March 12, 2024 • 53 mins
Ever felt like you were stuck in a script with no room for ad-libs in your daily life? Join us as the remarkable Gillian Bellinger, the creative powerhouse of Misfit Improv and Acting School in Asheville, North Carolina lights up our conversation with her infectious energy and expertise. Gillian shares simple tools you can start using immediately, without ever stepping foot into an improv class.
Tricks and tools that will:
- Improve your communication with loved ones and new people
- Increase your connections with others
- Boost your confidence and your speaking skills
- Help you allow more clients into your practice
- Learn new things about yourself you never knew!
- Help you with being present
Gillian is also a character actor who can be seen on the Disney Channel and Hulu, to mention a few, and is still adjusting to small town life in Asheville, North Carolina after moving here from LA.
Connect with Gillian Bellinger
Instagram
@misfitavl
@gillianbellinger
https://www.misfitavl.com/
http://www.gillianbellinger.com/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Gillian Bellinger (00:00):
Some people come to improv just to play.
They want to be creative Great.
Some people come to improv tomake a career out of it Great.
Some people come to do it likeas a craft Great.
Some people do itprofessionally for a while and
then stop, like.
All of those things arepossible.
Just like with yoga Some peoplebecome yogis, some people don't
(00:22):
.
Some people do it for a littlewhile, some people do it as a
hobby Like.
It is definable by the personwho's experiencing it, which I
think is something is.
One of the gifts that improvgives everyone is that it is
available to everyone.
Rhonda Ryder (00:41):
Welcome to the Delicious Alignment and the Art
of Abundance podcast.
We cover topics related tohealth, wealth and happiness
from a spiritual andmetaphysical point of view.
I'm your host, author andintuitive coach, rhonda Brighter
.
Would you like to win acoaching session with me?
Here's a way you can becomeeligible.
(01:03):
Simply share the link to thispodcast deliciousalignmentcom
slash podcast or share aspecific episode on Facebook or
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At the first week of everymonth, I'll announce the winner
and contact you to set up yourfree session.
I look forward to meeting withyou All righty.
(01:27):
So about today's episode ifyou've been listening to my show
, you've probably heard memention that I started taking
improv classes.
I think I started last August.
Has it been that long already?
My gosh, time really does flywhen you're having fun, and I am
having fun in improv classmainly because of my teacher,
(01:50):
jillian Bellinger, who is thedirector and founder of Misfit
Improv and Acting School.
Jillian is smart, funny andmaybe even double-jointed.
It is very clear that physicalcomedy is her specialty and I am
inspired by her range of motionand emotion.
Jillian is also a characteractor who can be seen on the
(02:14):
Disney Channel and Hulu, tomention a few, and is still
adjusting to small town life inAsheville, north Carolina, after
moving here from LA.
So even if the thought oftaking an improv class makes you
break out in purple hives allover your body which I totally
understand, by the way, jillianshares with us simple tools you
(02:37):
can start using immediately,without ever stepping foot into
an improv class.
That will improve yourcommunication with strangers or
people who just feel likestrangers.
You'll hear tips to enhance yoursense of connection, your
confidence and your speaking.
Plus, if you're in sales, or ifyou're a coach who thinks sales
(02:59):
is a slimy game, you'll hearsome tips that make it a little
less slimy and more aboutconnection and not to get all
ecart totally on you well, maybea little bit.
The biggest benefit from improv, in my opinion, is that it
helps you with being present,being in the moment, and who
(03:21):
doesn't want more of that?
All righty, then let's jump into the interview.
Hi Jillian, hi Rhonda, how areyou?
Great, great, long time no see.
Gillian Bellinger (03:35):
Just saw you last night, less than 24 hours
even.
Rhonda Ryder (03:38):
Yeah, yeah, another improv class Last night
was so fun.
Gillian Bellinger (03:44):
Thank you.
Thank you, I mean you did it,it was all your work, so you
made the fun.
Rhonda Ryder (03:51):
Yeah, yeah, I just love it so much.
And what is going on?
What's happening to me?
Going through a metamorphosis?
Yeah, I'm so glad you movedhere from LA, is it?
That's right?
Gillian Bellinger (04:08):
Yes, thank you.
Yes, yes, I'm glad to be here.
Rhonda Ryder (04:11):
Yes.
So can you tell me a little bitabout your story?
When did you get the acting bug?
And then, when did you get theimprov bug?
Because I looked, what is it?
Imbd'd you, imbd, yeah, imbd'dme, yeah, and I'm like, oh man,
(04:31):
she has been on TV and films andstuff.
So, yeah, really cool, reallycool.
So tell me a little bit aboutyou, because I don't know that
much.
Gillian Bellinger (04:41):
Yeah, sure, so my name is Jillian Bellinger.
I am the artistic director andfounder of Misfit Improv Theater
and acting school in Asheville,north Carolina.
Prior to that, though, I livedin LA for 13 years, and prior to
that I was in Chicago.
Prior to that I was inMinneapolis, so I grew up in
(05:03):
Texas.
I've always loved I guess I'vealways loved acting.
I grew up in Waco, so I didn'thave clarity around what it
meant to be a professional actoror how one would even do that.
And my parents, my familythey're academics more and also
(05:29):
ministers.
They're both ministers, so thatwas not their world at all
either.
But I knew I did theater in likeEnrichment Theater in junior
high.
I did it in high school.
I lettered in it even there'snothing cooler than a letter
jacket that says drama.
And then I went to school in StPaul, minnesota, at Hamlin
(05:52):
University, and I got a theaterdegree.
So I just kept doing it.
While I was in college I alsodid two semesters, one at the
London Academy of Theater andone at the National Theater
Institute, and that's when Istarted to really kind of
understand oh, this can be a job, and what does it mean for it
(06:14):
to be a job.
I think it was still the verybeginning of that idea for me,
really mostly because they wouldsay this is work, treat it like
work.
But when I was 19, I didn'thave a relationship with work.
So even the idea of treat itlike a job, I was like, well, I
(06:37):
don't know what that is.
So when I was a barista in thekiosk in the mall, what does
that mean?
And I think it actuallycontinues to reveal itself to me
what it means to be a workingactor or to be a working artist
and how many hats one wears increative spaces.
(07:01):
So I got a theater degree andthen, back in the day it's now
online but there was apublication called Backstage.
It still exists, but it existsas a website now, yes, so it
used to be a newspaper and soyou'd go and you'd read the
auditions that were in Backstage.
(07:22):
And there was an audition noticefor an improv company in
Minneapolis called Stevie Ray'sComedy Cabaret, which also still
exists, and they were lookingfor improvisers.
And I went to the audition andthey invited me to become part
of the ensemble.
Honestly, I think they invitedme to become part of the
ensemble because they sort ofwanted fresh blood, particularly
(07:43):
females, not because I was good, because I was a mess.
I could understand the generalconcepts, but improv is a craft
like anything else, and so Imade all of the mistakes that
every single person that everpicks up improv makes, which is
(08:06):
to walk into a scene and ask mypartner all the questions, or
walk into a scene and steamrollsomebody and try and tell them
what the scene is about bytelling them what to do, like,
great, we're in dance class, I'mgoing to tell you what move to
do with every part of your body,which is fine.
It just doesn't really createcomedy.
And they were gracious enoughto let me learn.
(08:28):
Really, they created a spacefor learning and then I did some
workshops and shows at a placecalled Brave New Workshop and
then I became part of basicallyit was like a farm team is how
it was referred to, but a farmteam for comedy sports in
Minneapolis, and that gave me alot as well, because we started
(08:57):
I just started to get more reps,right, I just started to play
more shows with more people, getmore scene work under my belt,
and then I got moved from thefarm team to the ensemble and
then, pretty quick after that, Imoved to Chicago Like I had
fallen in love with improv.
I had asked folks who werefancier improvisers than I was
(09:22):
where should I go, and they saidgo to Chicago.
You need to go to Second City,which is what I did.
I moved to Chicago with afriend that I met in Comedy
Sports Minneapolis.
We both moved to Chicago, weboth did improv at Second City
and I just fell more in love.
It takes a long time.
It's like becoming a painter,becoming a hotter life.
(09:46):
It really is a skill.
Rhonda Ryder (09:48):
Yeah, an incredible skill.
Gillian Bellinger (09:51):
So then, yeah , so then I did the programs at
Annoyance.
I did the program, I did threeor four programs at Second City
and then I moved to LA and thenI started teaching for Second
City in Second City, hollywood,and I also worked a lot with a
theater called Westside ComedyTheater and I was on their
(10:13):
touring company.
So they have a bunch of collegeshows that they tour, a little
script based, a little improvbased.
They also have a touring showcalled Mission Improbable.
That is all short form improvand I did that at the home show.
So I just really like right whenI got to LA I started to hit
(10:34):
the sort of my 10,000 hours ofreps to change and I knew who I
wanted to be as an improviser,but I couldn't get myself there
until I had just done it enoughtimes really, and then it just
happened.
It just happened.
(10:56):
I didn't have to fight to makeit happen the way that I did
when I was younger and I wasable to deliver a consistency
with ease to being on stage in away that I ate couldn't when I
was a beginning in anintermediate improviser and I
could diagnose a scene a lotfaster or have a bit of comfort
(11:20):
around the fact that I didn'tknow what I was gonna say and I
didn't know what my partner wasgonna say, but that was okay.
Rhonda Ryder (11:28):
Sort of like right now I'm like I don't know what
you're gonna say.
I don't know what I'm gonna sayand that's why, frankly, I took
up improv.
You know, laura, one of yourstudents, my friend.
She told me she was going hereand we had talked about improv.
Then I said, oh okay, yeah,here we go, let's do it.
(11:50):
And I really wanted to do it tohelp me with my speaking, with
the podcasts and also withcoaching, with everything.
But lo and behold, I didn'tknow that all these other things
were gonna happen and that Iwas gonna really enjoy it this
much and that it would have somany benefits in my life.
