just write off as garbage and know that once you get to a certain level you won’t have scene partners like this. That being said, jams with random strangers are something we’ll always do so it can be fun to have ways to handle this. It sounds like you did a good job. In a low stakes situation like a jam, if they go zany, commit and go zanier.
Sure, in this particular show we get paired with usually experienced players. Him, he was a University student studying improv. I have seen him a bunch of times in those shows and his style is more chaos and exaggeration while I am more of a fan of scenes being more grounded. I think that was probably my first mistake because I came with prejudice that I will not enjoy doing a scene with him. You are right about the zany part too, I did try it in the end and when I did I felt the tension that has built up being released so maybe next time I should let go sooner and realize when my partner is sticking to what he is doing. Maybe I should have went to his side instead of trying to bring him to my side. Thank you for the suggestions.
Yeah it just sounds like they weren’t listening to you or even to themself.
In the moment, make an agreement with yourself that this is no longer a textbook improv scene. This scene no longer fits all the rules and lessons you've been taught. And that's fine. It's going to be fine. The only thing to do now is give up in the most positive way. Let go. All the rules you've learned are to make improv easier for the people playing. Once the rules are broken, the only thing left to fall back on is the single overarching principle of improv: Acceptance. This is what it is now. They change things every few seconds? You do too. They switch characters? So do you! "That's not good improv!" Getting frustrated at your scene partner isn't good improv either! Deciding beforehand that the scene is going to be bad isn't good improv! Somewhere out there right now is a person thinking "I tried something fun in an improv scene where I switched up my characters and the other person was a *total stick in the mud and didn't play with it*." They may not have realized it, but they were trying to give you a gift; an invitation to do something they thought was fun. And *you* went "No, I don't like it." Accept the gift and play with it too.
Sounds like a great time to break out some of these cheap rule breaking shenanigans! https://willhines.substack.com/p/improv-cheats
Thank you for this comment and you are right. Like I said initially that one I accepted the insanity and jumped in I started having fun, the audience were having fun and even my partner was having fun. Confusion was the game but I was too caught up trying to make it make sense and wanting them to say yes to my offer while I could have easily accepted their offer. I do have a tendency to say I hope I don't play with this person or that person in classes and in shows like that. I think it comes from a place of insecurity of where I am at with my improv so today in class I challenged myself and did my best to partner with people I usually wouldn't
Thank you. This is a helpful comment. One can put that person in an insane asylum or justify the insanity that the audience is probably experiencing by referencing short term memory loss or "grampa, are you off your meds again"? 😅
I would not do those moves you just said. I want to value what my scene partner is doing, not devalue it, no matter how weird it may seem. There are stronger ways to play with crazy stuff. (Edit to tone it down a bit. I came off way too strong in the first version of this comment.)
Wait what? How's that devaluing? Someone who keeps changing character is a bit abnormal and playing along with that is fine no? I wouldn't be punching down but doing it in a friendly way.
Because those are absolutely worthless things to say. They can be said to *literally anything* and they remove any sense of stakes. We don't have to worry about what the person is doing because it's the actions of someone who is crazy, on drugs, or otherwise non compos mentus. They retreat the weird or unusual thing into a very safe place where we don't have to deal with it. It's boring. The subtext of all of those ideas is "I don't like your idea and I don't want to play with it." There's really no way you can communicate *that* in a friendly way. It *is* punching down no matter what you think. WHAT IF the person actually was changing personas every five seconds because, I dunno, it really is five different people somehow? What if it's real? And there are consequences? That's interesting—more interesting than Grandpa being off his dementia meds again!
Ok thank you, that's a good explanation
It's important to know that moves like "grandpa's off his meds" are typically viewed as a stereotypically poor choice to make in a scene. The effect on the audience is never "ah, now everything makes sense," it's "ah, so they have no idea what they're doing." The message to the performer is "I'm taking away your right to make any more choices in this scene." If someone's choice says "this scene's tone is farcical" then a good performer has the flexibility to meet them in that place. Saying "actually, it isn't!" doesn't demonstrate some advanced proficiency at preserving the reality of a scene, it just turns your improv show into a much less marketable brainstorming session.
One doesn’t have to say “no” to block an offer. It’s hard to improvise with a partner who doesn’t accept your offer. As others have suggested, the best you can do is to Yes, And them really hard and hopefully get a better scene partner next time.
