Gabriela Marcu proudly displays three framed diplomas on her wall.
One is her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California, Irvine.
Another is her Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University.
Finally, there’s her diploma from the Pointless School of Improv.
What started as a means of escape from the tumult of work life, improv has infiltrated that world for Marcu, and she could not be happier with the result.
“When I first started improv, it was my attempt to have a life outside of work and have a hobby, and that worked just as much as it failed because it became such a part of what I do, and it transfers so well that I found different ways to bring it into my work life,” said Marcu, assistant professor of information in the School of Information.
“I just loved that my worlds were colliding.”
That collision started about 10 years ago when she received her Ph.D. and started teaching at Drexel University in Philadelphia. New to the city and seeking a social life, she signed up for an improv workshop.
“I’d always been a huge fan of comedy. I loved ‘Saturday Night Live’ and sketch comedy, but I never imagined doing something like that myself,” she said. “During that first workshop I realized how much I needed it because the whole process of getting your Ph.D. is becoming an expert at something, and so having to just make something up on the spot was so terrifying.”
It was both terrifying and exhilarating, and it tapped into her performance background as a dancer, which she had done since she was 4. She went through an entire curriculum of workshops and classes in Philadelphia over the four years she was at Drexel before moving to Ann Arbor six years ago.
She quickly discovered Pointless Brewery & Theatre, which offered its own improv curriculum and performance venue. She went through that curriculum and even took a stab at auditioning for parts in the house team there.
Pointless closed not long after the pandemic, and Marcu only recently delved back into the improv world when hear.say brewing + theater opened this year.
“Having something right here made me get into it all over again, so I started with 101 and I’m going through the whole curriculum again just to keep learning and getting better at it,” she said.
The classes focus on improv tenets such as collaboration between performers, and creating characters, such as using physicality or changing voices. While it helps hone skills, improv is inherently about discomfort.
“Improv is all about being comfortable with uncertainty. It’s being comfortable with failing,” Marcu said. “It’s not having a plan and still moving forward confidently and just trusting and listening really well.”
Because performances are with at least one other person, trust between the improvisers is paramount.
“You have no idea where you’re going, but you’re going somewhere together,” she said. “Actually trying to be funny or trying to steal the scene is counterproductive because you need to support your partner and build something together rather than trying to just get the quick laugh.”
Marcu makes a point of attending improv shows several times a month, sometimes weekly. She said doing improv has helped her in the classroom, where she creatively engages around 200 undergraduate students. Even after doing many shows and taking multiple curricula of classes, Marcu said she feels the butterflies when she takes the stage.
“It’s what tells you you’re alive,” she said of stage fright. “You certainly get more comfortable and confident in certain ways, but there are ups and downs. Right when you feel like you’re getting good, you have a very humbling day where you just bomb.
“There’s always a level of thrill and discomfort to it, but you just get better at navigating it.”
She has brought improv to UMSI in conjunction with the university’s Year of Democracy, Civic Empowerment, and Global Engagement. Inspired by an event in Philadelphia that featured Drexel faculty members, Marcu launched Extra Credit, a monthly improv series featuring UMSI faculty and improvisers at hear.say.
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The first event was Oct. 6, with successive ones from 6:30-7:30 p.m. on the first Sunday of the month at the brewery and theater. At the first event, UMSI faculty members Mark Guzdial, Elle O’Brien and Joyojeet Pal each gave 10-minute talks about their research as it related to democracy, with each being followed by improv acts by a team of former Pointless performers.
Marcu served as emcee and said the event was a hit in the intimate theater setting.
“It was gratifying to see people come together and burst with that much laughter and joy,” she said. “The world is on fire. We all work very hard. What I wanted to create was an opportunity to feel connected to one another and share in something fun.”
Q&A
What memorable moment in the workplace stands out?
I remember when I was interviewing for this position, and as I was preparing my talk I got some specific feedback on how to present my research. It felt so good to get constructive feedback that I knew was going to make me better, and that was setting me up for success during the interview process. That moment only sticks out to me more because it really was representative of what it’s been like to work here. I feel very supported and that my colleagues make my work better.
What can’t you live without?
My two Italian Greyhound mixes and little black cat.
Name your favorite spot on campus.
The North Quad courtyard, with trees that turn bright yellow for just a short time every fall.
What inspires you?
Being outside in nature.
What are you currently reading?
“The World’s Worst Assistant” by Sona Movsesian.
Who had the greatest influence on your career path?
The professors I got to know when I was part of the small, first cohort of B.S. informatics students at the University of California, Irvine. I got to see the passion with which they built this program for us, especially David Kay and Andre van der Hoek. And it was there that I found my research home, human-computer interaction, when I got to work as an undergraduate researcher with Gillian Hayes. I chose my career because I wanted to have the same impact as these people.
