Why Whitney Houston’s “It’s Not Right, But It’s OK” Is An OK improv scene
This works as a very efficient improv scene
It’s a classic from 1999 and when it came on the radio last week (for UK readers, it was on Kisstory which is one of my go-to stations for throwbacks) I heard it in a new light. My mind immediately thought “you know what, this isn’t a bad structure for an improv scene” albeit we only have one person’s point of view.
I realise this might be a stretch for some people. I genuinely like the way this song is lyrically structured and I think it would be a very adequate improv scene. Is it perfect? No. Is it a pretty neat template when you think about it? I’d argue so. It’s not the “right” way to do improv, but it’s ok.
Let’s break it down to each part.
First verse
Friday night you and your boys went out to eat, uhhh
Then they hung out
But you came home around three, yes you did
If six of y'all went out, ah
Then four of you were really cheap, yeah
Cause only two of you had dinner
I found your credit card receipt
Now this is great. You have an instant reveal of the gotcha moment. There’s no unnecessary coyness and we avoid what could otherwise be a long walk for a short swim. Whitney confronts the cheating partner and provides the jury (audience) with some evidence.
Chorus
It's not right
But it's okay
I'm gonna make it anyway
Pack your bags up and leave
Don't you dare come running back to me
It's not right
But it's okay
I'm gonna make it anyway
Close the door behind you, leave your key
I'd rather be alone than unhappy, yeah
Whitney has chosen how she feels about this. It’s not the obvious choice of “I’m going to shout at you and have a big argument on stage”. Instead, the choice is “obviously this sucks but I’m bigger than this” and Whitney is clear when she states the reality and how she feels about it. This is a super clear and non-obvious choice.
Second Verse
I'll pack your bags, so you can leave town for a week
Yes I am
The phone rings
And then you look at me
(Why'd you turn and look at me?)
You said it was one of your friends
Down on 54th Street, boy
So why did 213,
Show up on your Caller I.D.?
Again, more evidence, so the point is illustrated more adequately. She knows this has been going on for a while and she’s not doing the “oh this is a total shock” scene, she’s doing the “I’ve had this pieced together for a while” scene instead. For me, this is more interesting. It’s more Sherlock Holmes than soap opera.
Bridge
Oh I've been through all of this before
So how could you think (Don't think about it, don't think about it)
That I would stand around and take some more (Get gone, get gone)
Things are gonna change (Things are going to change, baby)
Cause I've been through all this before
That's why you have to leave (Say yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
So don't turn around to see my face (Don't you turn around)
There's no more tears left here for you to see
Here we have some more historical context and character development. This is something Whitney has experienced enough times, so she knows the course of action needed. That doesn’t mean it isn’t painful, but it’s necessary. That’s a really solid, real choice in an improv scene. “This is hard but this is necessary” is a mixed emotion and that’s a more complex, interesting emotional choice. It’s allowing us to see an “inner conflict” and to me that’s way more interesting than inter-personal conflict.
Third verse
Was it really worth you going out like that?
Tell me, oh
See I'm moving on
And I refuse to turn back
See all of this time
I thought I had somebody down for me
It turns out
You were making a fool of me, ohhh
This verse now shows what Whitney thinks of the person cheating on her. We’ve had the evidence, the emotional reaction, the historical context and now comes the judgement. This is a well rounded scene from Whitney. She’s given us what we need to know about not only the situation and the relationship but also the emotions involved.
Chorus
It's not right
But it's okay
I'm gonna make it anyway (Make it anyway)
Pack your bags up and leave (Get up and leave)
Don't you dare come running back to me (Back to me boy)
It's not right (It's not right)
But it's okay (It's okay)
I'm gonna make it anyway
Close the door behind you, leave your key
I'd rather be alone than unhappy
Absolutely right to underline the point and not add any new information.
Finally, some more lines that indicate how the main character is processing what has happened.
I'm gonna be okay, I'm gonna be alright
I'm gonna be okay, I'm gonna be alright
I'm gonna be okay, I'm gonna be alright
Doh, dooh, dooh, dooh
I'm gonna be okay, I'm gonna be alright
I'm gonna be okay, I'm gonna be alright
I'm gonna be okay, I'm gonna be alright
Dooh, dooh, dooh, dooh
So there we have it. A really solid scene there from Whitney Houston. I think she definitely gets to move on to her level 3 class after that end of term performance.
Craig Cackowski guests in Kornfeld and Andrews: The Radio Plays
From time to time, Rick and Louis are joined by guests. If you have already heard the Auntie Joan episodes with Chet Seigal then I heartily recommend checking out the bumper episode she guested in. The most recent podcast sees Craig Cackowski join Rick and Louis in a hotel lobby where not everything is how it should be. Plus there’s a very peculiar snack in the vending machine.
Festival Talk
There’s just four weeks to go until the Robin Hood International Improv Festival in Nottingham. Tickets to shows are now on sale, and the same goes for some incredible workshops. Things are now starting to sell out with several workshops now completely sold. There are also only a small number of “full festival” passes left, which allow you to see all the shows (and save you £50 on doing so!). Thinking of coming to our legendary city of improv in September? Check out the full details now…
Have a great week,
Lloydie