Improvisation

Improvisation, impromptu performance by an actor or group of actors, which may be an element in actor-training, a phase in the creation of a particular role, or part of a staged production. For much of its history the theatre relied heavily on the actor's ability to improvise on a given theme, as in the comic scenes of the mystery play, in early farces and comedies deriving from folk tradition which gave ample scope for the actor's initiative, and above all in the productions of the commedia dell'arte. The practice continued in melodrama and pantomime and in the music-hall. Stanislavsky recognized the value of improvisation during lengthy rehearsal periods to help an actor explore a character's background and motivation. His ideas were widely adopted, especially by Method actors, and exercises in improvisation aimed at the release of personal inhibitions and the development of physical and vocal skills became a part of all actors' training. Meanwhile, in a reaction against the set text, the influence of Dada and Surrealism was encouraging spontaneous activity and the rejection of the achieved ‘work of art’. This philosophy resulted in the emergence of Collective Creation from which developed happenings and similar environmental events.