<html><head></head><body bgcolor="#FFFFFF"><div>Harold,</div><div><br></div><div>Lovely to see my Teacher and old friend name checked. I first worked with Keith around 1985. He changed my life. I'd spent many years creating rather good very well prepared shows. But when we performed them people liked them but I realised I already knew what was going to happen in them!</div><div><br></div><div>I did an intensive workshop with Keith and it turned my world upside down. I went from taking a year and a half creating one show to creating a whole new show every night for years. Not all were great but some were ones I have remembered for the rest of my life. One of the big learnings was that if we did a bad show you could guarantee an amazing one would be along soon... partly because we gave up the idea of being "good". Of course we didn't know when but it was sure to be predictable in how it would surprise us by how good it was. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Creativity didn't happen by the clock but it did have its own seasons. "When it rains.. remember that the sun comes out" as Arny Mindell says. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "></span></div><div><br></div><div>Keith Johnstone has spent years opening space in theatres, workshops, and in people's minds and working with him was where I first experienced the opening of space as a practice. </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);"><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);">love </span></div><div><div><br></div><div>Phelim </div><div><br></div><div>________________________________</div><div><br></div>I generally pick up<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "> emails only at the beginning and end of the working day. I am currently aiming to respond the following day. If it is urgent please call me on 07956 187298. </span><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);">_____________________________________</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);"><br></span></div><div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "><a href="http://www.improbable.co.uk">www.improbable.co.uk</a></span></div><div>@openspacer</div><div><br></div></div></div></div></div><div><br>On 7 Apr 2012, at 01:56, Harold Shinsato <<a href="mailto:harold@shinsato.com">harold@shinsato.com</a>> wrote:<br><br></div><div></div><blockquote type="cite"><div>
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Thanks for so many wonderful responses and food for thought. It was
very cool to see it inspired a video from Alex Iglecia. Clearly a
lot of years went into getting to that level of understanding the
mind/body elements that guide his recommendations about how to
prepare to be surprised.<br>
<br>
I especially enjoying the poster tip. It seems a very simple way to
get people in the right mood. I was wondering if there were any good
artwork for such a poster that I could do for my next Open Space -
but Thomas' upside down seems elegantly simple.<br>
<br>
Improv came up several times. I love improv! I think it's
interesting that one of the leading improv gurus, Keith Johnstone,
wrote a book called "Don't Be Prepared". He's more famous for
"Impro", but I cracked open the book that seems to eschew
preparation and came upon the beginning of a chapter titled "BEING
THERE":<br>
<br>
<blockquote>My first students seemed quite normal until I asked them
to improvise; many of them would then become 'over-strong',
banging violently on tables, or patting their partner's shoulders
with flat hands that did not yield to the contours that they
touched.<br>
<br>
If I walked into a scene when they were 'acting' they often failed
to observe me, and their muscles felt as hard as wood. A player
who tried to join a scene in progress was always likely to be
ignored. [...]<br>
<br>
I began interrupting improvisors in mid-flight to ask them what
they were doing (I'd never acted so I need to know). Always they'd
use the past or the future tense. "I just came in the door,"
they'd say, or: "I'm about to sit on the sofa"; no one ever said:
"I'm wondering where to sit!"<br>
<br>
I realized that my own mind moved into the past or the future
whenever I felt insecure (Should I do this? Should I have done
that?), and that when I seemed to be 'listening' to someone I
might actually be thinking up something clever to say. My students
were showing an extreme version of this behaviour.<br>
</blockquote>
<br>
What's interesting to me is that it does not seem normal to be able
to improvise well. It appears to take a lot of practice being
flexible, limber - keeping the body and mind stretched. Keith
Johnstone's book is filled with preparations to make it possible to
not be prepared. Just one more quote from his book - under
"Paradoxical Teaching":<br>
<br>
<blockquote>... if you want students to master the art of
'not-blocking' ideas, ask them to 'block' ideas (because then
they'll recognize blocking when it occurs inadvertently); and if
you want them to act well, let them have fun acting badly (this
helps them shed a lot of fear).<br>
</blockquote>
<br>
Harold<br>
<br>
<br>
On 4/6/12 3:27 PM, Thomas Herrmann wrote:
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D" lang="EN-US">One way I do, that may be of assistance, is
that I write those words at the entrence – and SURPRISED I
write upside down – clear message </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Wingdings;color:#1F497D" lang="EN-US">J</span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D" lang="EN-US">Cheers<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D" lang="EN-US">Thomas Herrmann<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D" lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowtext">Från:</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowtext">
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org">oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org</a>
[<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org">mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org</a>] <b>För
</b>Harold Shinsato<br>
<b>Skickat:</b> den 4 april 2012 18:39<br>
<b>Till:</b> <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:oslist@openspacetech.org">oslist@openspacetech.org</a><br>
<b>Ämne:</b> [OSList] How to prepare to be surprised?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt">Searching
through the archives there were many many postings about "be
prepared to be surprised". But "How to be prepared to be
surprised" returned 0.<br>
<br>
Any tips on how to prepare? It came up as a question today for
me in conversation with someone - and I can't believe I've
never thought about it before. How do you prepare to be
surprised? Any thoughts, tips?<br>
<br>
Thanks!<br>
Harold<o:p></o:p></p>
<br>
</div>
</blockquote>
<br>
</div></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><div><span>_______________________________________________</span><br><span>OSList mailing list</span><br><span>To post send emails to <a href="mailto:OSList@lists.openspacetech.org">OSList@lists.openspacetech.org</a></span><br><span>To unsubscribe send an email to <a href="mailto:OSList-leave@lists.openspacetech.org">OSList-leave@lists.openspacetech.org</a></span><br><span>To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:</span><br><span><a href="http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org">http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org</a></span><br></div></blockquote></body></html>