“Imagine The Possibilities…”
How The Improvaneer Method began.
A Stolen Idea…
In early 2018, Rob Snow(Creator of The Improvaneers) was talking with a friend who had done improvisation in the past. She had 2 girls under 4 and 3 more girls on the way(triplets!). He asked what she would want to do if she wasn’t somewhat preoccupied for the foreseeable future. She said it was always her dream to teach improvisation to those with special needs. Rob asked why that was, and she said, “Imagine the possibilities!” It was like a lightning bolt had hit Rob. He got permission to steal her idea and the wheels began to turn immediately.
Training with the best…
Rob knew from studying improvisation at Second City, ImprovOlympic, and The Annoyance Theatre in the late 90s in Chicago, that improvisation teaches so many valuable skills, like problem-solving, quick-thinking, teamwork, listening, as well as building self-confidence and communication skills like voice projection and eye contact.
If these skills could be taught to those with developmental disabilities, their work, social, and lifetime opportunities could expand greatly and with that, perceptions would begin to change too.
The Improvaneers Are Born…
With the help of a local comic/improviser, Rob began teaching monthly classes to anyone with Down syndrome in the Cleveland area. After seeing almost immediate improvement, they thought what it might be like to audition a more dedicated team that would train weekly. Maggie Bisesi was asked to join the team and they auditioned over 20 individuals in April of 2018. Ten were (painstakingly!) picked to become The Improvaneers, the world’s first all Down syndrome improvisation troupe. The local comic eventually left to pursue other projects, but Rob and Maggie forged ahead. The team trained for a year and a half and in July of 2019, they put on “Not Your Average News Team”, a part sketch, part improv show that played to over 600 fans in two sold out shows. From there, the rest of the world started to take notice.
Extra! Extra!…
Before and after the show, The Improvaneers had received a good amount of local press, but what came next was beyond their expectations. Within 2 months of the show, The Improvaneer Method had pieces and features in The Washington Post, Today Show.com, Inside Edition, The List, AOL’s Good People, Yahoo News, Women’s World magazine, NPR, and more. “I think Maggie and I looked at each other and said, ‘well, we should probably come up with an actual handbook on this!’”, Rob said as he discussed those days shortly after the success of the show. So Rob worked with Maggie to hone and put to paper everything they had been teaching for the past two years.
The Proof In The Improv Pudding…
From the very beginning, Rob knew he had a hypothesis that needed proof - if improvisation can build these skills, we can greatly increase social, workplace and lifetime opportunities for those with developmental disabilities. So, they worked with a renown behavioralist out of the Children’s Hospital of Cincinnati, Dr. Anna Esbensen to form an evaluation method to measure the skillsets at the beginning of the program and a year later at the end of the program. The results proved out beyond their expectations. But, they still needed validation from those closest to the performers. Through parent surveys and case studies with employers and others highly involved in the participants lives, they heard story after story of the improvements each Improvaneer had in their lives.
The Improvaneer Method arrives…
After hours and hours of reviewing games they played in improv books, Rob and Maggie narrowed the list to the games most appropriate to build the skills in a way that worked best to the abilities of the participants. The method involves a “scaffolding” approach of taking time to build each level before adding another. It combines the perfect progression of games tailored to specific skillsets, patience, the right personality and directing style, a good amount of energy and a lot of passion. The Improvaneer Method now has 3 levels - Improviser, Improvaneer, and Performer - that each last a year. As the levels advance, a focus is put on performing in front of others and improvising various work and social functions so that the lessons will translate into the real world. The Improvaneer Method can be purchased as a license, workshop, performances, online classes, and one-on-one sessions. As of November of 2020, over 500 individuals each week were being trained in The Improvaneer Method either in person or online.
Global domination is just around the corner…