Why not both
Today I saw through a dirty trick by Impro Neuf’s resident robot, Petter Holstad Wright.
Petter: It’s good to adopt a child.
Harald: Good for us, or good for the child?
Petter: *not missing a beat* BOTH!
When Petter is confronted with a choice, he takes both of them! And it dawns to me he does that all the time. Petter’s sharp computer/brain gives him the edge to be able to patch two things together, but every improviser can afford to do more of this.
Why? First, to steady your boat. Improvisers often have an internal idea of where they are, what’s going on, what lines are expected as a response. Sometimes the two options are the one given by your partner and the one that has formed in your head (that weren’t conveyed)
A: Let’s go down to the beach-
B: ..to dig archeological sites?
A: Yes, BOTH surfing & digging!
Now you are told by Yes-And to scrap your idea completely, which is noble and egoless. And probably-almost-correct (shout out to machine learning scientists out there). Of course you must surrender control! But it’s also haaaard. Years of experience will give you the egoless mentality + mental gymnastics to throw away your idea, but in the beginning this is a jarring experience. Doing a BOTH will keep you somewhat grounded to your reality while accepting your partner. You are yes-anding your partner while not forgetting to yes-and to yourself.
Second, why CAN’T you do it forever? Unless they contradicting each other, taking BOTH can lead to interesting consequences: the combination is likely a path which has never been travelled. Incorporating elements always create a ton of fun and it is the basis for many short form games out there like Every Other Line, Film Quotes, Pillars, reading audience’s text messages, and more.
This is the basis of Boy Good, Impro Neuf’s most bizarre meta-improv duo. Boy Good always notoriously go on very ridiculous places yet it works. Much has been made about their craziness, but the key of Boy Good isn’t extreme craziness. It’s extreme yessing. To BOTH real and weird ideas, often at the same time. The extreme yessing allows the crazy part of Boy Good to go completely nutso.
Contrast this to another of my favorite, Ella Galt. In her well-structured (and bestselling — do take it!) workshop What Comes Next, Ella would boil everything down to a very simple strong choice. Fight or flee. Take either one, doesn’t matter which one, as long as with commitment. The way Ella’s instructive method makes the choice super clear, helps us from the analysis paralysis that plagues indecisive improv.
Quite often when we get the option “Is adoption good for us or good for the kid?”, we harp on why NOT to take the other choice, the way we take choices in life with one goal: to minimize risk of loss. The way we spread our bets, have insurance or hedge the stock market. Instead, Ella walks into a casino and bets her entire life savings on one number. And welcome the result, whether it is a win or a loss. Take one choice and follow through whatever happens, leading to extremely strong dramatic movements — demonstrated in her beautiful work with Dan Seyfried, the Origami Swan.
Ultimately, improv is about making decisions. Taking BOTH is a choice of its own (with a slant towards the comedic). Take one or the other, doesn’t matter which one, is a strong choice (both dramatic or comedic). It is always good to choose one. But keep your mind open, because… Why Not Both?