luke-perone-book-improvising-with-higher-education-stacked-mockup
New Book!

Improvising With and In Higher Education

All Together Now

Improvising With and In Higher Education:

All Together Now

Edited by Luke Perone

Improvising With and In Higher Education: All Together Now is a vibrant, ensemble-created book that reimagines higher education as an environment of radical co-creation, play, and transformation. Across 13 scenes and 9 interludes authored by educators, artists, administrators, community members, and scholars from diverse disciplines and institutions, the book explores improvisational theater (improv) as a tool for embodied learning and holistic human development.

Order directly from the publisher, Palgrave Macmillan:
Get 20% off with this code: PALAUT

Order Here

Or order from your favorite options below:

luke-perone-new-book-improvising-with-highe-ed-single-mockup-square-1

Why You'll Love This Book!

  • Go Beyond the Cognitive:

    While other resources focus on improv for content delivery, this book shows you how to foster deep social and emotional growth, build vibrant communities, and enhance relationality.

  • Unlock the Power of Adult Play:

    Discover why life-span imaginative play is a central, lifelong activity for adult learning and development, and learn how to apply it effectively in higher education.

  • Reimagine Education:

    Move beyond product-focused, teacher-led educational models. This book provides a roadmap for a more holistic, emergent, and agentive approach to learning.

  • Gain A Truly Global Perspective:

    Learn from a diverse group of over 25 international scholars and practitioners who are pioneering the use of improv across a wide range of disciplines and university roles.

  • Find Strategies for Every Role:

    With 13 distinct "scenes" (chapters), you'll find practical applications whether you're in faculty development, student affairs, administration, teaching, or community partnerships.

  • Experience a Radically New Approach:

    This book doesn't just talk about community—it models it. A unique format features insightful dialogues between the authors, giving you a deeper, more collaborative understanding of the material.

  • Become a Catalyst for Change:

    This book is more than a collection of activities; it’s a tool to help you and your institution imagine and create who you can collectively become.

  • Explore a New Paradigm:

    Understand the "performance approach," a powerful psychological framework that positions human beings not as passive reactors to their environment, but as active co-creators of their world.

“A must-read for anyone invested in the future of higher education. In an era where innovation is critical, the authors make a powerful and timely case for incorporating improv across all levels of academia, from classrooms to administrative offices and beyond. They skillfully demonstrate how readers can apply the principles of "yes, and ..." to extend the book’s insights, fostering collaboration and innovation.”

Erik Haroldson
Assistant Professor, California State University, Sacramento, United States
luke-perone-book-improvising-with-higher-education-single-mockup-square-ver-2

Take a Peek...

Cast Members/Book Contributors:

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-1

Luke Perone

University of Washington Tacoma
Tacoma, Washington, USA

Scene 1: Let’s Create New Higher Education Performances
*AND Scene 2, Scene 11, and Scene 13

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-2

Anna Santucci

University College Cork
Cork, Ireland

Scene 2: Performing Higher Education: Improv is/as Radical Co-creating

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-3

Eric B. Toler

University of North Carolina Greensboro
Greensboro, North Carolina, USA

Scene 3: Empowering Life Performer-Learners: Lloyd International Honors College at UNC Greensboro

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-4

Omar H. Ali

University of North Carolina Greensboro
Greensboro, North Carolina, USA

Scene 3: Empowering Life Performer-Learners: Lloyd International Honors College at UNC Greensboro

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-5

Colin P. Stewart

University of Portland
Portland, Oregon, USA

Scene 4: Embracing a “Yes, and…” Philosophy to Engage With Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-6

Estevan Parra-Guerrero

California State University, Fresno
Fresno, California, USA

Scene 4: Embracing a “Yes, and…” Philosophy to Engage With Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-7

Shimel Her Saychou

California State University, Fresno
Fresno, California, USA

Scene 4: Embracing a “Yes, and…” Philosophy to Engage With Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-8

Deyanire Del Toro

California State University, Fresno
Fresno, California, USA

Scene 4: Embracing a “Yes, and…” Philosophy to Engage With Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-9

Krista Longtin

Indiana University Indianapolis
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Scene 5: Improvisation as a Narrative of Faculty & Learner Growth and Development in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-10

Jacob Watson

Indiana University Indianapolis
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Scene 5: Improvisation as a Narrative of Faculty & Learner Growth and Development in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-11

Amy Baldwin

University of Georgia School of Medicine
Athens, Georgia, USA

Scene 6: Working From the Margins: Changing Our Institutions and Ourselves One “Yes, and…” at a Time

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-12

Edwin Sperr

University of Georgia
Athens, Georgia, USA

Scene 6: Working From the Margins: Changing Our Institutions and Ourselves One “Yes, and…” at a Time

