4 minute read
Improvising At Wakefield Teaches Valuable Lessons
Improvising At Wakefield Teaches Valuable Lessons
By Patrick Reidway
Imagine being live on stage, in front of 200 people, all eagerly anticipating your performance. For most, this alone would be enough to scare them silly. Now imagine you have no lines and don’t even know what the story is yet. The show must be made up in the moment, with everyone watching.
It’s called the art of improvisation, performing on the spot without a script, relying only on your fellow actors and the audience to support you. It’s more than enough to give even the most seasoned performer a bad case of stage fright.
And yet, “improv” has taught me more about navigating life as a high school student than I ever could imagine. Every new show, like every moment in life, brings new challenges and opportunities to grow.
The first rule of thumb, both in improv and in life, is to always start with a “Yes, and.” That concept is about choosing to accept and build on what life throws at us, rather than staying inside our comfort zone. Too often we’re tempted to respond to the unexpected with a “No, but” or an “I know best.”
“Yes, and” means instead treating every other person and every other idea we encounter as valuable and being more committed to what a team can accomplish together than to what we want for ourselves. It’s hard work, and over the last few years as a student at Wakefield School in The Plains, I’ve learned three important lessons that have helped me on and off the stage.
Learn to appreciate the unexpected. Taking chances is a large part of being an actor and improv allows those skills to shine through. Studying and performing improv has made me a better communicator, presenter, risk-taker, and creator of ideas. When asked by our theater director to create and lead Wakefield’s first improv troupe, I couldn’t resist, and we aptly named it “Wing-It.” After all, our school mascot is an owl. I encouraged my peers to join the troupe and brainstorm ideas. Our first performance was met with roaring laughter, and we can’t wait to do it again.
Find and fill the empty spaces. In eighth grade, I learned we had no meritbased scholarships for rising Wakefield Upper Schoolers. Encouraged by my advisor, I worked with the school’s director of development and our Head of School on a plan to raise funds for a series of grants, designed to reward existing students for embracing Wakefield’s motto, “Virtue and Wisdom.” After more than a year, we launched the Virtus et Sapientia Scholars’ Grants, ultimately awarding grants to eight deserving students.
Surround yourself with other “Yes, and” peers. New ideas are always stronger when embraced by a team, and building communities inside school can lead to impactful initiatives off campus. This year, I raised funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS), as a 2025 Student Visionary of the Year candidate. I’ve also been fortunate to be surrounded by friends inside and outside Wakefield. Most are actors and improv enthusiasts who combine the spirit of “Yes, and,” with a passion for serving their community. Together we formed “Team Skywalker: Force for a Cure” and will raise money this winter to support this important cause.
Taking chances is a huge part of both being an actor and living out Wakefield’s mission to foster character, curiosity, and clear voices in its students. And so, if ever you find yourself in front of a live audience faced with the unexpected, don’t forget your answer: “Yes, and!”
Patrick Reidway is a sophomore at Wakefield School in The Plains.
