Play
Play is the most effective way of learning, working and enjoying it. It is the way in which children learn. It is their method of organising their worlds into sense making sections. Through play they discover how the world works and what their own place in it is. And while their games are fun and light-hearted, they take it very seriously. Improvisational Theatre utilises the same characteristics of play in a way that makes it accessible and usable for adults. Through this kind of play it is possible to learn how to deal with things that happen in your life that are hard to make sense of – especially if the situation asks you to change how you have done things or understood things until now.
Again improvisation is something we all are able to do in ordinary circumstances. When unforeseen things happen and you have to adjust your plan, you improvise. When someone asks you a question you sort of know the answer to, but not quite, you improvise. When you are cooking and discover that you miss a certain ingredient, you improvise. You use what you have and, maybe more importantly, you use what others have to offer. Honing these skills can greatly help you in dealing with change and uncertainty so that you are less apprehensive and are able to trust you own ability to adjust.
Perhaps even more poignant is that improvisation helps you to remain light-hearted and playful amidst times of stress and confusion. The playful attitude is not the same as being frivolous and superficial, but rather one of great seriousness, but with a certain detachment to the outcome. Think again of the seriousness with which children engage in play. To them it is not at all unimportant and inconsequential. Marrying work and play is the goal of cultivating the sense of play in business. The other four senses of empathy, symphony, design and meaning all are cultivated during the workshops where we create a creative experience for learning. This experience aims to involve all of the multiple intelligences including emotion (empathy), spirit (meaning,), lateral thinking (symphony) and aesthetic judgement (design)
Summary of benefits:
The most important reasons for using story and improvisation for organisational, individual and community transformation relate to the kind of play that is stimulated by these activities. This kind of play
Unlocks hidden potential, opens up all your intelligences and puts you in touch with your instinct and intuition,
Enhances focus and effectiveness and provides a sense of purpose which is absorbing and motivating,
Raises self esteem and self confidence and rekindles your spontaneity,
Inspires individual and group creativity, forms a communal paradigm and lets group knowledge surface,
Provides understanding and insight into fellow players and creates common focus and priorities while allowing for the safe expression of feelings,
Clarifies and simplifies things that are abstract and complicated and produces innovative solutions.
We will teach you this kind of play, help you to reflect on its significance for you and apply the skills you learn to your real life situation.