exercise · all tools
Free Falling
Also known as: Circle of Trust, Safety Net
Depth · what it can open●●○○2 — reflective
Holding · facilitation2 — facilitator
Trust · group readiness★★★established
Disclosure · what is sharednone
One player stands in the middle of a close circle, closes their eyes and lets themselves fall; the others catch them. The source describes a raised variation from a chair or table, and opens by calling the exercise 'nice, but a bit dangerous'.
Hold with care
- The source's own first line calls it a bit dangerous; that is the headline, not a footnote
- A dropped catch injures someone. Catchers need briefing on stance and where to take the weight, which the source does not provide
- The raised variation — falling backwards from a chair or table — multiplies the consequence of a failed catch and should not be treated as the same exercise
- Falling backwards with eyes closed is a real fear response for many people; it must be volunteered for, never assigned
Practical
- Time
- — min
- Group
- ?–∞ · large-group
- Settings
- in-person
- Mechanisms
- somatic-awareness, behavioral-rehearsal
- Change scope
- state · repeatable
Instructions
- Where
- improvencyclopedia.org/games/Free_Falling.html — Improv Encyclopedia, open
- Availability
- Open online — published at the link, free to read
Source link checked 1 Sep 2026 — reachable
This directory describes and points home; the instructions stay with the people who made them.
Origin
Unattributed; compiled by Improv Encyclopedia — Improvisational theatre
In this directory via Improv Encyclopedia · DramaTips
Related: Tossing (alternative-to) · Heave Ho (alternative-to)
status: checked · added 2026-08-31