Improvisational theatre, often called improvisation or improv, is the form of theatre, often comedy, in which most or all of what is performed is unplanned or unscripted: created spontaneously by the performers. In its purest form, the dialogue, action, story, and characters are created collaboratively by the players as the improvisation unfolds in present time, without use of an already prepared, written script.
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of improvisation can apply to many different faculties, across all artistic, scientific, physical, cognitive, academic, and non-academic disciplines; see Applied improvisation.
Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California. As of 2020, the estimated population was 40,779. The city was named after its founder, Harry Culver. It is mostly surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, but also shares a border with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Over the years, it has annexed more than 40 pieces of adjoining land and now comprises about five square miles (13 km2).
The Groundlings are an improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles, California. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniques were used by Del Close and other members of the Second City, located in Chicago and later St. Louis. They used these techniques to produce sketches and improvised scenes. Its name is taken from Shakespeare's Hamlet, Act III, Scene II: "...to split the ears of the groundlings, who for the most part are capable of nothing but inexplicable dumbshows and noise." In 1975 the troupe purchased and moved into its current location on Melrose Avenue.
The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre is an online American improvisational theatre and training company founded by the Upright Citizens Brigade troupe members, including Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts and Matt Walsh. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, UCB had locations in the New York City neighborhoods of Hell's Kitchen and the East Village, and on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. UCB was located in Chelsea West 26th Street location from April 2003 until November 2017, after which it moved to Hell's Kitchen, 555 West 42nd Street in December 2017. The second NYC theatre located in the East Village opened in 2011, and the Los Angeles expansion started in 2014.
Viola Spolin was an American theatre academic, educator and acting coach. She is considered an important innovator in 20th century American theater for creating directorial techniques to help actors to be focused in the present moment and to find choices improvisationally, as if in real life. These acting exercises she later called Theater Games and formed the first body of work that enabled other directors and actors to create improvisational theater. Her book Improvisation for the Theater, which published these techniques, includes her philosophy and her teaching and coaching methods, and is considered the "bible of improvisational theater". Spolin's contributions were seminal to the improvisational theater movement in the U.S. She is considered to be the mother of Improvisational theater. Her work has influenced American theater, television and film by providing new tools and techniques that are now used by actors, directors and writers.
Matthew Paul Walsh is an American comedian and actor, best known for his role as Mike McLintock in Veep for which he received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations. He is a founding member of the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy troupe, with which he co-starred in the original television series and the 2015 reboot. He also previously starred in short-lived comedy programs such as Dog Bites Man and Players, and was a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He has also appeared in films such as Road Trip (2000), Bad Santa (2003), School for Scoundrels (2006), Role Models (2008), The Hangover (2009) and The Do-Over (2016).
Robert Anderson Huebel is an American actor, comedian and writer best known for his sketch comedy work on the MTV series Human Giant and for his role of Dr. Owen Maestro on the Adult Swim series Childrens Hospital. He also appeared as Russell on the FX/FXX series The League and as Len Novak on the Amazon series Transparent.
Gary Austin was an American improvisational theatre teacher, writer, and director who founded The Groundlings theatre company in 1974.
Unexpected Company is an improvisational comedy group founded in Hollywood, California in 1986 by Tim Hillman, and recreated in Rhode Island in 2003 by Hillman and Justin James Lang.
The Magnet Theater is an improvisational comedy theatre and improv school in New York City.
The San Francisco Improv Alliance is a group of actors dedicated to improvisational theater. It was started in 2005 by Shaun Landry, artistic director of Oui Be Negroes. The Alliance offers performance opportunities to upcoming ensembles, stages self-produced shows, co-production of pre-established ensembles, master class workshops and national ensembles and community outreach in the field of improvisational theatre.
Theatre Strike Force is the University of Florida's premier improv and sketch comedy troupe. The group also goes by TSF. The style of improv performed by Theatre Strike Force is a combination long form and short form. They both teach and perform improvisational comedy. They have six house teams which include both forms of improv as well as a sketch team. There are four long form house teams which are cast every semester and usually have six to eight members. The TSF Short Form Team is cast every semester as well and usually has fifteen to nineteen members. TSF Sketch is the final house team and usually has twelve to sixteen members, cast each semester.
Philly Improv Theater, or PHIT, is a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania comedy theater which produces and presents shows at The Adrienne Theatre in Center City Philadelphia. The theater also operates a training center with programs in improv comedy, sketch comedy and stand-up comedy. PHIT's most notable alumnus is stand-up comedian Kent Haines, who was the 2008 winner of the Philly's Phunniest contest at Helium Comedy Club and has appeared on public radio show The Sound of Young America and Season 4 of Comedy Central's program Live at Gotham. In addition to Haines, other comedians from Philadelphia who appeared on stage at PHIT have gone on to perform at major comedy venues in cities like New York and Los Angeles, founded their own theatre companies, and appeared in touring productions for The Second City.
The Tenderloins are an American comedy troupe composed of James "Murr" Murray, Brian "Q" Quinn, and Sal Vulcano. The group stars in the television series Impractical Jokers, which premiered on December 15, 2011. The program airs on truTV in the U.S. and on Comedy Central in the UK, Ireland, and India.
The Peoples Improv Theater (PIT), also known as the PIT, is a comedy theater and training center in New York City, founded by comedian Ali Farahnakian in 2002. Shows combine improvisational comedy, sketch comedy, stand-up, theater, and variety. Each show is hosted by a combination of "house teams" of comedians hired by PIT and by outside comedians.
Galyn Görg, also credited as Galyn Gorg, Galan Gorg and Gaylyn Görg, was an American actress and dancer, best known for her role in the film RoboCop 2 as Angie, the villain Cain's girlfriend and subordinate; on M.A.N.T.I.S., television's first black superhero program, as Lt. Maxwell; on the television show Twin Peaks as Nancy O'Reilly; and as a starring dancer on two separate Italian variety shows, Fantastico on the channel RAI and SandraRaimondo Show on the channel Canale 5.
The Dinner Detective Murder Mystery Company is a nationwide theatrical production company based within the United States. The Dinner Detective Murder Mystery Company specializes in interactive murder mystery dinner theater entertainment in both public and private show environments. Created in 2004 by Scott and Kelly O’Brien in Culver City, CA, The Dinner Detective employs actors from The Second City, Improv Olympic, Upright Citizens Brigade and many other improvisational theater schools across the country. They perform original scripts that involve heavy audience interaction as well as a four-course sit down dinner.
Matthew James Gourley is an American actor, comedian, and podcaster best known for his work on the Superego and Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend podcasts, Drunk History, and as a Volkswagen spokesperson.
