Archives: January 2011

Mandy Spivey has been with The New Movement from the very, very beginning and has always had its back with her trusty camera, irrepressible winsomeness, and get-to-it spirit. She created Fanatic Feature and has interviewed notable Newmovmenters since the beginning of our blog. Now FF finally has the opportunity to celebrate Ms. Spivey! Mandy is a member of The Control Group, and in addition to being blogger extraordinaire for Improv Wins, she writes for several other magazines and blogs including her own. Style, verve, hipness oozing out her ears: it is this writer’s contention that Mandy Spivey makes Zooey Deschanel look like a piece of crap.

If a baby alien wanted to know why improv is important what would you tell him?

First off, I would ask him if he’s hungry or wants a glass of water, because it’s just hospitable to do so when you have a guest on your planet. After I got that out of the way, I would tell him/her/it that improv is a secret, magical force here on earth that combines the power of the human mind and creativity with your best friends’ ideas and feelings. We all do this by saying “Yes” to each other, and building on ideas collectively and for a greater purpose than just normal conversation. Then I would tell him/her/it that we can go anywhere in the world! Even without a time machine or seat belts.

What is your favorite comedy endeavor you’ve been involved, and what is your favorite non-comedic project?

I love sketch comedy! Comedic scenes are the best, especially when you can turn the real life funny into funny things you can laugh at on stage. When I am not doing comedy-type things, I like to cook meaty dishes, take pictures of pretty things I see around me with my intimidating camera, and daydream about the grander purposes of humanity.

What inspires you the most?

What inspires me is seeing the human condition in its most open and vulnerable state- like when that quiet guy at work finally lets loose and knocks the crap out of a pinata at the company picnic and isn’t afraid to dive on the ground and get dirty while fighting with colleagues for a Snickers bar. When people are truly in their element is also something that inspires me- seeing people do what makes them happy makes me feel better about my life and what I am doing, in general. I still consider myself on the quest for my own “element”, so I love getting ideas from different creative people I know and from all over!

What is your motto?

I have a few, but my favorites are: “Fake it til you make it.” (this helped me a lot in college and improv), and from Winston Churchill’s mouth “The truth is incontrovertible, malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end: there it is.”