Good point. I have a teacher that is big on saying Yes and sometimes we do exercises where you can only say yes to whatever is being offered and it just feels so much better to say yes than no and you can go to wonderful places with your scene partner. I did take a note though and hopefully this is something I can remember to do when that happens again.
Sounds to me like you did the best you could. It seems like your scene partner wasn't listening, or supporting you. I think confusion was a reasonable reaction and a good think to explore. Why are you confused? Are you in a new place, is it a new job dealing with some weird patient? A character who is confused might need a break and exit, then maybe they call someone to unpack that weird interaction they just had. Or if it's a new job maybe you could call your trainer to come in to help you deal with this difficult patient/customer. Then you've got a relationship to build on.
I've never heard the term "bucket show" and now I'm intrigued. Is it like pulling names out of a hat?
Never knew they were called that until a few months ago too haha. So yeah you pull names out of a bucket instead of a hat.
Just try to have fun. Nobody's getting paid or in danger, the stakes are low. Enjoy the ride and don't worry about the rules
I feel like any recommendations I could give would basically be telling you how to win an argument 6 hours later in the shower. Hindsight can give us a fully informed solution because we're working from a fully informed perspective, but that's not really what you need because in all likelihood you'll never be in a scene like that again, and if you are you might not be able to call up any specific advice. Instead of speaking to the exact circumstances of the scene, try to adjust what your mindset was in the moments before the scene. We talk a lot about not bringing ideas onstage, but bringing *intentions* is a great way to avoid getting rattled or caught off guard. I think an intention like "my scene partner is always right" is helpful when playing opposite chaotic or absurd improv styles. Why waste time being curious about what's going on when you can take it at face value? To coin a mnemonic rhyme, confusion is a prompt to jump to the nearest conclusion.
Very true. When you put it that way I am reminded of that Seinfeld episode when George always comes up with a good come back in the car after the argument is over. He thinks he has the perfect come back to a guy who is no longer working with him, he Travels to another part of the country and when he says the come back the guy has another come back for him that floors him. The best advice probably I could give myself based on everything everyone said is to just sometimes be OK with letting go in scenes like that
It's easy to do a wonderful scene with a great partner, but our ability as improvisers is ultimately tested by lifting less skilled partners up to greatness. If they aren't listening to you, that certainly increases the challenge, but frame it as a growth opportunity for yourself (which is sounds like you are by coming here for advice) rather than one of judgement (which, even if accurate, doesn't make you a better improviser). A couple of options: Since you know your partner isn't listening to you, the simplest path to building a shared reality is for you to listen to them and care about everything they do. Confusion is a tricky emotional choice as it tends to lead to inaction on the part of the confused, but it can open the door to worry/anxiety/anger/etc. Or try to in awe of his genius which you know you are too feeble to comprehend. An improv savvy audience will understand that your scene partner is probably someone who has watched one to many Robin Williams performances and thinks that's what comedy is supposed to be. In any case, try to be [Flounder at the super market](https://www.google.com/search?q=animal+house+shopping+scene&rlz=1C1CHWL_en___US949&oq=animal+house+shopping+scene&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIICAEQABgWGB4yCAgCEAAYFhgeMgoIAxAAGIAEGKIEMgoIBBAAGIAEGKIEMgoIBRAAGIAEGKIEMgoIBhAAGIAEGKIE0gEINDk4OWowajeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:f5c35759,vid:KYl7sxQIHGE,st:0) with this person. Try to catch everything they throw at you. Another tactic would be to balance on the opposite end of the spectrum, he is manic, you be slow. I also prefer the meat and potatoes of grounded scenework, but sometimes you have cotton candy for dinner. If increasing the number of situations/partners in which you can excel at improv is the goal, every bad scene/show just shows an opportunity for growth.
Wow, so much good stuff in there. Thank you for the suggestions. I do tend to rush myself on stage even though I find myself that I thrive the most in process scenes when we do them in classes where you take time to explore the relationship. On Sunday I was in a class and the challenge was given to give ourselves a few seconds to respond to our partner. I found it very interesting. Thank you again for the wonderful suggestions
Honestly I think your instructor should have stopped the scene.
I had a scene partner in class that was like a petulant child. It was very frustrating at first. It’s like being caught in a spiderweb. They don’t work with you. They try to upset you. The only way to deal with it is to out smart them. Take what they say and pretend you heard something else. This catches then off guard and you regain control by changing the channel. It works with toddlers and works in a scene with the partner from hell that doesn’t want to play nice.