Creative team building through improvisation
Want to:
- Break down the barriers of unfamiliarity and guardedness through humor and laughter?
- Learn skills to develop team work and collaborative creativity?
- Create new relationships based on shared experience?
Why Improvisation
Everyone improvises every day. No one wakes up with a script for the day on his or her bedside table. In order to improvise better in life we can learn from the principles and philosophies of improvised theatre. First, one needs to trust one’s own ideas and get over the fears that stifle one’s creativity. Similar to improvised theatre we also don’t live life alone. We must interact and cooperate with others on a daily basis. Someone who is creative accepts his own ideas, but it is just as important to accept others’ ideas. Improvisers commit themselves to the “yes and” principle. This principle implies that you not only accept your fellow actors’ ideas, but also build on them, resulting in a collaborative creation where all parties are able to see the fruits of their creative risk. For an improviser to accept and build on an idea he needs to listen and constantly be aware of his fellow actors. Therefore improvised theatre also helps people to communicate more effectively.
How can one learn and exercise one’s improvisational skill? By exercising the skills through playing theatre games. Play is a more effective means of unlocking learning potential, in adults and children, than formal learning, as it serves to rehearse and exercise skills in a safer environment.
Our improv workshops are comprised from a variety of theatre games and will give individuals the opportunity to learn and exercise improvisational skills in a non-threatening environment. The workshop is very effective for team building as members build trust and support and learn how to collaborate and be innovative together.
What will participants get out of the experience3?
- Listening and awareness
- Being trusting and supportive
- Accepting mistakes and taking risks
- Being adaptable and open to diverse ideas
- Giving or taking control when needed
- Having a shared vision
- Turning creative ideas into innovative action
[ribbon toplink=”true”]Participants say:[/ribbon]
“Playing Mantis follows a different approach, as they use Theatre sports (i.e. they use games similar to those that you would see if you watched “Whose line is it anyway” on television) and acting skills to teach the participants new skills and principals. It was also interesting to see that they were able to get all 200 learners involved.” – Riaan Rudman, Lecturer, Stellenbosch University of Stellenbosch
The practical exercises and the interaction created between group members during the sessions made it an interesting team building experience. I would recommend it to any team/organization that needs to uplift their team culture.” – Heinrich Minnaar British American Tobacco Management Trainee
[ribbon toplink=”true”]Details[/ribbon]
Time: Half day
Group size: 6 – 500
Contact Burgert on 0822559625 or burgert@playingmantis.net for more information.