“Yes, let’s” — the power of play to find creative flow

A friend of mine recently suggested I write something about play, given the many hours I spend ‘playing’ to create theatre. Instantly my imagination was sparked and a game I play with my Performing Arts students came to mind.

The game follows a very precise script.

Player A: ‘Let’s…(insert whatever comes to mind)

Player B: Yes, let’s.

Then, both proceed to do the thing that player A suggested. Followed by Player B suggesting a new thing to do with exactly the same script.

It is such a simple, but incredibly creative game.

The energy pattern of this exercise is always the same. It starts with individuals saying with uncertainty and not much confidence ‘Let’s…’. Their mind running wild with ‘oh my goodness why would I even suggest that…be sensible…this has no purpose’.

But…with the response ‘Yes, let’s’ from the second player the shyness and worry soon dissipates. The imagination finds confidence and bigger and more outrageous possibilities are explored to add to the end of the ‘Let’s…’ sentence.

I have had people hopping around the room like rabbits, zooming past being aeroplanes, crawling around the floor pretending to be slugs…the imagination has no limits with this game.

By knowing that there will always be a positive response to the suggestion the creative muscle can work with confidence. In the act of embodying the suggestion and play new ideas are developed and explored.

Standing in the midst of the ‘Yes, let’s’ chaos there is a sense of anticipation, always surprise and fun. One can feel how people find their creative flow within a short period of time.

So today what outrageous thing could your creative mind suggest and what if the only answer you could give was ‘Yes, let’s!’?