Improvisation
Photo by the Manila Improv Festival 2023 team
From 2021 to 2023, Bea continuously trained in various improv formats under Third World Improv, led by teachers from SPIT Manila. After graduating, she has performed in improvisation festivals in Manila and abroad and performs in paid shows outside of the school.
Today, she is part of the Manila-based musical improv group, the Improv Sessionistas.
Improv Sessionistas
A Musical Improv Group
Photos by Mon Larin
Founded by improvisers Rye Capulong and Den Viagedor, the Improv Sessionistas are a Manila-based group primarily specializing in musical improv. The group creates stories, songs, and scenes using suggestions from the audience. The Sessionistas are open for hiring for gigs, events, and shows.
Bea has been part of the group since her first performance with them at the Manila Improv Festival in 2023.
Manila Improv Festival 2023
An International Festival
Photos by the Manila Improv Festival 2023 team
The 2023 Manila Improv Festival — the first time the festival was again held in the country after the pandemic — saw improvisers from all over the world gather at Circuit Makati to perform shows they conceptualized, take workshops, and mingle with each other.
Bea performed with the Improv Sessionistas in her debut performance and also joined one of the international improv jams held on the large stage.
Singapore Improv Festival
Improv Abroad
Photos by Aih Mendoza and show guests
In 2022, Bea’s first improvisation group, the Disappointed Guardian Angels (DGA), was one of the international groups selected to perform at the Singapore Improv Festival in September, held at the Aliwal Arts Centre. The group had just graduated Level 5 of Third World Improv’s course and decided to embark on their first international show together.
Third World Improv
A Filipino Improv School
Screenshots by Bea Racoma and photos by improv classmates
To learn the principles and various formats of improv, Bea enrolled in Third World Improv, a Manila-based improvisation school founded by members of SPIT Manila. There, she completed 5 levels of their foundational improv courses with her group DGA, taught by the late Aih Mendoza. She also completed one musical improvisation course with her second group, the 6-9ers, taught by SPIT Manila members Aih Mendoza and Karl Echaluse.
