Photo: Nasson Community Center
By Jordyn Martin, Sanford High School Sophomore
The Improv for Teens Student Showcase, an exclusive comedy event, returns next Friday, May 22, from 7 to 9 pm at Nasson Little Theater in Springvale. The show will feature newcomers as well as veterans in the Teen Improv program highlighting the skills that these students have learned and strengthened through their workshops with improv specialist Tyler Patterson. They will also be performing alongside seacoast professional improv team Stranger Than Fiction.
Patterson has been teaching his style of improv for about 14 years and has worked with all ages. He spent a decade as a professional improviser in Chicago and wrote a fictionalized book on his experience, “You’re Silly,” having seen the wonders improv had done for him, especially in tough times. He began teaching improv classes during April and May at Nasson Community Center in 2024, and he’s continued to share his knowledge and tips with local youth.
“It’s one of the few art forms that’s truly inclusive, autism friendly, and endless in what we can learn,” said Patterson. “The best thing I can do is pass on these skills to the next generation. It didn’t exist when I was a teen, but now I have the ability to bring it to communities and bridge that gap.”
Patterson explained that improv dates back to 1940s Chicago, where educator Viola Spolin started introducing unscripted theater to people who didn’t have access to regular theater education. “She discovered that it didn’t matter what language they spoke, their intelligence, barriers to learning, or anything like that because when people played together, they understood each other. It’s that simple,” he said. Many of the Theater Games that Spolin developed are still used today, giving students a chance to think on their feet as situations are thrown at them. Some of the games, like “Yes, and …” became pillars of improv at places like Second City, created by Spolin’s son Paul.
Improv is educational, Patterson notes. “One simple game that lasts maybe three minutes total is fun, absolutely, but behind the scenes a student is actively honing real-world and highly transferable skills like active listening, collaboration, thoughtful response, emotional intelligence, creativity, and wit among a thousand more.”
In addition, Patterson explains why learning and practicing improv skills is so crucial to youth. “We spend so much of our time staring into screens that we forget how to have basic conversations, how to riff, how to answer hard questions, how to think critically, how to tackle challenges with excitement instead of fear, or to trust ourselves that we are capable of amazing things.”
Tickets are $10 at the door and $11.20 when purchased online at https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/nassonevents/improv-for-teens-showcase-959401691. Make sure to get your tickets early, though; the past two years have sold out.
The post Teen Improv Show Coming to Nasson Little Theater appeared first on Sanford Springvale News.
