Associations
Free Association is a warm-up exercise where players say the first word that comes to mind in response to a previous word, without judgment.
label
Warmup
Element
Zum Workshop hinzufügen
description
Wie spielt man Associations?
Synonyms
Free Association, Free Association Circle
Introduction
This warm-up will help us get into the moment, and help us feel easier about being silly.
Description
Free Association is a very common warm up in improv comedy. A free association is when a player associates meaning to something without judgement, censorship or thought. It is quite hard to do. For example a player may be exposed to the word “dog” they may free associate “cat.”
There are as many configurations for this warm up as there are free associations. The most common is to organize in a circle and have one player free associate on the previous player’s free association. It should sound like a series of disconnected words. “mouse”, “trap”, “crab”, “grumpy”, “goofy”, “mouse.”
There is no correct answer in free association. Some players will repeat associations, or have long pauses. This is a good opportunity to explore why this is happening. It is a teaching moment where the leader can discuss.
- There is no need to try and be funny.
- You are in a non-judgmental space.
- Allow the first thing in your mind to come out.
This warm up helps with listening and commitment. Many players have editors in their head. Learn Improv calls it the headitor. The headitor keeps a player from using the first thought that an offer evokes. Free association should help a player break free form their headitor.
Physical offers – have the player freely associate a physical offer
Rhyming offers – have the players associate in rhyme
Last Letter – have the player associate with a word that starts with the last letter of the cue word
Closed Eye – have players close their eyes to enhance listening
Variations
- Firing line – one player is hit with many words to free associate
- Pass the Chi – players complete the second half of a word
- Cross Circle – next player to free associate is randomly chosen
- Milling – Players mill about the room free associating freely
- Disassociation – Say the opposite of the cue word
- Rhymes – Freely associate but using rhymes
- Last Letter – Associate a new word using the last letter of cue word
- Gibberish – Use gibberish to help free from headitor
Credits
The process of free association is credited to Sigmund Fraud
account_treeVarianten (10)
- Associations-Firing Line — In Firing Line, one player stands front and center while the line of other players pepper them with words to free associate to. This exercise trains listening and commitment, helping players break through their internal editor.
- Associations-Pass the Chi — Free Association is a common improv warm-up. Find the Chi is a variation where one player offers half a word and the next player completes it. There is no correct answer; players should avoid judgement and allow the first thing to come out.
- Closed Eye — have players close their eyes to enhance listening
- Cross Circle — next player to free associate is randomly chosen
- Disassociation — Say the opposite of the cue word
- Gibberish — Use gibberish to help free from headitor
- Last Letter — Associate a new word using the last letter of cue word
- Milling — Players mill about the room free associating freely
- Physical offers — have the player freely associate a physical offer
- Rhymes — Freely associate but using rhymes