Improvising Power w/ Tavish Forsyth

ABOUT THE WORKSHOPS: 

This is a two-part workshop series. It's ok to sign up for just the first workshop and to sign up for the second, you need to take the first.

Workshop 1: Power in Story

In this workshop we will explore our relationships to power within improv scenes and our day-to-day experiences. We will seek to understand where “whiteness” lives in improvisation, how to support Black liberation, and how to honor Black and multi-racial spaces. Participants will be offered functional definitions for power and privilege, exercises to illuminate the power that surrounds us, and given space to reflect on the nuances of racial anxiety and solidarity through community dialogue and improv exercises.

Special attention will be placed on biases and symptoms of white supremacy, including defensiveness, internalized superiority, and stereotypes. Using non-violent communication, adaptive listening, and a values-based approach to change, we will imagine what a more inclusive and pro-Black improv community might look like, feel like, and be like.

Workshop 2: Power in Comedy

Comedy can be used as a weapon—to oppress or to liberate. In this workshop, we will explore the ways that unchecked comedy can perpetuate anti-blackness and white supremacy culture, while discovering how you can use your comedy to challenge white supremacy, support Black liberation, and dismantle systemic oppression. This course will offer participants strategies for punching up and how to differentiate problematic humor from socially conscious humor—all while illuminating the cultural contexts of American comedy. Through examining privilege and power, we will craft comedic moments that critique an unjust status quo.

ADDITIONAL WORKSHOP INFO:

The trauma-informed pedagogy for this training is collaged from and inspired by Keisha Zollar’s Social Justice Improv, Augusto Boal’s Forum Theater, and Keith Johnstone’s Impro, in addition to the activism and healing work of Randall Leonard and Shawna Murray-Brown of The Therapy that Liberates Collective, and innumerable hours of peer dialogue, introspection, and personal research conducted by Tavish Forsyth, Artistic Director of Bird City Improv.

This training will address material that may be triggering. As such, we will begin with mindfulness exercises, harm prevention practices, and compassionate dialogue. Please know that all student boundaries will be honored and participants are welcome to simply observe if they ever feel severe discomfort, distress, or simply prefer to watch. For a full list of the anti-oppressive practices and values that we intend to hold in the space visit: www.birdcityimprov.com/anti-oppression. 

WHEN:

October 15

• Workshop 1: Power of Story, 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
• Workshop 2: Power in Comedy, 1:00 p.m.-3:30 p.m.

ABOUT THE TEACHER:
Tavish Forsyth (he/they) is the director of Bird City Improv and a practitioner of theater for social change. He is a queer artist and educator with Celtic roots. He was born on Penacook Land in Lowell, Massachusetts under a Virgo sun and moon with Pisces rising. Since 2011 he has lived in Baltimore, which is the ancestral land of the Piscataway people, where he became the founder of Bird City Improv, a teaching artist with the Maryland Center for Creative Classrooms, and a faculty member at Johns Hopkins University. Tavish is an experienced artist with two degrees in theatre. He is versed in multiple styles of improvisation, embodied practice, and comedic theory. Centering healing, queerness, and connection in his work, Tavish empowers individuals to listen, adapt, and respond. His hope is to co-create in ways that are joyful, patient, and honest.

Tavish's workshop is part of the Black Improv History: A Weekend of Learning which is funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council. Part of the workshop will have video and sound recordings for the purpose of the grant and future B.A.P. legacy work.

No one is turned away for lack of funds, please contact blackimprovhistory@gmail.com to apply for pay-what-you-can registration.