Gillian Bellinger (12:14):
So what would you say?
Rhonda Ryder (12:15):
the other things that happened are yeah, yeah,
well, definitely, I feel like itis helping me with the podcast.
But I would say the practice ofbeing present, which I really
am into, and that's kind ofsomething that I'm passionate
about practicing.
(12:35):
But improv helps you do that.
Improv trains you how to bepresent in the moment, when, not
just when you're sitting therelike meditating or walking on a
nature walk.
But I've talked about thisbefore on my show that I was
always an overprepare.
(12:56):
I really chronic overprepare,and I told this story recently
where I gave a talk.
I was in some kind of sharktank competition and I totally
bombed and I thought I was gonnawin and I stayed up all night
and I couldn't sleepoverpreparing, overpreparing.
There were three people I gavein third place and it was just
(13:18):
like I was definitely not in themoment.
I was so in my head and everytime I had a speaking engagement
, I had speaking engagements.
Then I would get so nervous andreally feel it wasn't fun.
It wasn't like an enjoyableexperience because I was in my
head and I was overpreparing andso I just wasn't trusting
(13:42):
myself at all.
So this is helping me just ineveryday life, just freeing me
up so much and I'm having somuch fun.
I didn't know that thisimproviser was in there.
Yeah, like I didn't know her.
Yeah, I hadn't let her out in along, long, long long time.
Gillian Bellinger (14:03):
Yeah, yeah.
How does she feel differentthan the persona you normally
operate by?
Rhonda Ryder (14:11):
Yeah, yeah, I think before I was very guarded
and very cautious, just notbeing able to let the words flow
because I was self-conscious,and so the improv helped me to
just speak more naturally andjust let it flow, without trying
(14:34):
to edit myself or filter myself, just really being more of me
and then realizing that I havethe side of me.
I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, but I mean you thought, I was
a performer, you know, yeah, Ididn't, I wouldn't have.
Gillian Bellinger (14:50):
I mean, you are a performer, you do have a
podcast.
Rhonda Ryder (14:53):
Yeah, I am a performer.
Yeah, I'm a performer, let'sface it.
But I didn't know that I hadthe improv gene.
Sure, Like you, I have a degreein theater, but it was mostly
for writing, writing plays andstuff like that.
I remember doing an improvclass eight or nine years ago in
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
(15:14):
I did see a glimpse of her then.
Yeah, interesting, I saw itthen and they were like you
should do this, you should domore of this.
And I was like yeah, yeah, yeah, but the timing is the timing.
And here you are, you showed upto Asheville.
Gillian Bellinger (15:31):
That's why you called me.
That's right, thank you, youspecifically called me into
existence.
Rhonda Ryder (15:42):
Yes, you made it happen.
I summoned you.
Yes, I did.
I did.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So how are you liking it herein Asheville?
Gillian Bellinger (15:51):
Yeah.
So it's an interesting question.
So we moved here because myparents are here half the year
and they're getting older.
Right, we wanna be close tothem, we wanna spend time with
them.
My husband's mother is inVirginia, so she was also on
this coast and I think aftergoing through COVID we just sort
(16:13):
of felt like A there was a bitmore flexibility to what our
professional lives could looklike, because so much moved to
virtual.
So that gave us a bit morefreedom than we felt prior to
COVID.
But I think also COVID broughtinto focus this feeling of
mortality and what it means whatwould we regret or what matters
(16:38):
or how do we wanna spend oureveryday?
And so being near family justbecame a larger priority and so
we moved here.
So I would say one thing welove we love being able to spend
time with our parents.
That is very joyful.
They're only here half the year.
(17:00):
I would say we're stilladjusting to a couple things.
One, we're adjusting the size.
I mean Asheville is 2% the sizeof Los Angeles, so it is just
quite a bit smaller and likeit's also about the size of Waco
when I was growing up.
So in a way I sort of feel like, every time I moved, I went to
(17:24):
a larger city, and this is thefirst time I've come back to a
smaller one.
And not only that.
I live a little bit outside ofAsheville.
I live in a town calledWaynesville, which is about
10,000 people, so it's evensmaller.
Rhonda Ryder (17:37):
I mean smaller than even what I grew up in.
Gillian Bellinger (17:42):
So that is an adjustment.
It's not good or bad, it's justvery different.
It's sort of notably differentthan every day.
I mean I could walk down myblock in LA and get a coffee and
here it's a 20 minute car ride.
Not good or bad, just verydifferent.
So it changes all the habits oflike how we operate on a
(18:05):
day-to-day basis.
I would say.
The other thing is that, and aresult of that is there's improv
shows every day of the week inLos Angeles at multiple venues,
and so I could step in with ateam kind of anytime I wanted to
, and also I was known in thatcommunity.
(18:25):
So it was very simple for me todo a show, or be asked to do a
show or I don't know, just playbecause I just wanted to play.
And that is different here.
Right Is that shows are morespecial because they aren't as
consistent.
There isn't an improv theater.
(18:49):
There are performance spaceswhere improv shows happen, and I
would say one of the missionsof Misfit is to make that improv
community bigger so that wedon't just see the same people
on stage all of the time, thatwe get to see a world of people
(19:09):
that are performers in Asheville.
Yeah, I mean that feelsimportant to me.
So the other thing I would sayis we definitely are building
community in Asheville.
We still very much miss ourcommunity in LA.
I mean, I was there for 13years, my husband was there for
(19:31):
20 years and we had reallystrong networks.
So to move to a place as anadult without a network and also
we don't have children, so tobe in our 40s without children
is a thing right To like makefriends in that space.
So we're still getting used tothat, like who are our people?
(19:54):
What is our community look like?
How do we find a sense ofcomfort in deep relationships?
And I don't know that.
We haven't answered that yet,which is okay, right, it's just
the natural.
That's not.
I don't think that's unnatural,I think it is a process that
we're in.
Rhonda Ryder (20:15):
Yeah, interesting.
Because me looking at you, ohmy gosh, she has so many friends
, she's so connected.
But really you're new here,you're not even here a year yet
right, and so you're in themidst of building these networks
and connect.
Gillian Bellinger (20:31):
Yeah, that's true.
So it's been 13 months.
We're just over a year.
Rhonda Ryder (20:36):
Yeah, so that was interesting what you said about
it's important to you to havemore people performing and stuff
like that, because last nightone of our teammates, monica,
said I wanted to know whateveryone wants, what everyone's
goals are, cause some peoplejust wanna be there, just wanna
(20:56):
play, just for play and enjoy,and I get a sense some people
maybe don't want to perform.
I mean, in the three classesI've taken, some people don't
wanna do that beyond stage or bein the showcase.
But I'm interested in likesticking my toe in the water and
just experimenting with thatand seeing how that feels.
But I sense that will like Idon't know, it's just exciting
(21:19):
to hear you say that, that youwant more performance.
Oh my gosh.
Gillian Bellinger (21:23):
it's exciting and terrifying at the same time
, yeah yeah, yeah, and I thinkimprov is the way I sort of
think of improv is.
There's a metaphor to yoga, forme anyway, which is improv is a
practice.
Right, I can play just likeyoga.
So you know, there's that yogateacher saying that, like the
(21:46):
mat never changes, it's how youcome to the mat that changes.
I feel the same way aboutimprov the games don't change,
it's about how I come to thegames that changes.
So I could play an improv gamea million times, which I have
right, I've played, I don't knowwe'll just pull one out of a
hat, like I've played Blind Line.
(22:06):
I've probably played that gamethousands of times and it's, the
game doesn't change, I change.
So how I come to that game isgoing to change every time I
play it, and that's also what'ssort of interesting about it.
And I think in that momentthere are there.
(22:28):
We come to it in all kinds ofways.
Some people come to improv justto play.
They want to be creative Great.
Some people come to improv tomake a career out of it Great.
Some people come to do it likeas a craft Great.
Some people do itprofessionally for a while and
then stop, like all of thosethings are possible, just like
(22:49):
with yoga.
Some people become yogis, somepeople don't.
Some people do it for a littlewhile, some people do it as a
hobby.
Like it.
It is definable by the personwho's experiencing it, which I
think is something is.
One of the gifts that improvgives everyone is that it is
available to everyone.
Rhonda Ryder (23:13):
Yeah, yeah, and it's funny.
I did notice that I had anexperience where I was feeling a
little I don't know what theword is, I wouldn't say insecure
but all of a sudden I hit upagainst a little bit of a wall,
like do I really belong here?
I think I shared it in class.
Gillian Bellinger (23:30):
Yeah, you did .
Rhonda Ryder (23:32):
It's funny because the name of your company is
Misfit Misfit Improv and ActingSchool and I hit up against that
wall feeling like do I belonghere?
Because these people areamazing, they're so talented.
But everyone was so welcoming,so it wasn't me, it wasn't them.
And then all of a sudden, Idon't know what happened, but I
(23:52):
changed.
Like you said, somethingswitched in me or clicked and I
came in like before I was like Idon't want to host, I don't
want to host a game, I don'twant to host a game, for I'm
just here for the fun.
Then, all of a sudden,something switched and I was
like yeah, you can host, ofcourse you can host you host a
podcast, yeah, right, yeah.
(24:14):
And being on stage, yeah, soyeah, I could see what you're
saying, how you change.
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(25:00):
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Now back to the interview.
Can you tell us some of the Idon't know philosophies or
general benefits of improv forthe non-thesbian type person,
(25:25):
regular person that just wantsto know, like, well, why would I
take improv?
Why would I do that?
I don't want to be an actress,I don't want to get on stage.
What are some of the benefitsof doing an improv class?
Gillian Bellinger (25:36):
Yeah.
So the philosophy of improv isyes, and, and as an idea it
sounds simple, right?
You come to me with when I'mthinking of it in just layman
terms or layperson terms.
You come to me with an idea, aquestion, a person, a project.
(26:01):
I yes it, which isn't to say Iagree with it.
It means that I accept that youhave brought this thing to me
and then I and it.
