Interpreters from all over the east coast traveled to Providence for TERPexpo this past weekend.  As a new interpreter, I have a love/hate relationship with workshops.  I love learning new information, I hate realizing I have a a long way to go.  This love roller coaster didn't seem like such a long ride when a few presenters used an arts integrated approach to their topics.  Peter Cook and Crom Saunders applied Acting I and improv lessons to teach interpreters how to better understand Characterization and describe the indescribable.  Not only did we learn how to broaden our ASL skills, but there was a feeling of openness and acceptance amongst the group.  I also noticed that the idea of "Yes, and...." can be useful with teaming.  In improv, everyone needs to contribute ideas and accept ideas equally to keep the story flowing and funny.  So if I was leading my group in one direction for an improv skit and another person took the lead, they would transition by accepting my story so far ("Yes"), then adding their own spin ("...and...").  I worked with Curtiss, another RI interpreter, to become an inanimate object with a personality.  Our creation of an exhausted treadmill needed quite a few "Yes, and..." moments.  We ended up creating a vivid relationship between a treadmill and an enthusiastic runner.  I can see this technique working well with teaming.  After all, it is two cast members sharing the same goal to keep the story flowing.