Other ways of Blocking

• Not agreeing.• Not accepting your own ideas.

Remember to:Remain consistent and accept new ideas.Accept an idea in a full and complete manner.

Blocking by Disagreeing

Betty: I have some shrimp for you like you asked.

Bill: I wanted salmon.Betty: (not blocking) Oh yes, salmon, and with it

your favorite wine.Bill: I don’t like wine.Betty: (Trying her best) In that case, this fine

glass of ice water.Bill: I am not thirsty.

Why doesn’t Disagreeing Work?

• All of the action is generated by one person.• The other person kills the idea.• Being picky and selective with what you

choose to accept in improvisation kills the scene.

REMEMBER TO ACCEPT EVERYTHING

Example of Blocking by not accepting your own ideas

Mike: We should build a fire.Sarah: (Accepting) OK, let’s do it.Mike: Actually, I’m warm enough.

Mike offered a new idea; Sarah accepted it, and then Mike blocked his own idea by stating an opposite view. If you create an idea, accept the new idea’s existence.

Accept Ideas in a full and complete manner

Consider this half acceptance:

Mary: You appear to be moving your arms like a bird flaps its wings.

Will: I’m just limbering up. I get sore after I work out.

What two ideas did Mary introduce? What did Will accept?

There were many ways for Will to accept both ideas: A bird in disguise on a mission to kidnap human

beings Will is in love with birds and wants to be one Will is a former airplane pilot who lost his plane and

now wants to fly himself Will is in training to be Batman’s sidekick, Robin.

Fear of leaving comfort zone

All possibilities forced Will to enter the world of the unknown. Instead of leaping forward and accepting the whole idea, he opted to only accept half of Mary’s idea of arm movements.

Blocking ideas is often funny

• Many comedians use blocking for their comedic style. Criticizing or ‘shooting down’ is used frequently in sketch comedy and sitcoms. Performers in plays have scripts, so the action is planned to go somewhere after the rejection. In improvisation, there is no safety net of a script; blockin gin scenes causes long, awkward responses.

Blocking slows down a scene

Failure to accept a new idea may create entertainment for the moment, but it slows down and complicates the scene, negatively affecting it in the long run.

Blocking stops things from happening. Making things happen is what improv is all about, so players should accept everything.

Summary

• Accept Everything.• Blocking ideas kills the scene.• Accept you own ideas.• Do not use the word ‘No’.• Accept the idea in a full and complete manner.

THINGS ARE THEN GUARANTEED TO HAPPEN.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQFKtI6gn9Y&feature=player_detailpage