Recent Posts:
Greg SkidmoreThe Only Guru Is the MomentJune 9, 2021 - 9:36 am
Who Turned You on to Comedy?May 27, 2021 - 10:43 am
I Got the Vaccine. And I Feel Sad.May 21, 2021 - 11:42 am
Following Your Passions on the Road to SuccessApril 29, 2021 - 9:27 am
Being More PositiveApril 22, 2021 - 1:26 pm
Do You Want to Build a Snowman?April 15, 2021 - 10:31 pm
5 Biggest Mistakes Improvisers Make OnlineApril 1, 2021 - 2:29 pm
Blockbuster, I Miss YouMarch 25, 2021 - 2:25 pm
I Am Not (That) CreativeMarch 18, 2021 - 11:14 am
What I Like About You: 6 Improvisers I AdmireMarch 10, 2021 - 4:31 pm
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The Only Guru Is the Moment
/0 Comments/in Blog /by Jimmy CarraneMark Larson is the author of the wonderful book Ensemble: An Oral History of Chicago Theater. He recently posted on Facebook an excerpt from a conversation he had with actor John C. Reilly for an interview that he did for The Paul Sills and Viola Spolin Oral History Collection at Northwestern University. Though it speaks […]
Who Turned You on to Comedy?
/0 Comments/in Blog /by Jimmy CarraneI have interviewed a lot of comedians and improvisers over the years, and I always find it interesting who turned them on to their first comedy album, or movie or TV show. For me, it was my older brother, Bobby. I was a grade behind him in school, so when I was in seventh grade, he […]
I Got the Vaccine. And I Feel Sad.
/5 Comments/in Blog /by Jimmy CarraneYesterday, I got my second dose of the vaccine. In two weeks, I should be free. And I feel sad about it. This is not what I expected. I thought I would be excited, like my friends who got their vaccines months ago. Yes, I will not have to worry every time I go out the door that I […]
Following Your Passions on the Road to Success
/2 Comments/in Blog /by Jimmy CarraneIf you’re a reader of my blog, you know that I often recommend that you stop looking to the gatekeepers to give them validation, but instead work on developing your own shows and your own work so you do the work that inspires you. So I was incredibly proud and impressed when I found out […]
Being More Positive
/1 Comment/in Blog /by Jimmy CarraneFor years I thought to get good at improv you, had to get piled on by constructive criticism — what some people call “negative notes.” I was that student who would go up to the teacher after class and beg them to “be tough on me.” I was tortured that way. I even took this philosophy into […]
Do You Want to Build a Snowman?
/2 Comments/in Blog /by Jimmy CarraneSince the start of the pandemic, I haven’t gotten to perform in front of a live audience. That changed last week. No, it wasn’t in a theater. It was for a small group of preschoolers and their parents in our backyard. Betsy, who is almost five years old, became obsessed with inviting some of her friends over to put […]