For many of us, the idea of making mistakes is daunting. At an improv class for seniors in Calgary, older adults embrace vulnerability by learning to make mistakes and showing that it’s never too late to learn how to handle failure.
The Family Leisure Center (FLC) Seniors Club operates out of the Trico Centre in Southeast Calgary. It offers a wide selection of activities to unite older adults from across the city, keep them active, and help them feel at home.
One of their popular activities is the acting club, which offers many classes for seniors, ranging from beginners’ acting to scene study, playwriting, and even improv.
Barry Piercey has been the instructor at the FLC since late last year.
Piercey has been involved in the acting community for many years, but since his retirement in the summer, he’s been having fun teaching improv classes to older adults.
“I’m lucky enough to have sold my business so that I can put my efforts now into doing things that are fun and enjoyable,” said Piercey.
Learning to fail
Since taking on this role, Piercey’s teaching goal is that failure is okay.
For most of our lives, we are taught to pursue perfection and to view ourselves negatively when we don’t get things right.
But, in Piercey’s improv class, he wants older adults to unlearn the idea that they need to be perfect to grow.
He teaches them to embrace the notion that failure is both good and necessary.
Learning to make it up on the spot
In improv, actors don’t have a script. They have to invent their dialogues on the spot. So, trial and error are essential to their unique and candid exercises.
“A lot of people’s adult life, you learn to not fail,” said Piercey. “You try to do your best and try to succeed. Improv goes against that.”
Virginia Bouthillier, a member of the FLC since the fall of 2024, joined a drama class after her husband passed away.
“Instinctively, I knew that I needed to do more new things,” she said.
After her time with the drama class, Bouthillier signed up for her first-ever improv class.
“This class is really fun, it’s spontaneous, and it’s fun, and you have to think fast. It’s just a riot,” said Bouthillier.
The benefits beyond the improv stage
Lifelong learning is important for seniors, as mental stimulation can help delay the cognitive decline that comes naturally with age.
Learning new things in older adulthood can help improve memory, create new neural connections, and strengthen problem-solving skills.
For Bouthillier, the benefits of joining the club and the improv class have been clear.
“I think it inspires you and I think it activates your brain cells and your personality,” she said.
Bouthillier appreciates the lessons she has learned in this class.
“It frees you up to be who you are, and to not be afraid,” said Bouthillier with a smile.