Most improv is taught in a very top-down method. Typically, throw people into things with a little explanation, and then tweak things as needed to get performers into a desired state. In fact, I'd wager that every teacher I've had has taken this approach. It's just easier, since there are so many things that have to be juggled at once, to let the human naturally fill in the gaps of the performance than to force a player to have to think about everything all at once. I think of this as a holistic approach; even though a smart instructor will know to break down certain skills or simplify scenework to narrow a student's focus, it's still necessary for a pupil to be developing a number of skills concurrently. I believe the result here is why I am constantly teaching (and learning) active listening as a basic skill.
This is quite different from other arts/crafts/skills; I remember learning to drive and first learning street signs, right-of-way, and blind spots before being allowed behind the wheel of a two-ton steel death machine. Artists learn composition and point-of-view before painting the Sistine Chapel, woodworkers learn how to cut straight lines before building a house, and you learn to read by first learning sounds - you don't jump from "c-a-t" to "Anna Karenina". When I was first learning to play an instrument, you start with a few notes, then you play "Mary had a Little Lamb", then scales, then time signatures, then space chords, and eventually you work your way up full orchestral pieces. I think of this as a reductionist approach - where the focus is on building individual skills before putting them all together.The reductionist approach is easier for learning complex skills, so why don't we approach teaching improv in that manner? Quite simply actually: "Mary had a Little Lamb" is fucking boring. And even more importantly, the basic principles of improv, like "no planning", translate into the uninitiated as "you don't need to practice this, you just get up and do it!" The seemingly low entry requirements are a welcome encouragement for neophyte players, but also make it difficult to focus the naive to work only on skills for the first few lessons. Or, is it maybe better to throw new players completely into it right away? Screw basics, just give them the piano and the sheet music for "Flight of the Bumblebee", and let them figure it out on the fly. Watching an experienced player rip through something difficult effortlessly might make you think you could, but new performers have to learn the scales first.
