downrightupright:

I’ve been struggling with a concept in improv lately. Recently, it occurred to me that maybe improv is inherently meta. We begin each show by saying, essentially, “Hey we’re about to put on a show for you. But it won’t be written. It will be all made up on the spot. It will be hilarious not just for its content, but for the sheer audacity for making up an entire comedy act in realtime.” There absolutely is that aspect of impressing the audience, like a magician or athlete would. “Will they actually pull it off?”

That aspect is both inherent to the artform of improv and also it’s what distinguishes it from other artforms. It is written and acted simultaneously. That fact is what makes it special.

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This is a very insightful post. Lack of commitment is the only thing that I find totally intolerable in improv.