Absolut Improv

Writer, humorist and corporate trainer Jodi Cohen is at it again. She’s teaching improv workshops this winter and spring and lemme tell you they are special. A couple workshops ago Jodi asked friends to stop by the last class to serve as audience for her students’ to practice their technique. A half-dozen of us showed up like groupies outside a concert tour bus. I was so excited to see Jodi in action that it never occurred to me she would be busy instructing rather than performing that evening. No matter. Watching her teach was almost as much fun.

Her nurturing calm and pragmatic, reasonable approach to teaching stood out. The folks taking this class weren’t budding Saturday Night Live comedians (though did you know Jodi worked with Chris Farley during his Madison days?); they were ordinary people—some shy, some funny, some dramatic—who were taking the class to fulfill a variety of personal needs and goals. Watching the moment take over their nervousness and inhibitions was inspiring. They had all come there simply to learn new skills and in the process they had become an improv troupe for one night. My little girl was so entertained she didn’t want to leave. Of course, she was smitten with Jodi, having recently seen her fabulous one-woman holiday show “Oy to the World.”

When Jodi sent a call out for classes this spring, I actually considered taking one myself. Coming out of my shell has been a lifelong project and I think Jodi’s class would help shed more of my turtle-like habits. Alas, I had conflicts (both real and internal, I’m sure)… but maybe you don’t?

Says Jodi, “The improv for writers is really quite wonderful. I’m teaching it differently than I have before. You don’t have to leave your chair. At all. It’s using some of the basic improv principles in writing practice. Lots of room for one’s imagination to blossom.”

Hm. Maybe I should reconsider.

Jodi also tells me she’s excited about her improv for adults class. “It’s a great group,” she says. “One man crawled around on the floor in pretty much every scene. I’ve labeled him ‘the crawler’ in my subtext.

“We did this one exercise where we give each other imaginary presents. The person ‘receiving’ the present gets to say what it is. One young man in the class who is tres adorable said, for some reason people kept giving me dead animals. We were hysterical, as it was always his own imagination at work.”

If you're a writer in need of an imagination kick-start (and let's be honest, who isn't?), get thee to Jodi's class! There's one this weekend called "Eight Ways to Create a Character." Take it in the afternoon, then dazzle your partner with more than one romantic you...