And what the and means inregular life is that I build a
bridge between what you havebrought to me and what I think,
feel or do with that.
So it is to me yes, and inpractice is to be in creation
(26:29):
with someone, even if thatcreation is just a conversation.
And in order for us to yes andeach other, I have to be
listening to you and I have tobe choosing to connect to you,
even if that is difficult, whichI think in life it can be
certainly, and I have to bepresent enough, in both my own
(26:55):
experience and receptive to you,to know how to build that
bridge.
So when I think about whatimprov is in practice, I think
of it as it is both asurrendering of control.
I choose to be present.
You have brought this to me.
I was not expecting it.
I had not, I did not have thispreplanned, or maybe I did, but
(27:16):
it shows up different than Ithought, or it shows up exactly
like I thought and now I engagewith that from the form of
connection.
So you and I find somethingtogether and we make it.
(27:36):
Whether that's a conversation,whether that's I'm a leader and
you're my direct report and weneed to build a project, whether
that's I'm a leader, we're in afeedback conversation.
I have to give you feedback,you give me some I wasn't
expecting.
Now we have to figure our waythrough that.
You're a family member.
(27:57):
You say something I don't likeat Thanksgiving dinner.
I have to find a way to accept,not agree, accept and build a
bridge to connection, whichdoesn't mean I give up my
ideology, whatever that might be.
So let's say you know, somebodysays something off color.
(28:17):
I can say I accept that thishas been said and I do not feel
that that is appropriate here.
We will not engage with thisfurther.
So one of the myths or I don'tknow what the right word is, but
one of the myths is that yesand means I'm always in
(28:40):
agreement with everyone, always.
And that isn't what it means inpractice?
Actually, it's more the art ofsurrender while building
something with someone else.
It isn't a panacea and thereare moments where I say no, I
might say no and I might say no.
And here is what I think aboutthat right.
(29:02):
So when I think about thebenefits of what improv can give
to people the ability to listen, really listen and I mean like
I'm not always doing itperfectly I do think it has
given me the gift of being abetter listener and I think it
(29:23):
has given me the gift of findingconnection even when it's
difficult, and I would say itimproves communication.
So it makes you a bettercommunicator.
It builds relationship.
(29:44):
It requires you to operate froma place of trust.
It requires you to overcome thefear of the unknown.
All of those things are thingsthat happen in life.
It challenges us to engage injoy.
I think the challenge of it isalso to be in a state of
(30:04):
learning, feel like a growthmindset perspective.
Yeah, I don't know.
Is that enough things?
Rhonda Ryder (30:10):
Yes, well, I wanted to circle back.
That is, I love it.
I love it, it's so true, all ofit.
And I want to go back to twothings that you said.
And it's the yes and, of course, is a big thing in improv, and
I see you demonstrating that andmodeling that a lot.
And also I also sense that youhave boundaries too and you know
(30:33):
what your boundaries are.
So it's okay if you say no, butthe yes and is a tool.
The yes and is like instead of ayes, but Like a yes but is yes,
yes, I hear you, but you reallydon't hear them because you
want to get your opinion inthere and let them know that
(30:53):
they're wrong.
But yes, and is a communicationtool as well.
In real life.
It's a wonderful way tonavigate sort of like nonviolent
communications like yes, I justsee you hear you, yes, like in
class.
I'm in class yes, and so you'rereally learning valuable
(31:18):
communication skills that youcan take into your regular life.
I like, even with my dad, like,oh, I could have done that.
I could have done thatyesterday instead of going you
can't believe everything youread on the internet, dad I
could have said yes, and youknow.
So it's just yeah.
Yeah, it's wonderful, and I waslistening to a podcast I guess
(31:42):
it was last night.
I was just trying to brush upon some things for today's
interview.
I think it was a.
It was a really old interviewwith Alan Alda and Tina Fey.
You're familiar with that Well.
Gillian Bellinger (31:57):
Alan Alda has like a corporate, a corporation
that goes, that helps othercorporate companies with improv,
which is also what that's whatmy day job is.
I didn't work for Alan Alda'scompany, but but that's what he
does.
He works with we're dead, workwith people, just people,
because he's he died, right.
Rhonda Ryder (32:17):
I think he did.
Yeah, um, but so this was like2018.
And so it was him and Tina Fey.
Um, he, it was interesting,they're both shy.
They said they're both shy.
And then I was listening toanother show where there's
actually a lady.
I did the improv class withinMyrtle Beach, gina Trimarko, and
(32:38):
she said that introverts reallymake good improvisers because
they're really good listeners.
Yeah, but just to know that ifyou're shy or if you're an
introvert, that this is perfectfor you as well.
Gillian Bellinger (32:54):
You know if it's something you wanted to try
.
I wouldn't describe myself asan extrovert.
Rhonda Ryder (33:00):
Oh no.
Gillian Bellinger (33:02):
Okay, no, like even when you started and
you said I just don't reallyreally know very much about you,
that's because I'm not anextrovert, right, I mean I don't
, um, I have a persona as aperformer, um, but but yeah, I
(33:25):
don't know that.
I would say I'm shy, but Iwould say I'm private and so
yeah and so, and I also don't.
It requires an immense amountof energy for me to put even
just to teach it.
It requires a fair amount ofenergy, and I do think there is
(33:48):
some truth to the.
To the listening piece.
Rhonda Ryder (33:51):
Yes, yeah, absolutely yeah, oh.
And the other thing I wanted tosay is improv can help you with
sales.
If you're like in that mindsetthat I want to focus on sales,
improv is a great tool for that.
Can you speak to that a littlebit?
(34:13):
Sure.
Gillian Bellinger (34:15):
So if I am a sales person, I need to solve a
problem for my buyer, right,whatever that problem is, but I
don't actually know what thatproblem is.
I can make some assumptionsabout what their particular pain
point is, to use a real salesterm, um, and if I'm not
listening to them, then I'm notactually providing a solution
(34:39):
for them that really is going tospeak to the specificity of
their particular situation.
Listening also allows us tobuild deeper relationships.
When I build deeperrelationships, I build a better
business for myself andultimately, hopefully, my
network gets wider because I'mable to function from a place of
(35:03):
trust with the people that Isell to.
So it's a it's an incrediblyuseful tool when thinking about
how do I build relationship, howdo I listen and also, what do I
do when I don't know what tosay, which sometimes you might
be in a pitch and you don't knowwhat to say, or they do.
(35:27):
Well, I think a couple thingsOne, take a breath, uh, and I
think transparency, honesty,which is something we talk about
in class, is, uh, is somethingthat often reads.
People laugh at it and they cansense when something is
authentic and being able to say,hmm, I don't really know what
(35:50):
to say to that that's honest andtrue.
If it is.
Anyway, in this hypotheticalsituation, let's say Um, and,
and we actually build trust bybeing vulnerable with people.
So when we are able to behonest and say, that's a really
interesting perspective.
I haven't really thought thatthrough.
I'm going to need to give mysome thought to that before I
(36:13):
respond.
I that I had not thought of itthat way.
Let me think about how we couldstill make this work in the way
that you need it to, and Idon't want to rush to an answer
because I've just never thoughtof it, right?
So two things I think that arereally useful.
I think the other thing is iswhen we are operating from, yes,
(36:39):
and it allows us to be in aplace of innovation.
So if you say something I'm notexpecting, to which I would
make the case, is everyconversation that we've ever
been in, ever.
So when people say to me I'mnot an improviser or I've never
done improv, everyone has doneimprov they're doing it all of
(37:01):
the time, right?
If you've ever been in aconversation, if you're a parent
, if you're a child, so it is,we're already doing it.
It's just that when we go intoa classroom setting.
We lay on this like performanceelement to it that some of us
(37:22):
may embrace and some of us don't.
To me, the performance is it.
When we get down to the crux ofimprov isn't super important.
Right, I can take an improvclass to pull all of these
skills that we're talking about,so that when I'm in that sales
conversation and I don't knowwhat to say, I can really listen
(37:42):
and say, yes, what I heard yousay was this and this is me just
spitballing here is what thatbrings up for me.
And then there's a sharing ofideas.
That's occurring.
So then you're in collaborationwith the person, with your
client or your customer, howeveryou want to refer to them, and
(38:02):
you're building somethingtogether.
Yeah, I realize that's like anidealized idea, because I have
been in sales before, andsometimes just even getting a
conversation with that person is90% of the battle of who you're
trying to sell to, and onceyou're in that conversation,
though, being available to be inrelationship with them is
(38:27):
really valuable.
Rhonda Ryder (38:30):
Yeah, yeah, but yes, and like repeating back to
them what you heard and thatcreates relationship.
They feel heard.
I was listening to somethingyesterday about so many people
these days are afraid to sell.
It's just like I'm serving, I'mbeing here for you, and I was
(38:50):
like, oh, my God, that's me,like I'm, that's me, I'm a coach
and I just really want to servepeople and if they want to
coach with me, great If theydon't.
But then I was listening tothis and it's yes, but there's
this other piece.
You are still serving them.
If you say here's what I see,here's a recommendation, here's
(39:12):
a path forward for you, thatwould help with this.
And I was like, oh, I reallylike that.
Can you talk a little bit aboutthat?
Gillian Bellinger (39:20):
I can.
I'm a corporate trainer and acertified coach and I work with
generally mid-level executives.
As a coach and as a corporatetrainer.
I started doing corporateimprov training, so experiential
corporate training where weliterally go in with improv
(39:41):
exercises and build connectionto your average everyday
person's experience.
Then from there, really throughreferrals from other
improvisers, I moved intolearning and development with a
couple of other organizationsthat do topic-based trainings.
So I do trainings aroundfeedback, I do challenging
(40:05):
conversations, I do what isfeedback?
Rhonda Ryder (40:10):
Are you training them on how to give, or?
Gillian Bellinger (40:13):
receive.
I'm training them on both.
