Interview with Michelle Gilliam from Improv MKE!

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The Improv Actor - Director

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As improvisers we mostly focus on our acting, emotional choices, dialogue, environment work and complementary skills like character work, editing tools, music and choreography. What we sometimes forget while we wear our many hats on stage is that we also have to be the active director of our own improv show. I'm not referring to your actual show director who is observing you from offstage...I'm referring to your role as an Actor-Director.

 Being in the mindset of the Actor-Director means that while onstage you are conscious of the following details: Stage PicturePacingFormAudience Response The first impression an audience has of your show is what they see. It can't be disputed, it's science. Light travels faster than sound. Before a word is even uttered, how you look on stage is what's important. Even the lack of light means something...if you choose to start a show or scene in darkness, there needs to be a reason for that.
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I am feeling strongly that a key to diversity in Theater and Comedy is to remove the Pay-to-Play model. I am really interested in hearing people's opinions on this.
This is not just in regards to many festivals that charge to apply but also in the practice of setting a minimum education requirement for auditions. Many times that minimum education can set a student back at least 600 dollars within a 6-month period. Being on the Director's side of the table for almost two decades, I understand that we want to set a barrier to ensure that we only see high-quality and qualified candidates but I also feel that we're limiting ourselves to a very specific segment of our population.
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Knowledge

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A good improviser knows stuff. A lot of stuff. They not only need to be book smart but they have to have a brain that is hungry for information and for knowledge. That's the kind of brain that I want to improvise with. I don't care what kind of improvisation you practice, your quest for knowledge should be never-ending. It's this quest that ultimately makes you a better and funnier performer.

Pursuing knowledge trains your brain to not only remember information but to also make connections and find patterns. I don't care where you pursue your knowledge. If your thing is reading Entertainment Weekly and People every week, fine, but just let your brain absorb that information and then share that information with me on stage.
The most immediate effect is that by putting this information in your head, it's immediately becoming part of the hive mind of your ensemble. If I'm lacking information on the latest pop phenomenon, I know that if it's in your head, then it…
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