How improv training can create compassionate behavior. | Rich Hollman | TEDxLincolnSquare

Millions of years of evolution have fine-tuned our autonomic nervous system to detect risk and avoid it. In this talk about the art of improvisation, Hollman shares his personal experience of how saying yes and following the fear can create a much more compassionate world.

Rich is an actor, improviser, teacher, writer, musician and activist living in New York City. He earned his BA in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1999 and his MFA in acting from New School University in 2004. As an actor, Rich has performed regionally and in many Off-Broadway venues including The Cherry Lane Theater, The Lucille Lortel, Playwrights Horizons, La Mama Etc., and Playhouse on Park in West Hartford, CT. He's also appeared in tv roles including; Law and Order, Guiding Light, All My Children and As The World Turns. Additionally, his film work has been seen in the New York Television Festival where he also won a Best Writing award for the original pilot, 'Actualized'. Rich teaches acting and improv at the New School, The People's Improv Theater (The PIT), where he is currently on the faculty, the Buckley School and The Pelham Film Institute.he is the creator of Care Packages for the Homeless, a charity bringing essentials to NYC's homeless.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx