The second and third sections resulting from the survey are entirely comprised of comments. No data here. Just delicious thoughts. Happy reading!

Question: What advice do you want to share about joining a new team?

- "Yes, and" everything. Try leading for a bit, then try following. Take note of when it works best for you to follow and lead. You'll find you have specific unique connections with each player, and it shouldn't take long before you develop a groove with those people. Work in that and practice playing around inside those grooves. Be aware if/when your team members become annoyed by you. Not saying it will happen, but it could.

- Everyone there has a common interest. Just do it, and do it as much as possible. Don't worry about others, or focusing on rules, or you rob yourself of your own artistic growth.

- Relax. Trust yourself. Trust your scene partner. That whole "I got your back" talk is just words if you sell out the scene integrity at the first sign of less-than-a-laugh-a-second. .... Your team is your family.

- Don't go in with expectations, and avoid comparing it to past groups as much as possible. This is a new group, treat it as a new experience. Having an open mind will help you progress first.

- One of the biggest challenges of improvisation is playing with other people's style. Instead of trying to get everyone to follow your style, try and blend with theirs.

- Be nice. Hang out with people on the team, If you're shy hang out with other new people/people you are friends with on the team, then work your way up.

- Just do it. Improv is an easy and enjoyable way to make friends. You get to know others and yourself as you learn to do improv and grow as an improviser. Joining the improv scene was easily one of the best decisions I've ever made. Nervous about meeting new people? I've never met an unfriendly improv artist. Nervous about failing? You can't! Besides, even bad improv is enjoyable.

- Be yourself. Your team needs you to bring your own unique qualities and sense of humor. That is the only way improv works.

- Get to know and love the people. Make your job to support the crap out of them and they will do the same for you.

- I have always been a timid person. Recently a new player joined our cast and I am inspired by how confident and bold she is. If someone in the group gives her crap about something (in a loving/teasing way) she throws it right back and it is refreshing to see how fearless she is. So I guess I'd suggest that when joining a new team, be fearless. Trust that we are all improvisers and on the same team.

- The biggest obstacle I've found is that people think you're [lying to] them when you tell them it's not about "trying to be funny." I stress that simply ADDING INFORMATION is the goal. That the circumstances they'll be placed in will make it impossible to not be funny -- they just have to make choices.

- I don't think actors freeze because they've "blanked." They HAVE ideas, they're just judging and censoring them and THEN they "blank." I call that moment "The Grin of Death."

- Write your yes/and scenes on paper first

- Say Yes

- Yes And

- Don't be afraid to fail. You actually have to fail a certain percentage of the time in order for it to actually be fun! Bombs have to happen just as the funny stuff does. It's that risk that what the actors come up with turns out terrible that makes improv so exciting from the get go...

- Let go of your "bag of tricks"and LISTEN to your fellow players - be in the moment and not following your own agenda!

- Make your first improv goals the most basic. Make it a goal to volunteer to do a scene or game. Raising your hand and saying, "I'll do it." can be more difficult than it sounds, especially when you don't know what you are volunteering for. But get over that hump. The sooner you start doing that - and the more frequently - the more practice you get, the more experience you get outside your comfort zone, the more respect you build among your peers, and the more the team will feed off your energy.