marc@rowland@gmail.com
So, the Montreal Gazette misprinted my email address last weekend when they mentioned my improv classes. I love free publicity but its rather useless when the contact information is flawed. I’ve really been enjoying the classes and I always feel like they give me as much food for thought as the students.
Teaching has given me a lot of practice at watching scenes and seeing the moments and offers that could be the “thing” or the point. The stress of performing creates a tunnel vision that stop a person from seeing the possibilities that their offers create. Most players need a lot of practice before they can have that separate section of their mind that’s analyzing things while the rest of their attention is devoted to keeping things moving along. I feel that having a teacher that’s objectively observing the scene and occasionally pointing out these possible pathways gives the students practice at seeing where offers can take them.
Recently, I’ve been very interested in scenes that involve little or no talking because the “thing” or the point of the scene can be so simple and yet so entertaining to watch if the performer shows a lot of emotion and really invested in what s\he’s doing. The key is to find what the character thinks is important and to play with object or concept.
My next improv class is this saturday from 6pm-9pm at MAI, 3680 rue Jeanne-Mance, room 223 and it costs $15. Those interested in the should contact Marc Rowland at marc [dot] rowland [at] gmail [dot] com. It’s really fun!
contact [at] withoutannette.net
