Organic Discovery / Organic Improv
1990s-present
A scene-work approach where players reveal the scene's reality slowly through listening and patience, rejecting premise-first or game-first initiations.
Known for
- Associated with TJ Jagodowski and David Pasquesi (TJ & Dave), Susan Messing, and the 'Pretty Flower' tradition at iO.
- Philosophical stance: the scene already exists when you step on stage; your job is to find it, not invent it.
- Anti-pattern it opposes: the UCB game-hunt. Game-school improvisers sometimes find organic work slow; organic improvisers find game-work brittle.
- Canonical viewing: TJ & Dave's live recordings; Del Close's later coaching moved toward this pole before his death.
Connected to
Concepts
Troupes