UC Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts Hosts Applied Improvisation Network World Conference

UC IRVINE’S CLAIRE TREVOR SCHOOL OF THE ARTS HOSTS APPLIED IMPROVISATION NETWORK WORLD CONFERENCE

“Ride the Wave: Applying Improvisation in a Changing World” on August 24-27, 2017

IRVINE, Calif.  (July 20, 2017) -- UC Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts (CTSA) welcomes the Applied Improvisation Network (AIN) for their 15th annual 4-day international convening, the AIN World Conference 2017 – Southern California on August 24-27, 2017. Applied Improvisation Practitioners from around the world will be coming to learn, share, and network with the goal of applying improvisational principles from theater, music, and dance to specific niches including:

  • Fortune 500 Companies, Businesses, and Organizations
  • Personal Growth and Development
  • Entertainment and Public presentations
  • Academia and Research
  • New Innovative Applications

Building on the previous year’s successful conference at UK’s Oxford University, this year AIN will showcase the work of some of the best applied improvisers in the world and explore some distinctly Southern California themes, including a Plenary Session featuring Alan Alda, who uses improvisation to help scientists learn to communicate more effectively at New York’s Stony Brook University. Pre-Conference Day Long Workshops or “Learning Journeys” include topics of mindfulness, sustainability, multiculturalism, and entertainment applications of improvisation at venues including the Los Angeles Times, the Autry Museum of the American West, and Walt Disney Animation Studios. The full AIN World Conference 2017 – Southern California schedule can be found at https://ain17.sched.com.

AIN World Conference Chair Joel Veenstra denotes, “We are at a unique time in history – there is a lot of uncertainty in the world, and in our daily lives, improvisation provides a framework to negotiate the chaos, value our fellow human being, and enjoy ourselves on the ride.” 

In addition to hosting the AIN World Conference, CTSA continues to promote the integration of improvisational skills across disciplines. Along with its annual Coup de Comedy Festival, a free 4-day comedy celebration of workshops and performances, and this year’s Global Improvisation Initiative Symposium, the School of the Arts is exploring improvisation’s application with the Paul Merage School of Business and Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing. These continued collaborations not only elevate the campus through growing best practices but also keep it adaptable and prepared in an ever-changing, unscripted world.

As UCI’s creative laboratory, the Claire Trevor School of the Arts explores and presents the arts as the essence of human experience and expression, through art forms ranging from the most traditional to the radically new. The international faculty works across a wide variety of disciplines, partnering with others across the campus.  National-ranked programs in art, dance, drama, and music begin with training but end in original invention. Students come to UCI to learn to be citizen-artists, to sharpen their skills and talents, and to become the molders and leaders of world culture. For more information, please visit www.arts.uci.edu.

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