Usually I train on I don't know50 plus maybe even more
different topics and allemotional intelligence or
psychological safety, or thegrowth mindset, or what
(40:34):
motivates people, or delegation,or time management, or business
writing.
Those are all classes that Iteach.
Only, I do everything virtuallynow.
So I'm in a Zoom room having anexperiential class, I'm
following a PowerPoint and atthe same time, in real time,
(40:57):
people are putting things intothe chat or they're talking to
me and I have to respond.
Right, I have to be presentwith them to hear them, I have
to acknowledge them.
I have to then take whateverthey've said and link it to
whatever the content is about.
I also have to.
It doesn't mean that everythingthey say I agree with.
(41:19):
I might want to adjust a littlebit what was offered.
So every once in a whilesomeone will say something and I
think no, but I have to be verydiplomatic.
So what I say is yes, I hearyou what you?
have just said, and theadjustment that I would make to
(41:41):
that statement is blah, blah,blah, blah, blah.
Right, so my day career has Ialso work as a consultant as
well.
So your average artist actor,there's a lot of hats and I wear
a lot of hats.
Um, I also.
I'm still auditioning.
I also I was gonna ask youabout that.
(42:04):
Yes, yep, yep, so I'm alsostill auditioning.
I'm also running Misfit.
I also am teaching, right,performing and running town.
I'm also still performing.
Rhonda Ryder (42:15):
Yep, it's yes, so your improv skills led you into
this day career.
Yep 100%, yeah, 100%.
Awesome, jillian.
Is there anything that youthink?
Anything else, like, say, forsomeone who doesn't want to take
an improv class, sure, but arethere some tips, and tricks or
(42:36):
hacks that you could share withthem to improve their
communication or their abilityto be in the present moment or
just enjoy life?
Gillian Bellinger (42:46):
Yeah, I mean I would say a couple things, so
you hear me do this on a regularbasis, but I literally use the
phrase yes and and.
For a lot of people it willfeel clunky at first and we
don't want it to be inauthentic.
However, I have built it intomy lexicon to force myself to
(43:10):
find connection and I, you know,we have to mean it right.
I could say yes and I like icecream, and the other person
could say yes and no, I don't.
Right, we actually need them.
We need to mean it when we sayit, and I actively try and do
that.
So I would say, linguistically,you can start to incorporate
(43:34):
the phrase yes, which means Ihear you.
And then, what do you think,feel or want to do about that?
The other thing I might offeris someone says something pause,
pause, just take a breath,right, what do you really want
(43:56):
to say?
Or do you need to say anything,if anything?
Yeah, and I think someone that Ithink is really really good at
this and is fascinating to watchin interviews is Mr Rogers.
I think he was one of the bestlisteners I have ever seen in my
life, so much so that I thinkhe made other people
uncomfortable because he was sopresent with them and every
(44:22):
interview I've ever seen him inhe takes a beat and very
carefully he responds, and Ithink it's beautiful to watch
and also disquieting for somepeople and I kind of think maybe
that's a good thing.
(44:43):
Like what is it to be fullypresent with each other?
Yes, so I would say those twothings are really useful.
I think the other thing isknowing.
It is an ideological battlethat maybe we, some of us, have,
which is the fear of steppinginto the unknown and just
reminding ourselves, from amindset perspective, that the
(45:05):
unknown also holds joy, inaddition to a multitude of other
things, and the fear that wefeel may manifest itself in
resistance, and that resistanceis based on evidence that we
have predetermined but we don'tactually know is true, and so we
(45:26):
might find only joy in thatunknown.
We might find play, we mightfind laughter, we might find a
friend.
Rhonda Ryder (45:37):
Yes, I want to add that to my list of benefits
that I have gotten so far.
Is that the unknown and how?
It's a metaphor for life, likeyou don't know what you're going
to say next.
And a lot of times, especiallyin the beginning in the improv
classes, the tendency well forme anyway is to try and plan
(46:00):
ahead what I'm going to say, aswe're going around like I have
some time, but then you lose thepresent moment.
You're out of the presentmoment now because you're trying
to figure out what you're goingto say, so you missed what the
art person said and so you'renot responding in real time, so
you can't plan ahead, becausethat totally defeats the whole
purpose.
Gillian Bellinger (46:21):
Yeah, and I might even offer that, like you,
don't need to plan ahead, right, we're capable individuals that
have spoken conversations ourwhole lives.
Yeah.
Rhonda Ryder (46:32):
We'll know what to say.
I know, but that's what's soincredible is the things that
come out of my mouth.
You know, from this, where isit coming from?
Like you don't have to worryabout planning because there it
was and then I got to laugh or Ididn't.
You know it was funny or itwasn't, but I still in the
(46:53):
funniest moments are.
For me is like I'm not tryingto be funny, I'm just correct
and I was saying that.
Gillian Bellinger (46:59):
listening that's the funniest moments, for
the audience too.
Yeah.
Rhonda Ryder (47:04):
Yeah.
So then that transfers intoyour life of the fear of the
unknown and life in general,that, oh, I don't have to be so
afraid of the unknown because itworks out and maybe I am afraid
, yeah, and that's okay andthat's okay, I do it anyway.
That's okay too.
Gillian Bellinger (47:24):
Feel the fear and do it anyway.
You know, because there's, I amafraid, often and that's okay,
like part of it is just sayinglike, yep, feel that, okay, yes,
yeah, I don't know how thisgame is going to work.
Or even there was a moment inclass last night where I, in my
(47:46):
head, I just inverted who wasdoing what in a game and I was
like explaining it.
And then, you know, a studentwas like isn't it reversed?
And I was like, oh, yeah, ittotally is.
And it just flew out of mybrain, right, but in that moment
there's this little bit of likeI did something wrong and
everyone just watched me dosomething wrong.
And then I'm like, okay, whichI think is one of the gifts of
(48:12):
improv, is just to go yep, yeah,and for sure I'm going to keep
going.
Rhonda Ryder (48:16):
Because in the beginning it was like, oh my God
, I screwed up, oh my God it's,you know, not too bad, I wasn't
too bad.
But if I screw up, quoteunquote, screw up, because we're
not really screwing up.
But then it's like, oh gosh,embarrassed, or whatever.
And then learning thateverybody's doing it like that,
I mean, yeah, there is noperfection.
Gillian Bellinger (48:37):
Yeah, there is no perfection, and just even
that idea of like I did it wrongis like.
I mean, you were in learning,Thank God you did it wrong.
That's part of if you weren'tdoing it wrong, then you're not
in a state of learning.
Rhonda Ryder (48:52):
So that's another benefit right there.
Yeah, because you get more andmore accustomed to being okay
with quote unquote failing, yeah.
Gillian Bellinger (49:02):
Yeah, I mean, that's actually one of our
student commitments is that weallow ourselves and others the
grace to fail?
Rhonda Ryder (49:10):
Yes, yeah, and I love the community.
And then at the end we all pateach other on the back and say
got your back, got your back.
Another thing you learn inimprov is what's in service of
the team, what's in service ofthe show yeah, and what's in
service of the scene and what'sin service of the scene, so you
(49:31):
don't always have to be frontand center stage with all eyes
on me.
It's like, well, how can I bestserve my team and the scene?
Yeah, yeah, oh man, I just loveit so much.
Thank you so much for talkingto me today and for moving to
Asheville for me when I summonyou.
Gillian Bellinger (49:52):
Thank you, it's my pleasure.
Thank you for being in ourclasses, thank you for being
part of our community, thank youfor bringing your joy and your
light and your I mean just thefun that you bring to your
experience and on stage.
Rhonda Ryder (50:07):
Yeah, yeah, I love it.
Gillian Bellinger (50:09):
You kidding, which you know.
If any of your listeners are inAsheville, we have a show on
the 21st, if anyone wants tocome Show at 7.
Rhonda Ryder (50:18):
Yes, so, oh yeah, that's our showcase if you're in
Asheville.
So this is where I ask you,jillian, to share anything you
want to share.
How can people find you?
Jillian Bellinger, and also MsFit, tell us all the things.
Gillian Bellinger (50:34):
Okay, great.
So I primarily am on Instagram.
You can find me on Facebook,but I don't really use it.
It's, you know, just a vehiclefor my parents to see pictures
if I feel like posting them, soI would go to Instagram and the
first one I would go to is MsFit, which is Ms Fit ABL.
So Ms Fit, asheville at Ms FitABL.
(50:57):
And then for me, specifically,it's at Jillian Bellinger, and
Jillian, even though you mightnot be able to hear it, has a G.
It's spelled with a G, likegiraffe or ginger.
Rhonda Ryder (51:09):
So at Jillian Bellinger, yeah, yes, and your
website is your website.
Gillian Bellinger (51:15):
Sure, you can go to there.
Jillianbellingercom.
Yeah, okay, you can IMDB me.
Rhonda Ryder (51:20):
Yes, yes, she's been on Disney and all kinds of
stuff.
Ooh, look her up, yeah.
Gillian Bellinger (51:28):
Or don't, it's fine.
Rhonda Ryder (51:30):
Or don't, but yeah , no, it's cool and the name of
your company is.
Gillian Bellinger (51:36):
Ms Fit, improv and Acting School, yes,
yeah.
Rhonda Ryder (51:39):
Really great, great improv school here in
Asheville, beautiful, beautifulAsheville, asheville.
So thank you so much, jillian.
Yes, I know you're filling infor one of your teachers tonight
, so you've got to run, that'strue.
Thank you so much for thisvideo.
Thank you, rana.
Okay, take care, okay, bye.
I hope you enjoyed this episodewith Jillian Bellinger, director
(52:02):
and founder of Ms Fit Improvand Acting School.
The best way to connect withJillian is on Instagram.
At Ms Fit AVL or at JillianBellinger.
Jillian is spelled with acapital G.
You can also find her atMsfitAVLcom.
And here are a few ways you canconnect with me, which I would
(52:23):
really like.
You can join my Facebook group,delicious alignment.
