Irreverente Festival
With almost a decade of experience, RocÃo is a passionate improv performer and educator, currently working as a director, producer, stage manager, teacher and regular member of The VLC Playground, the only theatre company in Valencia where improvisation is taught and performed in English. She also co-founded the alta sensibilidad project with Adrià Lerma, which focuses on a more conscious and emotional approach to improvisation, based on her experience as a highly sensitive person (HSP).
RocÃo is active in the international improv scene, participating in festivals and continually exploring new directions for the art form. Her work spans a variety of experimental styles of improvisation, including abstract, feminist, interdisciplinary, and performance-based forms. With a master’s degree in Applied Theatre, she uses improvisation for educational and self-discovery purposes. Always pushing the boundaries of what improvisation can be, RocÃo is dedicated to creating innovative and inclusive spaces for both performers and audiences.
WORKSHOP
Can you keep a secret?
(Teatro)
(EN)
Yes, and...set sail! A journey into One Piece
(Theater)
(EN/PT)
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Beginner in Impro (already with some experience such as courses and/or performances)
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Advanced and Professional in Impro (already with a few years of experience and/or career in Impro)
Japan is my first and most lasting love. In addition to speaking Japanese and having lived in Japan, the culture and the way they see the world have always accompanied me in the way I live my life. That's why, when thinking about imaginary worlds that I would like more people to know, I couldn't help but remember my favorite manga: ONE PIECE!
In this workshop, participants will learn how to fill their scenes with hidden motivations and unspoken tensions that add depth to the worlds they create. They will develop the ability to build worlds where what is unsaid becomes as important as what is spoken. This will lead to more engaging and suspenseful storytelling.
MIXED TEAM WORKSHOP
In the Spirit of Ghibli is a fully improvised journey through the silent magic of Studio Ghibli. Through rich scene painting and emotionally charged stage work, the performers create dreamlike worlds where the mundane meets the fantastic. Each scene unfolds like a Ghibli story—filled with wonder, emotion and transformation—inviting the audience into a poetic and immersive experience.
Ghibli films create universes where the everyday and the fantastical intertwine naturally, revealing wonder in the simplest moments. Through improvisation, I would like improvisers to build and inhabit these worlds on stage, using scene painting, environmental storytelling, emotionally anchored scenes, and silence to evoke the magic of nature and the human connection that goes beyond words.
We are not looking for a hero's journey, but rather a feeling, an atmosphere, a way of being in the world that connects us to nature, magic and everyday life.
In the spirit of Ghibli
(Teatro)
(EN)
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It's for EVERYONE (with or without experience)
TALK
"Creating Realistic Worlds Without Cultural Defaults" (EN)
This talk is about a challenge my team and I keep running into: how do we create realistic worlds in improv without relying on the usual cultural defaults? When performing for an international audience, local references don’t always work, so we often fall back on the biggest shared imaginary—aka, the USA. And honestly? We don’t love that. We don’t want every character to be named Jimmy, every setting to be Kansas, or every joke to be about Jesus. But at the same time, referencing other cultures feels risky—we don’t want to be superficial or offensive. So we’re experimenting with unbranded improv, stripping away specific names, currencies, and traditions to see what happens. It’s messy, weird, and exciting, and I’d love to share our struggles, what we’ve learned so far, and open up a conversation about it.