I’m currently enrolled for theater at Inver Hills Community College and I deliver pizzas so that fits with trying to be an aspiring actor!

Doing improv has played a vital role in my personal healing. I manage a sober house for recovering addicts and alcoholics. Improv has been a great tool to help me continue honing in on my professional and personal development goals. I have grown beyond limiting lifestyle choices from my past that really drained me mentally, physically and spiritually. I am learning to be okay with myself where I’m at. I feel supported in my classes at BNW SU. The laughter I experience in every class is very therapeutic and I have a lot of fun. The instructors are really good at building with the exercises and incorporating life lessons into the playfulness of the experience. I always leave class with a huge weight off my shoulders. It’s a really healthy outlet to learn how to live in the moment and let life happen. This is more than just a class for me. Improv has helped me in many ways, including my work and relationships. I can even apply it to everyday interactions walking down the street conversing with strangers.

Without improv, I spend a lot of time inside my head, thinking about something I may have said or done in the past. Or I’m worrying about something in the future that probably won’t even happen. Now, it’s easier for me to have a conversation with somebody without automatically shutting things down with my own thoughts or perceptions. I’m learning to stay open and focus more on active listening to find moments to learn. Improv is also about embracing embarrassment in life. I’ve learned that my ego can really be a door-closer for me at times. I am learning to play with others and it helps me get to know people better. I am smiling more and feel like I am more approachable and personable. I’m not as consumed by ego, fear and worry when meeting new people. When I make a mistake, I do what I can to learn from it and just keep it rolling.

At BNW SU, you get to work with a group of people in class with similar goals and focuses. You know that somebody is there to support you and you’re going to move forward together. Life is not always perfect but when you feel supported by community, it sure makes moments in our lives a lot easier. We all struggle with some of the same issues in life. We get to come together and do this fun thing and get to know each other better. Beautiful things happen. People get in groups and do performances, build new friendships and can even discover new job opportunities. It’s good to go out and get to know new people–it’s a vital aspect of life.

When it comes to trying improv for the first time, I would say just do it and let life happen. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to take classes at the BNW SU and I’m very appreciate of BNW and what it’s taught me. It’s a process that I look forward to continuing by taking more classes. Doing improv reminds me of being a child again. And I figure, what’s greater than that?