My duo partner, Katy Schutte is one of the absolute top improvisers in the whole world. She’s a globally-renowned teacher, a startlingly talented performer and a published author too. I’ve been so very lucky to work with her for so very long. But the things that inspire me the most about her aren’t the obvious things.
Here are five ways that we could all afford to be more Katy.
There’s this omnipresent myth that artists and creatives must be daydreamy and flakey. That we should all be manic dream pixies or flighty will-o'-the-wisps. Not Katy. She is rock solid. If she says she’ll be somewhere, she will be there. Appointments go in the calendar and are followed up with confirmation emails. If she can’t do something, she doesn’t um and ah about it until the last moment and then let you down. She just tells you she can’t/ doesn’t want to do it. You know where you stand with her. Always.
Katy is a god-tier improviser. But she has so many strings to her bow that it looks more like a harp. She is restless in her creativity. She writes songs. She does voice-overs. She is a playwright and a theatre maker. She knitted me the best hat I’ve ever owned. Then she disappeared off to the Arctic to research a cosmic horror play. She’s not content to be categorised as just one thing. Her year-long Mythic Improv Journey class, exploring creativity, witchcraft and storytelling is like nothing else out there and sells out almost immediately. She follows her own path and finds joy in constantly reinventing herself whilst always remaining true to her essence as an artist.
Katy wants our art form to feel inclusive and recognises that the key to that is the diversity of our teachers, performers and audiences. She has walked away from lucrative projects because they don’t fully share her values. Katy embodies some under-represented identities herself and actively works to promote and elevate others. I find her stance fierce and inspirational. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be a woman in some comedy and theatre spaces. She carries it with such grace and grit.
Katy taught me the importance of self-care. She has battled with anxiety and depression but has never let it truly get the better of her. She has implemented a hundred little habits that allow her to look after herself more robustly. She saves money so she can give herself sick days as a freelancer. She blocks off weekends to spend time with her partner. She got a lovely dog. She meditates and does yoga and goes for runs. She does these things and very rarely talks about them. She does them because they are helpful, not so she can brag about them or construct an online image of herself that is more favourable. She walks up mountains, carrying everything she needs to survive on her back, and thinks nothing of it. I am in awe of that level of self-possession.
Once Katy is your friend, she will fight for you. She will think of you and recommend you for other jobs. She will talk you up when you’re not there and randomly send you thoughtful gifts in the post. I suspect she doesn’t let a huge amount of people into her inner circle and the reason for that is that she’d be exhausted if she put that much effort into too many people. I’ve seen her make decisions that actively hurt her financially because it was the fair and right thing to do. I am incredibly proud to be her friend as well as her improv partner. I am relieved and happy we ran a business together and ended up better friends after the experience. We are very different people in a lot of fundamental ways but I couldn’t imagine a world where I didn’t get to make art with Katy Schutte.
So there we are. I hope this has inspired you to let the Katy Schuttes in your life know that you appreciate them (even if your Katy Schutte is also Katy Schutte). Please visit https://www.katyschutte.co.uk/ and sign up to her mailing list - you should absolutely work with her if you have the chance.
<aside> 💡 Hey, my name’s Chris Mead. I write an article about improv almost every week. You can get the latest in your inbox by subscribing to my newsletter. Or check out the archive.
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