Meet Aimee McKay, a talented improviser and actor. Aimee has had cameos on shows like New Girl and 2 Broke Girls, as well as playing Principal Becky Snyder in Disney’s Walk the Prank. She also taught Improv Boot Camp during last year’s Theatre and Dance Fest. Aimee will be teaching Improv for One on Saturday, June 20 at 6pm. aimeemckay.com Here’s our Q&A with Aimee.
- What led you to improv/comedy? I loved SNL as a kid, and as I researched all my favorite performers, improv kept coming up over and over again. I found Keith Johnstone’s book IMPRO and fell in love. I carried that book in my bag for a decade. I had never been to Chicago but decided to move there to study improv and loved every second.
- What has been your favorite performance to date? There’s no way I have a favorite improv performance – and even if I did, when something really works, the less likely I am to remember what happened afterward. In improv, there are those moments where you connect with your partner, and you’re completely in sync and the audience is with you that it all just feels like magic. Those are amazing moments.
- What advice would you give to a young improv/comedy student? If you are just starting improv, you have to be willing to fail. You have to take chances and make mistakes. Improv is like jumping off a series of (metaphorical) buildings and hoping that you land. When it’s bad, it’s bad and you pick yourself up and realize you’re still standing. And when it’s good, you feel like a superhero. You will only get better by taking those leaps.
- What’s your approach to improv? Very often your approach to improv is your approach in life. I try to be grounded, connected, emotional, present, and playful.
- What’s something you want everyone to know about improv? I’d like people to know that anyone can improvise! You have to commit to facing your fears and looking silly. The tenets of improv can improve your life – we focus on listening, connecting with your partner, facing your fears, being in the moment and team building. For those willing to commit, it can be life changing.