Go Slow to be Fast: The Joy of Repetition in Improvisation

So I have been in the Philippines for a week plus. What a week it has been! We have done four runs of the workshop: 2 pilots with improvisors and trainers; 1 run with a eco-resort staff in Tagalog and 1 run with a special needs school staff in Tagalog and English. Whew! I feel like I'm in a benevolent greenhouse called the Philippines and everything is ripening quickly. What a joy it is for me to devote myself fully to this labor of love. 

Just like in improv, our Heroic Improvisation team started out slow to speed up later.  Now the Heroic Improvisation workshop development is clicking away at warp speed!  Many repetitions can improve action, when done to serve improvement.

The ability to do 4 repetitions of the workshop -- with trainers, with eco-resort staff and special education staff in a week  -- has helped up to tune-up the workshop delivery.  The workshop is setting participants up to use their imagination to practice disaster response together.

The Sunday, 2/23 workshop was a mixed group of 13 educated folks from Manila, including another trainer and an American relief worker.  Another participant had limited sight.  However, if he didn’t disclose that I would not have noticed.  His awareness in the  room was keen and limited sight did not affect his level of play or interaction with the group.  With our tuned-up workshop, this group was able to play in the workshop at a high-level.  This group played together and very creatively.  I was impressed!

Here is their one-word summary of what they learned: play, communication, fluid, trust, preparation, connection and perspective.

The workshop is exceeding my expectations!  Hooray!