You can subscribe to my YouTubechannel and leave a comment, or
subscribe to this podcastwherever you listen to your
shows.
This way, you'll never miss anepisode.
You can also follow me onInstagram at deliciousalignment.
(52:44):
Feel free to tell your friendsabout this podcast.
I would so appreciate that,because you sharing this podcast
is the absolute number one bestway to help us grow.
All the links mentioned are inthe show notes as well.
Join me every Thursday for anew episode.
And that's it for today, myfriend.
See you next week.
Some people come to improv just to play.
They want to be creative Great.
Some people come to improv tomake a career out of it Great.
Some people come to do it likeas a craft Great.
Some people do itprofessionally for a while and
then stop, like.
All of those things arepossible.
Just like with yoga Some peoplebecome yogis, some people don't
(00:22):
.
Some people do it for a littlewhile, some people do it as a
hobby Like.
It is definable by the personwho's experiencing it, which I
think is something is.
One of the gifts that improvgives everyone is that it is
available to everyone.
Rhonda Ryder (00:41):
Welcome to the Delicious Alignment and the Art
of Abundance podcast.
We cover topics related tohealth, wealth and happiness
from a spiritual andmetaphysical point of view.
I'm your host, author andintuitive coach, rhonda Brighter
.
Would you like to win acoaching session with me?
Here's a way you can becomeeligible.
(01:03):
Simply share the link to thispodcast deliciousalignmentcom
slash podcast or share aspecific episode on Facebook or
Instagram and tag me, and you'llbe entered into a drawing.
At the first week of everymonth, I'll announce the winner
and contact you to set up yourfree session.
I look forward to meeting withyou All righty.
(01:27):
So about today's episode ifyou've been listening to my show
, you've probably heard memention that I started taking
improv classes.
I think I started last August.
Has it been that long already?
My gosh, time really does flywhen you're having fun, and I am
having fun in improv classmainly because of my teacher,
(01:50):
jillian Bellinger, who is thedirector and founder of Misfit
Improv and Acting School.
Jillian is smart, funny andmaybe even double-jointed.
It is very clear that physicalcomedy is her specialty and I am
inspired by her range of motionand emotion.
Jillian is also a characteractor who can be seen on the
(02:14):
Disney Channel and Hulu, tomention a few, and is still
adjusting to small town life inAsheville, north Carolina, after
moving here from LA.
So even if the thought oftaking an improv class makes you
break out in purple hives allover your body which I totally
understand, by the way, jillianshares with us simple tools you
(02:37):
can start using immediately,without ever stepping foot into
an improv class.
That will improve yourcommunication with strangers or
people who just feel likestrangers.
You'll hear tips to enhance yoursense of connection, your
confidence and your speaking.
Plus, if you're in sales, or ifyou're a coach who thinks sales
(02:59):
is a slimy game, you'll hearsome tips that make it a little
less slimy and more aboutconnection and not to get all
ecart totally on you well, maybea little bit.
The biggest benefit from improv, in my opinion, is that it
helps you with being present,being in the moment, and who
(03:21):
doesn't want more of that?
All righty, then let's jump into the interview.
Hi Jillian, hi Rhonda, how areyou?
Great, great, long time no see.
Gillian Bellinger (03:35):
Just saw you last night, less than 24 hours
even.
Rhonda Ryder (03:38):
Yeah, yeah, another improv class Last night
was so fun.
Gillian Bellinger (03:44):
Thank you.
Thank you, I mean you did it,it was all your work, so you
made the fun.
Rhonda Ryder (03:51):
Yeah, yeah, I just love it so much.
And what is going on?
What's happening to me?
Going through a metamorphosis?
Yeah, I'm so glad you movedhere from LA, is it?
That's right?
Gillian Bellinger (04:08):
Yes, thank you.
Yes, yes, I'm glad to be here.
Rhonda Ryder (04:11):
Yes.
So can you tell me a little bitabout your story?
When did you get the acting bug?
And then, when did you get theimprov bug?
Because I looked, what is it?
Imbd'd you, imbd, yeah, imbd'dme, yeah, and I'm like, oh man,
(04:31):
she has been on TV and films andstuff.
So, yeah, really cool, reallycool.
So tell me a little bit aboutyou, because I don't know that
much.
Gillian Bellinger (04:41):
Yeah, sure, so my name is Jillian Bellinger.
I am the artistic director andfounder of Misfit Improv Theater
and acting school in Asheville,north Carolina.
Prior to that, though, I livedin LA for 13 years, and prior to
that I was in Chicago.
Prior to that I was inMinneapolis, so I grew up in
(05:03):
Texas.
I've always loved I guess I'vealways loved acting.
I grew up in Waco, so I didn'thave clarity around what it
meant to be a professional actoror how one would even do that.
And my parents, my familythey're academics more and also
(05:29):
ministers.
They're both ministers, so thatwas not their world at all
either.
But I knew I did theater in likeEnrichment Theater in junior
high.
I did it in high school.
I lettered in it even there'snothing cooler than a letter
jacket that says drama.
And then I went to school in StPaul, minnesota, at Hamlin
(05:52):
University, and I got a theaterdegree.
So I just kept doing it.
While I was in college I alsodid two semesters, one at the
London Academy of Theater andone at the National Theater
Institute, and that's when Istarted to really kind of
understand oh, this can be a job, and what does it mean for it
(06:14):
to be a job.
I think it was still the verybeginning of that idea for me,
really mostly because they wouldsay this is work, treat it like
work.
But when I was 19, I didn'thave a relationship with work.
So even the idea of treat itlike a job, I was like, well, I
(06:37):
don't know what that is.
So when I was a barista in thekiosk in the mall, what does
that mean?
And I think it actuallycontinues to reveal itself to me
what it means to be a workingactor or to be a working artist
and how many hats one wears increative spaces.
(07:01):
So I got a theater degree andthen, back in the day it's now
online but there was apublication called Backstage.
It still exists, but it existsas a website now, yes, so it
used to be a newspaper and soyou'd go and you'd read the
auditions that were in Backstage.
(07:22):
And there was an audition noticefor an improv company in
Minneapolis called Stevie Ray'sComedy Cabaret, which also still
exists, and they were lookingfor improvisers.
And I went to the audition andthey invited me to become part
of the ensemble.
Honestly, I think they invitedme to become part of the
ensemble because they sort ofwanted fresh blood, particularly
(07:43):
females, not because I was good, because I was a mess.
I could understand the generalconcepts, but improv is a craft
like anything else, and so Imade all of the mistakes that
every single person that everpicks up improv makes, which is
(08:06):
to walk into a scene and ask mypartner all the questions, or
walk into a scene and steamrollsomebody and try and tell them
what the scene is about bytelling them what to do, like,
great, we're in dance class, I'mgoing to tell you what move to
do with every part of your body,which is fine.
It just doesn't really createcomedy.
And they were gracious enoughto let me learn.
(08:28):
Really, they created a spacefor learning and then I did some
workshops and shows at a placecalled Brave New Workshop and
then I became part of basicallyit was like a farm team is how
it was referred to, but a farmteam for comedy sports in
Minneapolis, and that gave me alot as well, because we started
(08:57):
I just started to get more reps,right, I just started to play
more shows with more people, getmore scene work under my belt,
and then I got moved from thefarm team to the ensemble and
then, pretty quick after that, Imoved to Chicago Like I had
fallen in love with improv.
I had asked folks who werefancier improvisers than I was
(09:22):
where should I go, and they saidgo to Chicago.
You need to go to Second City,which is what I did.
I moved to Chicago with afriend that I met in Comedy
Sports Minneapolis.
We both moved to Chicago, weboth did improv at Second City
and I just fell more in love.
It takes a long time.
It's like becoming a painter,becoming a hotter life.
(09:46):
It really is a skill.
Rhonda Ryder (09:48):
Yeah, an incredible skill.
Gillian Bellinger (09:51):
So then, yeah , so then I did the programs at
Annoyance.
I did the program, I did threeor four programs at Second City
and then I moved to LA and thenI started teaching for Second
City in Second City, hollywood,and I also worked a lot with a
theater called Westside ComedyTheater and I was on their
(10:13):
touring company.
So they have a bunch of collegeshows that they tour, a little
script based, a little improvbased.
They also have a touring showcalled Mission Improbable.
That is all short form improvand I did that at the home show.
So I just really like right whenI got to LA I started to hit
(10:34):
the sort of my 10,000 hours ofreps to change and I knew who I
wanted to be as an improviser,but I couldn't get myself there
until I had just done it enoughtimes really, and then it just
happened.
It just happened.
(10:56):
I didn't have to fight to makeit happen the way that I did
when I was younger and I wasable to deliver a consistency
with ease to being on stage in away that I ate couldn't when I
was a beginning in anintermediate improviser and I
could diagnose a scene a lotfaster or have a bit of comfort
(11:20):
around the fact that I didn'tknow what I was gonna say and I
didn't know what my partner wasgonna say, but that was okay.
Rhonda Ryder (11:28):
Sort of like right now I'm like I don't know what
you're gonna say.
I don't know what I'm gonna sayand that's why, frankly, I took
up improv.
You know, laura, one of yourstudents, my friend.
She told me she was going hereand we had talked about improv.
Then I said, oh okay, yeah,here we go, let's do it.
(11:50):
And I really wanted to do it tohelp me with my speaking, with
the podcasts and also withcoaching, with everything.
But lo and behold, I didn'tknow that all these other things
were gonna happen and that Iwas gonna really enjoy it this
much and that it would have somany benefits in my life.
Gillian Bellinger (12:14):
So what would you say?
Rhonda Ryder (12:15):
the other things that happened are yeah, yeah,
well, definitely, I feel like itis helping me with the podcast.
But I would say the practice ofbeing present, which I really
am into, and that's kind ofsomething that I'm passionate
about practicing.
(12:35):
But improv helps you do that.
Improv trains you how to bepresent in the moment, when, not
just when you're sitting therelike meditating or walking on a
nature walk.
