OUT OF THE HEAD AND INTO THE SPACE with Jenelle Cheyne and Mike Brunlieb

Jenelle and Mike have worked together for more than 10 years and together bring over 25 years of experience practicing and teaching Viola Spolin improvisation. Known as the mother of improvisation, Spolin’s approach encourages players to discover their own artistic solutions to theatrical problems – a method that is both more challenging and more rewarding, empowering players to make their own discoveries. In this workshop, we will explore games that help players get out of their heads and into the space, engaging the whole body in the present moment and allowing for true spontaneity and surprise.

JENELLE CHEYNE originally hails from Vancouver, Canada. She has performed in The Holy F*** Comedy Hour and Trigger Happy at The Annoyance, improvised on a number of teams at iO, and performed at Logan Square Improv with her team Real Angels. While working at The Second City she has sailed the seas, toured the country, and been an ensemble member of ETC 48: Best Kept Secret: Tell Everyone, and ETC 49: Chaos Theory of Everything. She is represented by Paonessa Talent Agency and Reign Talent and you can find her on social media @jamealchameal.

MIKE BRUNLIEB is a performing and teaching artist in Chicago. He improvises with the ensembles ‘Sand’, ‘Real Angels’, and ‘3 Actors Living in a Cave’, most often performing at the wonderful Logan Square Improv theater (check them out!). Mike has received multiple awards during his fifteen years of performing and teaching improvisation, including being recognized three years in a row as one of Chicago’s top improvisers by the iO theater. He studied at the Paul Sills Theater Game Center (and beyond) with Aretha Sills and Carol Sills, and at iO Chicago with TJ Jagodowski and Dave Pasquesi. He has performed and taught improvisation internationally in Europe, Asia, and Canada. Mike has also performed in a handful of TV and film projects, including “Southside” (HBO), “Joe Pera Talks with You” (Adult Swim), and “Trial of the Chicago Seven” (Netflix).