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-13

Jerry Gale

University of Georgia
Athens, Georgia, USA

Scene 6: Working From the Margins: Changing Our Institutions and Ourselves One “Yes, and…” at a Time

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-14

Ruth Harman

University of Georgia
Athens, Georgia, USA

Scene 6: Working From the Margins: Changing Our Institutions and Ourselves One “Yes, and…” at a Time

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-15

Gwen Lowenheim

Pace University and East Side Institute
New York, New York, USA

Scene 7:  Say “Yes, and…” to the Remix: A Practical Philosophical Approach to Meaning Making, Discovery, and Learning in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-5

David Belmont

East Side Institute
New York, New York, USA

Scene 7:  Say “Yes, and…” to the Remix: A Practical Philosophical Approach to Meaning Making, Discovery, and Learning in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-2

D. Baylor

Rutgers University
New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA

Scene 7:  Say “Yes, and…” to the Remix: A Practical Philosophical Approach to Meaning Making, Discovery, and Learning in Higher Education

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-1

Pedro Morales-Almazán

University of California Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, California, USA

Scene 8: The Human Side of Mathematics: Using Improv as a Framework for Developing More Meaningful Mathematical Connections

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-11

Jorge Burciaga-Montoya

Universidad Pedagógica Nacional del Estado de Chihuahua (UPNECH)
Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico

Scene 9: Teaching During the Pandemic: The Art of Creating Class Environments Full of Creativity, Performance, and Technology

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-6

Yeshica Anneliese Márquez Melchor

Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez (UACJ),
Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico

Scene 9: Teaching During the Pandemic: The Art of Creating Class Environments Full of Creativity, Performance, and Technology

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-7

Carrie Lobman

Rutgers University
New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA

Scene 10: Creating New Performances of Teaching and Learning

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-8

Jose Carlos Barbosa Lopes

Fatec São Paulo and Faculdade Méliès
São Paulo, Brazil

Scene 12: Brincadas Project: Playing Towards an Equitable and Just Society

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-15

Luciana Modesto-Sarra

Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo
São Paulo, Brazil

Scene 12: Brincadas Project: Playing Towards an Equitable and Just Society

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-14

Fernanda Liberali

Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo
São Paulo, Brazil

Scene 12: Brincadas Project: Playing Towards an Equitable and Just Society

luke-perone-flying-bird-graphic-10

Viviane Carrijo

Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo
São Paulo, Brazil

Scene 12: Brincadas Project: Playing Towards an Equitable and Just Society

What People Say About "Improvising With and In Higher Education"

“In this uplifting and liberating volume, we’re invited to peek behind the curtains of other possible performances in higher education. The ensemble of writers show us the transformational potential of applying a performance and improvisational lens to our worlds. A long overdue text for those curious about the boundless possibilities of play, improv, and performance.”

Richard Bale
Senior Teaching Fellow, Imperial College London, United Kingdom, author of “Teaching with Confidence in Higher Education: Applying Strategies from the Performing Arts

“This book is a tremendous offer to higher education, providing an innovative approach that redefines how we teach and learn. It introduces applied improv as not only a tool to foster creativity, collaboration, and active engagement, but also as a mindset and approach to life. By embracing this fresh perspective, we can create more vibrant, inclusive learning environments that enable people to thrive and flourish.”

Jiunwen (June) Wang
Senior Lecturer, Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore

“At a moment when higher education desperately needs new performances that move beyond competition, atomization, and communal disconnection, this groundbreaking new book invites faculty, staff, and students to improvise their ways forward. Saying “yes, and…” to the playful, emergent, and relational spaces that generate all forms of knowledge to begin with, the book’s authors perform the very types of imaginative growth and development envisioned throughout. A must read for transforming higher educational contexts!”

Don Waisanen
Professor, Baruch College, City University of New York, United States; Author of “Improv for Democracy

“An inspired application of improv principles to higher education. Through their creative process in developing the book, the authors have demonstrated its very thesis - with an improv mindset and wholehearted collaboration, new and exciting ways of being in academia emerge!”

Peter Felsman
Ph.D., LMSW, Assistant Professor of Social Work, Oakland University, United States

“It’s difficult to write about improvisation in a way that is improvisational and yet that is what this book manages to do. In an increasingly scripted context of higher education, this transformative work offers an alternative that makes room for the vitality that improv can teach us to seek, practice, and cultivate.”

Samuel Jaye Tanner
Associate Professor of English Education at the University of Iowa, United States and co-author of “Storytelling and Improvisation as Anti-Racist Pedagogies"

“This book is a ground-breaking contribution to pedagogical discourse, redefining the role of play and improvisation in higher education. It offers practical insights that educators can implement immediately, empowering them with new teaching strategies.”

Tugce B. Arda Tuncdemir
Assistant Professor of Early Childhood/Elementary Education, Penn State Harrisburg, School of Behavioral Sciences and Education, Middletown, PA, United States