But I've talked about thisbefore on my show that I was
always an overprepare.
(12:56):
I really chronic overprepare,and I told this story recently
where I gave a talk.
I was in some kind of sharktank competition and I totally
bombed and I thought I was gonnawin and I stayed up all night
and I couldn't sleepoverpreparing, overpreparing.
There were three people I gavein third place and it was just
(13:18):
like I was definitely not in themoment.
I was so in my head and everytime I had a speaking engagement
, I had speaking engagements.
Then I would get so nervous andreally feel it wasn't fun.
It wasn't like an enjoyableexperience because I was in my
head and I was overpreparing andso I just wasn't trusting
(13:42):
myself at all.
So this is helping me just ineveryday life, just freeing me
up so much and I'm having somuch fun.
I didn't know that thisimproviser was in there.
Yeah, like I didn't know her.
Yeah, I hadn't let her out in along, long, long long time.
Gillian Bellinger (14:03):
Yeah, yeah.
How does she feel differentthan the persona you normally
operate by?
Rhonda Ryder (14:11):
Yeah, yeah, I think before I was very guarded
and very cautious, just notbeing able to let the words flow
because I was self-conscious,and so the improv helped me to
just speak more naturally andjust let it flow, without trying
(14:34):
to edit myself or filter myself, just really being more of me
and then realizing that I havethe side of me.
I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, but I mean you thought, I was
a performer, you know, yeah, Ididn't, I wouldn't have.
Gillian Bellinger (14:50):
I mean, you are a performer, you do have a
podcast.
Rhonda Ryder (14:53):
Yeah, I am a performer.
Yeah, I'm a performer, let'sface it.
But I didn't know that I hadthe improv gene.
Sure, Like you, I have a degreein theater, but it was mostly
for writing, writing plays andstuff like that.
I remember doing an improvclass eight or nine years ago in
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
(15:14):
I did see a glimpse of her then.
Yeah, interesting, I saw itthen and they were like you
should do this, you should domore of this.
And I was like yeah, yeah, yeah, but the timing is the timing.
And here you are, you showed upto Asheville.
Gillian Bellinger (15:31):
That's why you called me.
That's right, thank you, youspecifically called me into
existence.
Rhonda Ryder (15:42):
Yes, you made it happen.
I summoned you.
Yes, I did.
I did.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So how are you liking it herein Asheville?
Gillian Bellinger (15:51):
Yeah.
So it's an interesting question.
So we moved here because myparents are here half the year
and they're getting older.
Right, we wanna be close tothem, we wanna spend time with
them.
My husband's mother is inVirginia, so she was also on
this coast and I think aftergoing through COVID we just sort
(16:13):
of felt like A there was a bitmore flexibility to what our
professional lives could looklike, because so much moved to
virtual.
So that gave us a bit morefreedom than we felt prior to
COVID.
But I think also COVID broughtinto focus this feeling of
mortality and what it means whatwould we regret or what matters
(16:38):
or how do we wanna spend oureveryday?
And so being near family justbecame a larger priority and so
we moved here.
So I would say one thing welove we love being able to spend
time with our parents.
That is very joyful.
They're only here half the year.
(17:00):
I would say we're stilladjusting to a couple things.
One, we're adjusting the size.
I mean Asheville is 2% the sizeof Los Angeles, so it is just
quite a bit smaller and likeit's also about the size of Waco
when I was growing up.
So in a way I sort of feel like, every time I moved, I went to
(17:24):
a larger city, and this is thefirst time I've come back to a
smaller one.
And not only that.
I live a little bit outside ofAsheville.
I live in a town calledWaynesville, which is about
10,000 people, so it's evensmaller.
Rhonda Ryder (17:37):
I mean smaller than even what I grew up in.
Gillian Bellinger (17:42):
So that is an adjustment.
It's not good or bad, it's justvery different.
It's sort of notably differentthan every day.
I mean I could walk down myblock in LA and get a coffee and
here it's a 20 minute car ride.
Not good or bad, just verydifferent.
So it changes all the habits oflike how we operate on a
(18:05):
day-to-day basis.
I would say.
The other thing is that, and aresult of that is there's improv
shows every day of the week inLos Angeles at multiple venues,
and so I could step in with ateam kind of anytime I wanted to
, and also I was known in thatcommunity.
(18:25):
So it was very simple for me todo a show, or be asked to do a
show or I don't know, just playbecause I just wanted to play.
And that is different here.
Right Is that shows are morespecial because they aren't as
consistent.
There isn't an improv theater.
(18:49):
There are performance spaceswhere improv shows happen, and I
would say one of the missionsof Misfit is to make that improv
community bigger so that wedon't just see the same people
on stage all of the time, thatwe get to see a world of people
(19:09):
that are performers in Asheville.
Yeah, I mean that feelsimportant to me.
So the other thing I would sayis we definitely are building
community in Asheville.
We still very much miss ourcommunity in LA.
I mean, I was there for 13years, my husband was there for
(19:31):
20 years and we had reallystrong networks.
So to move to a place as anadult without a network and also
we don't have children, so tobe in our 40s without children
is a thing right To like makefriends in that space.
So we're still getting used tothat, like who are our people?
(19:54):
What is our community look like?
How do we find a sense ofcomfort in deep relationships?
And I don't know that.
We haven't answered that yet,which is okay, right, it's just
the natural.
That's not.
I don't think that's unnatural,I think it is a process that
we're in.
Rhonda Ryder (20:15):
Yeah, interesting.
Because me looking at you, ohmy gosh, she has so many friends
, she's so connected.
But really you're new here,you're not even here a year yet
right, and so you're in themidst of building these networks
and connect.
Gillian Bellinger (20:31):
Yeah, that's true.
So it's been 13 months.
We're just over a year.
Rhonda Ryder (20:36):
Yeah, so that was interesting what you said about
it's important to you to havemore people performing and stuff
like that, because last nightone of our teammates, monica,
said I wanted to know whateveryone wants, what everyone's
goals are, cause some peoplejust wanna be there, just wanna
(20:56):
play, just for play and enjoy,and I get a sense some people
maybe don't want to perform.
I mean, in the three classesI've taken, some people don't
wanna do that beyond stage or bein the showcase.
But I'm interested in likesticking my toe in the water and
just experimenting with thatand seeing how that feels.
But I sense that will like Idon't know, it's just exciting
(21:19):
to hear you say that, that youwant more performance.
Oh my gosh.
Gillian Bellinger (21:23):
it's exciting and terrifying at the same time
, yeah yeah, yeah, and I thinkimprov is the way I sort of
think of improv is.
There's a metaphor to yoga, forme anyway, which is improv is a
practice.
Right, I can play just likeyoga.
So you know, there's that yogateacher saying that, like the
(21:46):
mat never changes, it's how youcome to the mat that changes.
I feel the same way aboutimprov the games don't change,
it's about how I come to thegames that changes.
So I could play an improv gamea million times, which I have
right, I've played, I don't knowwe'll just pull one out of a
hat, like I've played Blind Line.
(22:06):
I've probably played that gamethousands of times and it's, the
game doesn't change, I change.
So how I come to that game isgoing to change every time I
play it, and that's also what'ssort of interesting about it.
And I think in that momentthere are there.
(22:28):
We come to it in all kinds ofways.
Some people come to improv justto play.
They want to be creative Great.
Some people come to improv tomake a career out of it Great.
Some people come to do it likeas a craft Great.
Some people do itprofessionally for a while and
then stop, like all of thosethings are possible, just like
(22:49):
with yoga.
Some people become yogis, somepeople don't.
Some people do it for a littlewhile, some people do it as a
hobby.
Like it.
It is definable by the personwho's experiencing it, which I
think is something is.
One of the gifts that improvgives everyone is that it is
available to everyone.
Rhonda Ryder (23:13):
Yeah, yeah, and it's funny.
I did notice that I had anexperience where I was feeling a
little I don't know what theword is, I wouldn't say insecure
but all of a sudden I hit upagainst a little bit of a wall,
like do I really belong here?
I think I shared it in class.
Gillian Bellinger (23:30):
Yeah, you did .
Rhonda Ryder (23:32):
It's funny because the name of your company is
Misfit Misfit Improv and ActingSchool and I hit up against that
wall feeling like do I belonghere?
Because these people areamazing, they're so talented.
But everyone was so welcoming,so it wasn't me, it wasn't them.
And then all of a sudden, Idon't know what happened, but I
(23:52):
changed.
Like you said, somethingswitched in me or clicked and I
came in like before I was like Idon't want to host, I don't
want to host a game, I don'twant to host a game, for I'm
just here for the fun.
Then, all of a sudden,something switched and I was
like yeah, you can host, ofcourse you can host you host a
podcast, yeah, right, yeah.
(24:14):
And being on stage, yeah, soyeah, I could see what you're
saying, how you change.
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Now back to the interview.
Can you tell us some of the Idon't know philosophies or
general benefits of improv forthe non-thesbian type person,
(25:25):
regular person that just wantsto know, like, well, why would I
take improv?
Why would I do that?
I don't want to be an actress,I don't want to get on stage.
What are some of the benefitsof doing an improv class?
Gillian Bellinger (25:36):
Yeah.
So the philosophy of improv isyes, and, and as an idea it
sounds simple, right?
You come to me with when I'mthinking of it in just layman
terms or layperson terms.
You come to me with an idea, aquestion, a person, a project.
(26:01):
I yes it, which isn't to say Iagree with it.
It means that I accept that youhave brought this thing to me
and then I and it.
And what the and means inregular life is that I build a
bridge between what you havebrought to me and what I think,
feel or do with that.
So it is to me yes, and inpractice is to be in creation
(26:29):
with someone, even if thatcreation is just a conversation.
And in order for us to yes andeach other, I have to be
listening to you and I have tobe choosing to connect to you,
even if that is difficult, whichI think in life it can be
certainly, and I have to bepresent enough, in both my own
(26:55):
experience and receptive to you,to know how to build that
bridge.
