ABSTRACT
It has often been stated that CI eliminated the idea of leader and follower, so it may seem strange that so much of my work focuses on identifying the distinctive qualities of this polar relationship. Within a good improvisation, leading and following are in constant flux. However it soon became clear to me that many people (including students of CI) are not always able to distinguish clearly between the two roles. People often think they are following when they are actually leading and vice versa. Teachers in particular, often have a hard time learning to listen and be led by someone else, particularly when they might consider that person to be less experienced. In Improv 9 leading and following the two roles are purposefully distinguished in order that each is increasingly understood and experienced, thus avoiding any
tendency for the faster, stronger or more experienced, dancer always to be in the driving seat.
