Changes in how I handle "off-topic" journals
- Thread starter mullaney
- Start date
(I originally wrote this for a journal, but as I reread it I decided I was going to post it here instead)
I’m amazed at how much this ‘civil war’ as someone referred to it as is beginning to affect me. I didn’t think it would too much to be honest, I thought I’d just carry on writing as normal. I mean, I will just carry on writing as normal unless I’m asked to do otherwise, but at the moment I’m doing so with a high degree of self consciousness and a lack of belief in whether I should be. What I hope to see is that this all passes, that people I like and admire stick around, improvers or not, and that if we lose some of the chaff that has accumulated, then all to the good.
I hope it settles down.
I, like many people, could declare an interest in improv. Miami ex, before she focussed on acting, did a lot of it, here in the UK. Short form admittedly, but nevertheless, she told me a lot about it, we talked about techniques, we talked about leading people where you wanted them to go, and we talked about the people. It sparked an interest for me. Yes, I was too led here by Ali’s journal, but it was what the sit was about that led me to stay reading, and eventually start an off topic journal.
Believe me or don’t, but she worked with a lot of the people that went on to form the original, British (although I didn’t need to add that ‘British’ as that was the original anyway) ‘Whose Line Is it Anyway?’ performers. She is still in touch to this day with John Sessions, Tony Slattery, Steven Frost (who’s advice to her before her first ever show in front of any audience was ‘drink two Gin & Tonics first, then you can achieve anything’ – advice that she manfully lives out even to this day). She worked with Caroline Quentin (who does the worst Margaret Thatcher impression ever, by all accounts), she worked with Hugh Lawrie and Dawn French, who were on the radio version of the show but never transferred to TV with it.
I haven’t mentioned any of this before because it was never relevant to my journal, and is a world apart from the US based, long form improv mainly discussed here. I read improv journals and the improv threads, I’ve learnt a lot, I don’t know enough to contribute and any questions I may have had have been asked already and, mainly openly and readily, answered.
And no, I have no interest in performing, I don’t have the nerve or courage to do so. I don’t have the talent or skill to be a professional footballer either, but that doesn’t mean I am not interested.
So should I still be here, or shouldn’t I? I have no idea. But as I said, unless asked not to be, I think I’ll stay.
Sorry.
I’m amazed at how much this ‘civil war’ as someone referred to it as is beginning to affect me. I didn’t think it would too much to be honest, I thought I’d just carry on writing as normal. I mean, I will just carry on writing as normal unless I’m asked to do otherwise, but at the moment I’m doing so with a high degree of self consciousness and a lack of belief in whether I should be. What I hope to see is that this all passes, that people I like and admire stick around, improvers or not, and that if we lose some of the chaff that has accumulated, then all to the good.
I hope it settles down.
I, like many people, could declare an interest in improv. Miami ex, before she focussed on acting, did a lot of it, here in the UK. Short form admittedly, but nevertheless, she told me a lot about it, we talked about techniques, we talked about leading people where you wanted them to go, and we talked about the people. It sparked an interest for me. Yes, I was too led here by Ali’s journal, but it was what the sit was about that led me to stay reading, and eventually start an off topic journal.
Believe me or don’t, but she worked with a lot of the people that went on to form the original, British (although I didn’t need to add that ‘British’ as that was the original anyway) ‘Whose Line Is it Anyway?’ performers. She is still in touch to this day with John Sessions, Tony Slattery, Steven Frost (who’s advice to her before her first ever show in front of any audience was ‘drink two Gin & Tonics first, then you can achieve anything’ – advice that she manfully lives out even to this day). She worked with Caroline Quentin (who does the worst Margaret Thatcher impression ever, by all accounts), she worked with Hugh Lawrie and Dawn French, who were on the radio version of the show but never transferred to TV with it.
I haven’t mentioned any of this before because it was never relevant to my journal, and is a world apart from the US based, long form improv mainly discussed here. I read improv journals and the improv threads, I’ve learnt a lot, I don’t know enough to contribute and any questions I may have had have been asked already and, mainly openly and readily, answered.
And no, I have no interest in performing, I don’t have the nerve or courage to do so. I don’t have the talent or skill to be a professional footballer either, but that doesn’t mean I am not interested.
So should I still be here, or shouldn’t I? I have no idea. But as I said, unless asked not to be, I think I’ll stay.
Sorry.