So when I think about whatimprov is in practice, I think
of it as it is both asurrendering of control.
I choose to be present.
You have brought this to me.
I was not expecting it.
I had not, I did not have thispreplanned, or maybe I did, but
(27:16):
it shows up different than Ithought, or it shows up exactly
like I thought and now I engagewith that from the form of
connection.
So you and I find somethingtogether and we make it.
(27:36):
Whether that's a conversation,whether that's I'm a leader and
you're my direct report and weneed to build a project, whether
that's I'm a leader, we're in afeedback conversation.
I have to give you feedback,you give me some I wasn't
expecting.
Now we have to figure our waythrough that.
You're a family member.
(27:57):
You say something I don't likeat Thanksgiving dinner.
I have to find a way to accept,not agree, accept and build a
bridge to connection, whichdoesn't mean I give up my
ideology, whatever that might be.
So let's say you know, somebodysays something off color.
(28:17):
I can say I accept that thishas been said and I do not feel
that that is appropriate here.
We will not engage with thisfurther.
So one of the myths or I don'tknow what the right word is, but
one of the myths is that yesand means I'm always in
(28:40):
agreement with everyone, always.
And that isn't what it means inpractice?
Actually, it's more the art ofsurrender while building
something with someone else.
It isn't a panacea and thereare moments where I say no, I
might say no and I might say no.
And here is what I think aboutthat right.
(29:02):
So when I think about thebenefits of what improv can give
to people the ability to listen, really listen and I mean like
I'm not always doing itperfectly I do think it has
given me the gift of being abetter listener and I think it
(29:23):
has given me the gift of findingconnection even when it's
difficult, and I would say itimproves communication.
So it makes you a bettercommunicator.
It builds relationship.
(29:44):
It requires you to operate froma place of trust.
It requires you to overcome thefear of the unknown.
All of those things are thingsthat happen in life.
It challenges us to engage injoy.
I think the challenge of it isalso to be in a state of
(30:04):
learning, feel like a growthmindset perspective.
Yeah, I don't know.
Is that enough things?
Rhonda Ryder (30:10):
Yes, well, I wanted to circle back.
That is, I love it.
I love it, it's so true, all ofit.
And I want to go back to twothings that you said.
And it's the yes and, of course, is a big thing in improv, and
I see you demonstrating that andmodeling that a lot.
And also I also sense that youhave boundaries too and you know
(30:33):
what your boundaries are.
So it's okay if you say no, butthe yes and is a tool.
The yes and is like instead of ayes, but Like a yes but is yes,
yes, I hear you, but you reallydon't hear them because you
want to get your opinion inthere and let them know that
(30:53):
they're wrong.
But yes, and is a communicationtool as well.
In real life.
It's a wonderful way tonavigate sort of like nonviolent
communications like yes, I justsee you hear you, yes, like in
class.
I'm in class yes, and so you'rereally learning valuable
(31:18):
communication skills that youcan take into your regular life.
I like, even with my dad, like,oh, I could have done that.
I could have done thatyesterday instead of going you
can't believe everything youread on the internet, dad I
could have said yes, and youknow.
So it's just yeah.
Yeah, it's wonderful, and I waslistening to a podcast I guess
(31:42):
it was last night.
I was just trying to brush upon some things for today's
interview.
I think it was a.
It was a really old interviewwith Alan Alda and Tina Fey.
You're familiar with that Well.
Gillian Bellinger (31:57):
Alan Alda has like a corporate, a corporation
that goes, that helps othercorporate companies with improv,
which is also what that's whatmy day job is.
I didn't work for Alan Alda'scompany, but but that's what he
does.
He works with we're dead, workwith people, just people,
because he's he died, right.
Rhonda Ryder (32:17):
I think he did.
Yeah, um, but so this was like2018.
And so it was him and Tina Fey.
Um, he, it was interesting,they're both shy.
They said they're both shy.
And then I was listening toanother show where there's
actually a lady.
I did the improv class withinMyrtle Beach, gina Trimarko, and
(32:38):
she said that introverts reallymake good improvisers because
they're really good listeners.
Yeah, but just to know that ifyou're shy or if you're an
introvert, that this is perfectfor you as well.
Gillian Bellinger (32:54):
You know if it's something you wanted to try
.
I wouldn't describe myself asan extrovert.
Rhonda Ryder (33:00):
Oh no.
Gillian Bellinger (33:02):
Okay, no, like even when you started and
you said I just don't reallyreally know very much about you,
that's because I'm not anextrovert, right, I mean I don't
, um, I have a persona as aperformer, um, but but yeah, I
(33:25):
don't know that.
I would say I'm shy, but Iwould say I'm private and so
yeah and so, and I also don't.
It requires an immense amountof energy for me to put even
just to teach it.
It requires a fair amount ofenergy, and I do think there is
(33:48):
some truth to the.
To the listening piece.
Rhonda Ryder (33:51):
Yes, yeah, absolutely yeah, oh.
And the other thing I wanted tosay is improv can help you with
sales.
If you're like in that mindsetthat I want to focus on sales,
improv is a great tool for that.
Can you speak to that a littlebit?
(34:13):
Sure.
Gillian Bellinger (34:15):
So if I am a sales person, I need to solve a
problem for my buyer, right,whatever that problem is, but I
don't actually know what thatproblem is.
I can make some assumptionsabout what their particular pain
point is, to use a real salesterm, um, and if I'm not
listening to them, then I'm notactually providing a solution
(34:39):
for them that really is going tospeak to the specificity of
their particular situation.
Listening also allows us tobuild deeper relationships.
When I build deeperrelationships, I build a better
business for myself andultimately, hopefully, my
network gets wider because I'mable to function from a place of
(35:03):
trust with the people that Isell to.
So it's a it's an incrediblyuseful tool when thinking about
how do I build relationship, howdo I listen and also, what do I
do when I don't know what tosay, which sometimes you might
be in a pitch and you don't knowwhat to say, or they do.
(35:27):
Well, I think a couple thingsOne, take a breath, uh, and I
think transparency, honesty,which is something we talk about
in class, is, uh, is somethingthat often reads.
People laugh at it and they cansense when something is
authentic and being able to say,hmm, I don't really know what
(35:50):
to say to that that's honest andtrue.
If it is.
Anyway, in this hypotheticalsituation, let's say Um, and,
and we actually build trust bybeing vulnerable with people.
So when we are able to behonest and say, that's a really
interesting perspective.
I haven't really thought thatthrough.
I'm going to need to give mysome thought to that before I
(36:13):
respond.
I that I had not thought of itthat way.
Let me think about how we couldstill make this work in the way
that you need it to, and Idon't want to rush to an answer
because I've just never thoughtof it, right?
So two things I think that arereally useful.
I think the other thing is iswhen we are operating from, yes,
(36:39):
and it allows us to be in aplace of innovation.
So if you say something I'm notexpecting, to which I would
make the case, is everyconversation that we've ever
been in, ever.
So when people say to me I'mnot an improviser or I've never
done improv, everyone has doneimprov they're doing it all of
(37:01):
the time, right?
If you've ever been in aconversation, if you're a parent
, if you're a child, so it is,we're already doing it.
It's just that when we go intoa classroom setting.
We lay on this like performanceelement to it that some of us
(37:22):
may embrace and some of us don't.
To me, the performance is it.
When we get down to the crux ofimprov isn't super important.
Right, I can take an improvclass to pull all of these
skills that we're talking about,so that when I'm in that sales
conversation and I don't knowwhat to say, I can really listen
(37:42):
and say, yes, what I heard yousay was this and this is me just
spitballing here is what thatbrings up for me.
And then there's a sharing ofideas.
That's occurring.
So then you're in collaborationwith the person, with your
client or your customer, howeveryou want to refer to them, and
(38:02):
you're building somethingtogether.
Yeah, I realize that's like anidealized idea, because I have
been in sales before, andsometimes just even getting a
conversation with that person is90% of the battle of who you're
trying to sell to, and onceyou're in that conversation,
though, being available to be inrelationship with them is
(38:27):
really valuable.
Rhonda Ryder (38:30):
Yeah, yeah, but yes, and like repeating back to
them what you heard and thatcreates relationship.
They feel heard.
I was listening to somethingyesterday about so many people
these days are afraid to sell.
It's just like I'm serving, I'mbeing here for you, and I was
(38:50):
like, oh, my God, that's me,like I'm, that's me, I'm a coach
and I just really want to servepeople and if they want to
coach with me, great If theydon't.
But then I was listening tothis and it's yes, but there's
this other piece.
You are still serving them.
If you say here's what I see,here's a recommendation, here's
(39:12):
a path forward for you, thatwould help with this.
And I was like, oh, I reallylike that.
Can you talk a little bit aboutthat?
Gillian Bellinger (39:20):
I can.
I'm a corporate trainer and acertified coach and I work with
generally mid-level executives.
As a coach and as a corporatetrainer.
I started doing corporateimprov training, so experiential
corporate training where weliterally go in with improv
(39:41):
exercises and build connectionto your average everyday
person's experience.
Then from there, really throughreferrals from other
improvisers, I moved intolearning and development with a
couple of other organizationsthat do topic-based trainings.
So I do trainings aroundfeedback, I do challenging
(40:05):
conversations, I do what isfeedback?
Rhonda Ryder (40:10):
Are you training them on how to give, or?
Gillian Bellinger (40:13):
receive.
I'm training them on both.
Usually I train on I don't know50 plus maybe even more
different topics and allemotional intelligence or
psychological safety, or thegrowth mindset, or what
(40:34):
motivates people, or delegation,or time management, or business
writing.
Those are all classes that Iteach.
Only, I do everything virtuallynow.
So I'm in a Zoom room having anexperiential class, I'm
following a PowerPoint and atthe same time, in real time,
(40:57):
people are putting things intothe chat or they're talking to
me and I have to respond.
Right, I have to be presentwith them to hear them, I have
to acknowledge them.
