I was given some fantastic advice from one Ms. Liberty Gordon when I first started working with her as part of an improv troupe. She told me: “Don’t be afraid to be ugly”… and it was one of the best, smartest most useful things I’d ever heard as a female improviser. When you stop worrying about being pretty, you open yourself up to an endless supply of new characters and people. Personally, I’ve discovered that if I suck my face back into my neck far enough, I get this amazing double chin that is just fucking horrifying. And I love it. That double-chin girl is stiff and awkward and I simply adore bringing her onstage.
So let go, girls. Stop sucking your tummy in. See what happens to your posture if you turn your toes in. Let a character lead with her slouched shoulders. Get down and dirty and play ugly.
