Improvising using a script as stimulus
If you already have a script to work around, improvisation is an excellent way of exploring the ideas and themes surrounding it. Characters might be further developed and new work added to complement or extend what already exists.
Read this extract from An Inspector Calls by J B Priestley. Set in 1912 the play is about an After the Victorian era, King Edward Vll reigned from 1901-1910, a brief period at the beginning of the 20th century before the First World War. family who are visited by a character who appears to be a police inspector. During the discussion that follows, it becomes clear that everyone in the family have contributed to the death of a young girl who took her own life after her treatment at their hands.
Think about what the characters say and see if you can identify any issues or ideas for an improvisation of the text.
Inspector
Because what happened to her then may have determined what happened to her afterwards, and what happened to her afterwards may have driven her to suicide. A chain of events.Birling
Oh well â put like that, thereâs something in what you say. Still I canât accept any responsibility. If we were all responsible for everything that happened to everybody weâd had anything to do with, it would be very awkward, wouldnât it?You can explore this chain of events in your improvisation, using the above extract as inspiration. Before her death, the girl was sacked from two jobs. What happened to her when she lost her job? You could show her trying to get work elsewhere and failing. Or you could show her begging family and friends for money, and the landlord coming round demanding the rent that she is unable to pay.
You could also think of an improvised work around the theme of responsibility. A school boy dies in a knife fight. Who is really responsible? Just the killer or society itself?