I have to then take whateverthey've said and link it to
whatever the content is about.
I also have to.
It doesn't mean that everythingthey say I agree with.
(41:19):
I might want to adjust a littlebit what was offered.
So every once in a whilesomeone will say something and I
think no, but I have to be verydiplomatic.
So what I say is yes, I hearyou what you?
have just said, and theadjustment that I would make to
(41:41):
that statement is blah, blah,blah, blah, blah.
Right, so my day career has Ialso work as a consultant as
well.
So your average artist actor,there's a lot of hats and I wear
a lot of hats.
Um, I also.
I'm still auditioning.
I also I was gonna ask youabout that.
(42:04):
Yes, yep, yep, so I'm alsostill auditioning.
I'm also running Misfit.
I also am teaching, right,performing and running town.
I'm also still performing.
Rhonda Ryder (42:15):
Yep, it's yes, so your improv skills led you into
this day career.
Yep 100%, yeah, 100%.
Awesome, jillian.
Is there anything that youthink?
Anything else, like, say, forsomeone who doesn't want to take
an improv class, sure, but arethere some tips, and tricks or
(42:36):
hacks that you could share withthem to improve their
communication or their abilityto be in the present moment or
just enjoy life?
Gillian Bellinger (42:46):
Yeah, I mean I would say a couple things, so
you hear me do this on a regularbasis, but I literally use the
phrase yes and and.
For a lot of people it willfeel clunky at first and we
don't want it to be inauthentic.
However, I have built it intomy lexicon to force myself to
(43:10):
find connection and I, you know,we have to mean it right.
I could say yes and I like icecream, and the other person
could say yes and no, I don't.
Right, we actually need them.
We need to mean it when we sayit, and I actively try and do
that.
So I would say, linguistically,you can start to incorporate
(43:34):
the phrase yes, which means Ihear you.
And then, what do you think,feel or want to do about that?
The other thing I might offeris someone says something pause,
pause, just take a breath,right, what do you really want
(43:56):
to say?
Or do you need to say anything,if anything?
Yeah, and I think someone that Ithink is really really good at
this and is fascinating to watchin interviews is Mr Rogers.
I think he was one of the bestlisteners I have ever seen in my
life, so much so that I thinkhe made other people
uncomfortable because he was sopresent with them and every
(44:22):
interview I've ever seen him inhe takes a beat and very
carefully he responds, and Ithink it's beautiful to watch
and also disquieting for somepeople and I kind of think maybe
that's a good thing.
(44:43):
Like what is it to be fullypresent with each other?
Yes, so I would say those twothings are really useful.
I think the other thing isknowing.
It is an ideological battlethat maybe we, some of us, have,
which is the fear of steppinginto the unknown and just
reminding ourselves, from amindset perspective, that the
(45:05):
unknown also holds joy, inaddition to a multitude of other
things, and the fear that wefeel may manifest itself in
resistance, and that resistanceis based on evidence that we
have predetermined but we don'tactually know is true, and so we
(45:26):
might find only joy in thatunknown.
We might find play, we mightfind laughter, we might find a
friend.
Rhonda Ryder (45:37):
Yes, I want to add that to my list of benefits
that I have gotten so far.
Is that the unknown and how?
It's a metaphor for life, likeyou don't know what you're going
to say next.
And a lot of times, especiallyin the beginning in the improv
classes, the tendency well forme anyway is to try and plan
(46:00):
ahead what I'm going to say, aswe're going around like I have
some time, but then you lose thepresent moment.
You're out of the presentmoment now because you're trying
to figure out what you're goingto say, so you missed what the
art person said and so you'renot responding in real time, so
you can't plan ahead, becausethat totally defeats the whole
purpose.
Gillian Bellinger (46:21):
Yeah, and I might even offer that, like you,
don't need to plan ahead, right, we're capable individuals that
have spoken conversations ourwhole lives.
Yeah.
Rhonda Ryder (46:32):
We'll know what to say.
I know, but that's what's soincredible is the things that
come out of my mouth.
You know, from this, where isit coming from?
Like you don't have to worryabout planning because there it
was and then I got to laugh or Ididn't.
You know it was funny or itwasn't, but I still in the
(46:53):
funniest moments are.
For me is like I'm not tryingto be funny, I'm just correct
and I was saying that.
Gillian Bellinger (46:59):
listening that's the funniest moments, for
the audience too.
Yeah.
Rhonda Ryder (47:04):
Yeah.
So then that transfers intoyour life of the fear of the
unknown and life in general,that, oh, I don't have to be so
afraid of the unknown because itworks out and maybe I am afraid
, yeah, and that's okay andthat's okay, I do it anyway.
That's okay too.
Gillian Bellinger (47:24):
Feel the fear and do it anyway.
You know, because there's, I amafraid, often and that's okay,
like part of it is just sayinglike, yep, feel that, okay, yes,
yeah, I don't know how thisgame is going to work.
Or even there was a moment inclass last night where I, in my
(47:46):
head, I just inverted who wasdoing what in a game and I was
like explaining it.
And then, you know, a studentwas like isn't it reversed?
And I was like, oh, yeah, ittotally is.
And it just flew out of mybrain, right, but in that moment
there's this little bit of likeI did something wrong and
everyone just watched me dosomething wrong.
And then I'm like, okay, whichI think is one of the gifts of
(48:12):
improv, is just to go yep, yeah,and for sure I'm going to keep
going.
Rhonda Ryder (48:16):
Because in the beginning it was like, oh my God
, I screwed up, oh my God it's,you know, not too bad, I wasn't
too bad.
But if I screw up, quoteunquote, screw up, because we're
not really screwing up.
But then it's like, oh gosh,embarrassed, or whatever.
And then learning thateverybody's doing it like that,
I mean, yeah, there is noperfection.
Gillian Bellinger (48:37):
Yeah, there is no perfection, and just even
that idea of like I did it wrongis like.
I mean, you were in learning,Thank God you did it wrong.
That's part of if you weren'tdoing it wrong, then you're not
in a state of learning.
Rhonda Ryder (48:52):
So that's another benefit right there.
Yeah, because you get more andmore accustomed to being okay
with quote unquote failing, yeah.
Gillian Bellinger (49:02):
Yeah, I mean, that's actually one of our
student commitments is that weallow ourselves and others the
grace to fail?
Rhonda Ryder (49:10):
Yes, yeah, and I love the community.
And then at the end we all pateach other on the back and say
got your back, got your back.
Another thing you learn inimprov is what's in service of
the team, what's in service ofthe show yeah, and what's in
service of the scene and what'sin service of the scene, so you
(49:31):
don't always have to be frontand center stage with all eyes
on me.
It's like, well, how can I bestserve my team and the scene?
Yeah, yeah, oh man, I just loveit so much.
Thank you so much for talkingto me today and for moving to
Asheville for me when I summonyou.
Gillian Bellinger (49:52):
Thank you, it's my pleasure.
Thank you for being in ourclasses, thank you for being
part of our community, thank youfor bringing your joy and your
light and your I mean just thefun that you bring to your
experience and on stage.
Rhonda Ryder (50:07):
Yeah, yeah, I love it.
Gillian Bellinger (50:09):
You kidding, which you know.
If any of your listeners are inAsheville, we have a show on
the 21st, if anyone wants tocome Show at 7.
Rhonda Ryder (50:18):
Yes, so, oh yeah, that's our showcase if you're in
Asheville.
So this is where I ask you,jillian, to share anything you
want to share.
How can people find you?
Jillian Bellinger, and also MsFit, tell us all the things.
Gillian Bellinger (50:34):
Okay, great.
So I primarily am on Instagram.
You can find me on Facebook,but I don't really use it.
It's, you know, just a vehiclefor my parents to see pictures
if I feel like posting them, soI would go to Instagram and the
first one I would go to is MsFit, which is Ms Fit ABL.
So Ms Fit, asheville at Ms FitABL.
(50:57):
And then for me, specifically,it's at Jillian Bellinger, and
Jillian, even though you mightnot be able to hear it, has a G.
It's spelled with a G, likegiraffe or ginger.
Rhonda Ryder (51:09):
So at Jillian Bellinger, yeah, yes, and your
website is your website.
Gillian Bellinger (51:15):
Sure, you can go to there.
Jillianbellingercom.
Yeah, okay, you can IMDB me.
Rhonda Ryder (51:20):
Yes, yes, she's been on Disney and all kinds of
stuff.
Ooh, look her up, yeah.
Gillian Bellinger (51:28):
Or don't, it's fine.
Rhonda Ryder (51:30):
Or don't, but yeah , no, it's cool and the name of
your company is.
Gillian Bellinger (51:36):
Ms Fit, improv and Acting School, yes,
yeah.
Rhonda Ryder (51:39):
Really great, great improv school here in
Asheville, beautiful, beautifulAsheville, asheville.
So thank you so much, jillian.
Yes, I know you're filling infor one of your teachers tonight
, so you've got to run, that'strue.
Thank you so much for thisvideo.
Thank you, rana.
Okay, take care, okay, bye.
I hope you enjoyed this episodewith Jillian Bellinger, director
(52:02):
and founder of Ms Fit Improvand Acting School.
The best way to connect withJillian is on Instagram.
At Ms Fit AVL or at JillianBellinger.
Jillian is spelled with acapital G.
You can also find her atMsfitAVLcom.
And here are a few ways you canconnect with me, which I would
(52:23):
really like.
You can join my Facebook group,delicious alignment.
You can subscribe to my YouTubechannel and leave a comment, or
subscribe to this podcastwherever you listen to your
shows.
This way, you'll never miss anepisode.
You can also follow me onInstagram at deliciousalignment.
(52:44):
Feel free to tell your friendsabout this podcast.
I would so appreciate that,because you sharing this podcast
is the absolute number one bestway to help us grow.
All the links mentioned are inthe show notes as well.
Join me every Thursday for anew episode.
And that's it for today, myfriend.
See you next week.
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