Impro: Improvisation and the Theatre 1st Edition

by Keith Johnstone (Author)

78 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0878301171

ISBN-10: 0878301178

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Editorial Reviews

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""Impro ought to be required reading not only for theatre people generally but also for teachers, educators, and students of all kinds and persuassions. Readers of this book are not going to agree with everything in it; but if they are not challenged by it, if they do not ultimately succumb to its wisdom and whimsicality, they are in a very sad state indeed . . . .Johnstone seeks to liberate the imagination, to cultivate in the adult the creative power of the child . . . .Deserves to be widely read and tested in the classroom and rehearsal hall . . .Full of excellent good sense, actual observations and inspired assetions."
-"CHOICE: Books for College Libraries

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Product details

Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (January 7, 1987)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0878301178
ISBN-13: 978-0878301171
Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.5 x 8.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (78 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,873 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #13 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Performing Arts > Theater
- #17 in Books > Arts & Photography > Performing Arts > Theater > Acting & Auditioning
- #3046 in Books > Humor & Entertainment

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Customer Reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars

5 star		78%
4 star		14%
3 star		5%
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Top Customer Reviews

I cannot recommend this book enough

ByBudsteron January 6, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This may be one of the most important books about spontaneity training for all purposes including of course all of the arts, therapy, and business applications. Johnstone's personal journey in discovering what keeps us trapped in the constant repetitive thinking which ultimately leads to fewer choices in life often a feeling of being trapped, has shown joyful unpredictable ways of breaking out of that trap and reassuming the spontaneous creative genius which is our heritage as human beings. We use so little of our capacity to think outside the box as we are ruled by the subconscious repetitive nay saying imposed on us from birth. Johnstone has shown us so many ways of liberating our minds and reestablishing a sense of freedom to think as we will. As someone who has written about this sort of thing and been a professional in theater, song writing, and as a therapist helping people to break out of their defeating cycles and working at times specifically with creative people who have lost their muse, I cannot recommend this book enough. It is a breakthrough in so many areas. GET IT!!

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Eye-opening book, goes beyond theater

Bymbrockon May 2, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Keith Johnstone has a very interesting worldview. This book is clearly aimed at people who want to either learn about improvisational theater, or even moreso people who want to teach it. There are a few explicit exercises, but the text is mostly prose about the nature of improvisation, and the way that relates to human psychology.

As an example of an interesting psychological insight, Johnstone discusses trance states. He strongly recommends using theatrical masks for improvisation, and his method for using them—though he references many earlier teachers with the same idea—involves using mirrors and skillful encouragement in order to take the student out of their normative self and get them to really experience being something else. But we are in fact always going in and out of trance states, he explains: it's impossible to always be "in control," and attempting that just leads to frustration and anxiety.

Another basic point is that imagination is a kind of natural state of the human mind. At one point he says explicitly that imagination is the "true self," which is if nothing else a fascinating hypothesis. His take on school education recalls other writers, especially John Holt, whom he cites several times: basically, modern education tends to discourage spontaneity and imagination.

Finally, his structural way of seeing theater, comedy, and human interaction in general, involves "status games," which makes a lot of sense. For example, he loves Beckett's way of playing with master-servant dynamics, one-upping, etc. He describes a method of teaching theater that involves getting people to understand their own habits of "status posturing," in order to assume other positions and act naturally. He says that long spontaneous improvisation sessions can grow out of just a simple configuration of status, and gives examples of such games.

Johnstone's outlook reminds me of life's strange beauty. Life is indeed much like improvisational theater, and it's great to learn from the insights of someone whose life work involves taking this seriously.

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5 stars for the content - Lost a star because of the poor Kindle Edition

ByGuilherme D. Fariaon February 19, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

First, the bad: for almost $30, I would expect a perfect Kindle edition. Not the case: a lot of weird spelling mistakes (probably made by the automatic conversion to the digital format). There's no excuse for a kindle ebook to cost that, much less a flawed version. Buy the physical version or borrow from someone / library.

Now, the content... It's a manifesto about education; it's a valuable lesson about human interaction and their status transactions; it's a book about how the 'stiff' conscious mind can harm our unconscious and our 'other selves'. Oh, and it's also a book about theather and improvisation.

I'm not involved in theather at all, I bought it because I like to study social dynamics and was not disappointed. You can 'look inside' the book here on Amazon - I skipped the 'guest' introduction and went straight to the author's words. If you like it, I recommend you read the whole book.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

The Status and Spontaneity sections are amazing!

Yowza, this book reads very much like a textbook. Be prepared for lots of intense concentration. It took me quite awhile to finish reading, which probably stems from my lifetime...Read more

Published 22 days ago by Jaime

Five Stars

This is THE book.

Published 3 months ago by Amazon Customer

Five Stars

good

Published 6 months ago by Jacob Fenwick

Five Stars

Great

Published 10 months ago by Amazon Customer

Five Stars

The best!

Published 10 months ago by Francisco Ochoa Madrigal

Insightful, revelatory.

This is a must for anyone who is interested in acting or improv beyond silly games. Not that there's anything wrong with silly games.Read more

Published 11 months ago by J.B.

Something for Everyone

Impro: Improvisation And The Theatre is a surprisingly helpful book by Keith Johnston. After a brief introduction and some autobiographical information, it dives right in to...Read more

Published 1 year ago by Allegra DiNetta

Amazing

So good if you have any interest in improv and life. You must read this wonderful book, ladies and gents.

Published 1 year ago by Matt Rudnitsky

Check this book out

This is an interesting read, especially for theatre majors and theatre teachers. But a lot of the material reminds me of Spolin's Improvisation book.Read more

Published 1 year ago by reachmabry

This is a good intro book to improv from a philosopher and discoverer ...

This is a good intro book to improv from a philosopher and discoverer of improv. The learning is in the doing, but reading about it sparked a few new understandings.

Published 1 year ago by Hilarita Hogan

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