Improv Improvement

Visitors to Mintz & Hoke two weeks ago would have seen Eileen Brangan balancing an award on her head.
Although the public relations executive was following the instructions of some improvisational comedians, she wasn’t goofing off. Brangan was actually honing her presentation skills.
The Creative Team, a New York-based group of actors who have conducted workshops
at Citibank and Mack Trucks, led staffers at the Avon, Conn., shop through a morning-long workshop. Exercises included devising unexpected uses for everyday objects, tossing tennis balls to unsuspecting colleagues and performing various relaxation techniques, all designed to foster creativity in presentation and public speaking.
“It was helpful to be reminded that the unexpected always happens,” said one participant.