Moor Together is an Improvisation enterprise based in Dartmoor, Devon, UK, offering drama improvisation to all who are interested.
All you need is curiosity!
Come whatever your mood or disposition.
No drama streak necessary!
Feel energised, connected, ALIVE!
Meet people, gain confidence
Try new things, widen your scope
What is improvisation?
When we turn up with no plans and no ideas, and instead get our inspiration from each other and whatever turns up… this is improvisation!
Improvisation is the skill of being present, connected and responsive to whatever we receive at every moment. Which I would argue is the ultimate life skill – and the recipe for a fulfilling life.
The state of improvising allows us to build something collectively that is realer than real, and yet often also surreal and enchanting and ridiculous and touching and funny – all without trying!
Improvisation mostly involves getting out of our own way and diving into the flow, which is an exhilarating and freeing experience.
The imagination is unhindered unconscious material and inspiration. And so to open the door to this in realtime is to experience a ride in the vast continuum of human potential.
How does it work?
Improvisation is about using games to keep the mind occupied on a task in order that the imagination can roam freely.
This is what happens when the anxious mind interferes:
We want to do well, we don’t want to offend anyone, or look like an idiot.
So we hold on to our thinking – planning ahead and playing it safe.
We hide behind politeness or words or ideas. We emotionally detach from others and respond to them with indifference or opposition.
When we can allow ourselves to be the real, feeling people we are; to listen, to be impacted, and to react and discover on the spot…
The result is transformational. It also makes for great drama, and is utterly joyful.
Here is a beautiful quote by the late Martin Boedicker:
From the Twilight of Genius of the Improv Player
In the practice of improvisation, one often finds the idea of a state of sleepwalking unconsciousness in which the improviser creates. In a miraculous way, improvisation arises out of the moment. Improvisation is now and only now, a work of a twinkling.
Set against this are the many improv lessons, with specific exercises, structures, and repetition. After the improvisation, the teacher's question: How was it for you? Classical teaching in the form of learning, practicing, and reflection.
How can one unite these two modes, which seem in opposition?
Improvisation lives in the muscle memory through study. Everything that has been learned and practiced flows into the moment. The appearance of effortlessness is the result of a hard-earned practice, like the ballet dancer who appears to magically float.
This is how improvisation becomes experience. It's not just about a certain moment; it's about developing intuition. The right mix of learning, practicing, and playing in the moment lays the ground for fresh experiences of improvisation.
The long-time improv player knows this, and that is what makes his life so colorful.
Edited by the wonderful Taj Baker