Follow the Leader

At improv class this week, we did a few exercises that involved taking another person’s lead (mirroring another person’s actions, and trying to answer questions at the same time as the other person). I didn’t really learn something new so much as reinforce my conviction that I don’t really like being the leader. Improv kind of scares me, because you have to go out and put on a show that isn’t scripted, there’s nothing to guide you, you can’t rehearse, learn your lines and prepare, you just have to go with the flow and hope for the best. In all of the activities, I found I was much happier and more comfortable when I was imitating someone else, than when they were imitating me. This is kind of odd, since I have been writing for as long as I can remember. I have no problem creating stories out of nothing, writing dialogue and moving through scenes and stories, but there is something about doing it live, on a stage, that completely terrifies me.

In other news, I still haven’t decided on the comedic or dramatic monologues I want to learn, and my scene partner and I are having trouble finding a scene for the Tom Todoroff intensive. I have read two of the three books though, and have been reading a lot of monologues and scenes to try and find good ones. I believe a large part of it is that I have been taking on a lot of extra shifts at work, since another employee quit. It is good for me financially, and will allow me to take more classes or spend more time in Los Angeles, but at the same time, it leaves me exhausted and even when I have time off, I don’t really feel like doing research, which is not a good thing. I had a potential audition on Tuesday, but I had to work instead of going.

For this week coming up, I hope to finally find a scene for the Tom Todoroff intensive, find 2 monologues, audition for Angels & Humans, and read The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. I figure it’s okay to do bad one week as long as I work hard the next one to make up for it!