Impro: Status

Finally getting into Impro by Keith Johnstone. Goldmine!

"the man who dances might be superior to myself-word-bound and unable to dance" doing is more alive, more real, then thinking and analyzing

"every inflection and movement implies a status, and that no action is due to chance, or really "'motiveless'"

low status: twitching, unnecessary movements, intruder in the space, apologetic for intruding, easily embarrased, show lot's of throat, jerky movement, toes pointed inwards, touch face and head a lot, nervous

high status: still, smooth movements, still head when talking, owns the space expects to be catered/listened to, less effort you expend the higher you are. slow your movements down, go up in status

audience's enjoy a contrast between the interpersonal status being played, and the social status (a tramp lording it over a duchess)

See-saw, you can change your status by adding to your side "that's my favorite book" or by taking away from their's "I'm surprised you can keep up with it", or the reverse for trying to lower your status

"when we tell people nice things about ourselves this is usually a little like kicking them. People really want to be told things to our discredit in such a way that they don't have to feel sympathy."

"we want people to be very low-status, but we don't want to feel sympathy for them-slaves are always supposed to sing at their work."

jokes are funny because of the status transactions:
"A: Who's that fat noisy old bag?
B: That's my wife.
A: Oh, I'm sorry...
A: You're sorry! How do you think I feel?

"The man who falls on the banana peel is funny only if he loses status, and if we don't have sympathy for him."

"Tragedy also works on the see-saw principle: it's subject is the ousting of a high-status animal from the pack... If he crumbled into low-status posture and voice the audience wouldn't get the necessary catharsis. The effect wouldn't be tragic, but pathetic.
When a very high-status person is wiped out, everyone feels pleasure as they experience the feeling of moving up a step. ... Terrible things can happen to the high-status animal, he can poke his eyes out with his wife's brooch, but he must never look as if he could accept a position lower in the pecking order. He has to be ejected from it."

eye contact describes status: high status makes and keeps it, low status makes it breaks it then glances back to check reaction (so won't hold it)

"the short 'er' is an invitation for people to interrupt you; the long 'er' says 'Don't interrupt me, even though I haven't thought what to say yet.'"

"people have a preferred status; that they like to low, or high, and that they try to manoeuvre themselves into the preferred positions. A person who plays high status is saying 'Don't come near me, I bite.' Someone who plays low status is saying 'Don't bite me, I'm not worth the trouble.' In either case the status played is a defence, and it will usually work."

When reversing status in a scene, it's good to make the change gradually.

"the audience will always be held when a status is being modified."

"it isn't necessary for an actor to achieve the status he's trying to play in order to interest an audience. To see someone trying to be high, and failing, is just as delightful as watching him succeed."

"it's a good idea to introduce a bystander into a status scene with instructions to 'try not to get involved'. If you are a 'customer' in a 'restaurant', and someone at the same table quarrels with the 'waiter', then your very subtle status manoeuverings are a delight to watch."

Knowing your status, you know how you're going to play, and react, and think in a situation.

the things said are not as important as the status played."

"Status is played to anything, objects as well as people. If you enter an empty waiting-room you can play high or low status to the furniture. A king may play low status to a subject, but not to his palace."

an actor doesn't need another actor to play status scenes with, he can do it with anything in the environment. (i.e. low status to a park bench and a flock of pigeon's, looking around to see if the park is private, tentative that the pigeon is dangerous, or it's very majestic, etc.)

A low status can control a high status just as effectively as vice versa. Admitting, accepting everything and apologizing. The more A accepted B's dominance the more powerfully B was deflected, If A makes an error and rises in status, then B closes in, but if the low status is maintained then B has to consciously 'force' his anger. Like a wolf showing throat, no matter how angry the other wolf is it can't attack, just keep showing throat.