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Philly Improv Theater
Philly Improv Theater, or PHIT (pronounced "fit"), 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. History PHIT was founded as a nonprofit in October 2005 by Greg Maughan, with assistance from local improvisers Bobbi Block, Matt Holmes and Alexis Simpson. The or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philly Improv Theater Logo 2017
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since 1854, the city has been coextensive with Philadelphia County, the most populous county in Pennsylvania and the urban core of the Delaware Valley, the nation's seventh-largest and one of world's largest metropolitan regions, with 6.245 million residents . The city's population at the 2020 census was 1,603,797, and over 56 million people live within of Philadelphia. Philadelphia was founded in 1682 by William Penn, an English Quaker. The city served as capital of the Pennsylvania Colony during the British colonial era and went on to play a historic and vital role as the central meeting place for the nation's founding fathers whose plans and actions in Philadelphia ultimately inspired the American Revolution and the nation's independenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kevin McDonald
Kevin Hamilton McDonald (born May 16, 1961) is a Canadian actor, voice actor and comedian. He is a member of the comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall, who have appeared together in a number of stage, television and film productions, most notably the 1988–1995 TV series ''The Kids in the Hall''. He played Pastor Dave in ''That '70s Show'', and also starred as a co-pilot in the 2011 web comedy series '' Papillon''. He also does voice work in animation, most notably for providing the voices of Agent Wendy Pleakley in the ''Lilo & Stitch'' franchise, Waffle in '' Catscratch'', and the Almighty Tallest Purple in ''Invader Zim''. He starred alongside Rodney Dangerfield and Dom DeLuise as the titular character in the gangster parody film '' The Godson''. Early life McDonald was born in Montréal, Québec, the son of Sheila and Hamilton "Hammy" McDonald, who was a dental equipment salesman. He moved to Los Angeles, California, at the age of seven, after his father was transferred ther ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Comedy Clubs In The United States
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, Entertainment, or any other entertainment medium. The term originated in ancient Greece: in Athenian democracy, the public opinion of voters was influenced by political satire performed by comic poets in Ancient Greek theatre, theaters. The theatrical genre of Greek comedy can be described as a dramatic performance pitting two groups, ages, genders, or societies against each other in an amusing ''agon'' or conflict. Northrop Frye depicted these two opposing sides as a "Society of Youth" and a "Society of the Old". A revised view characterizes the essential agon of comedy as a struggle between a relatively powerless youth and the societal conventions posing obstacles to his hopes. In this struggle, the youth then becomes constrained by his lack of social authority, and is left with little ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bruce Walsh (playwright)
Bruce Walsh (born ) is a contemporary American playwright and a prominent Philadelphia fringe theater, fringe artist. His works have received attention due to their unique brand of site-specific theater. In addition to theater, he is regular contributor to the ''Philadelphia Metro'' (Philadelphia), a free city paper. Career His plays have been workshopped or produced by The Philadelphia Theatre Company, New Dramatists, 1812 Productions, Montgomery Theatre Project, Crescendo Theatre Company, Temple Theaters, Brat Productions, Alleyway Theatre, and Kaibutsu. While attending Temple University's Theater Program, Bruce was a Bernard B. Jacobs Intern at New Dramatists in NYC and worked extensively as a Teaching Artist for The Philadelphia Young Playwrights Festival. After graduating from Temple in 2001, he joined the legendary Philly Fringe company, Brat Productions, working as a Dramaturg, Playwright and Director. In 2004 he co-founded Kaibutsu, a Philadelphia based guerrilla theat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sketch Comedy
Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and is used widely in variety shows, comedy talk shows, and some sitcoms and children's television series. The sketches may be improvised live by the performers, developed through improvisation before public performance, or scripted and rehearsed in advance like a play. Sketch comedians routinely differentiate their work from a "skit", maintaining that a skit is a (single) dramatized joke (or "bit") while a sketch is a comedic exploration of a concept, character, or situation. definition 3b, Merriam-Webster online. Retrieved 5/4/2019 History Sketch comedy has its origins in |
List Of Improvisational Theatre Companies
Improvisational theatre companies, also known as improv troupes or improv groups, are the primary practitioners of improvisational theater. Modern companies exist around the world and at a range of skill levels. Most groups make little or no money, while a few, well-established groups are profitable. Although improvisational theater has existed in some form or another since the 16th century, modern improv began with the teachings of Viola Spolin in Chicago, Illinois, USA and Keith Johnstone during the 1940-50s in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Spolin's teachings led to the creation of The Compass Players, the first modern improvisational theater company, in 1955. The presence of The Compass Players, The Second City, and ImprovOlympic in Chicago created a strength in the form within the city that continues to this day.Bernstein, David (September 3, 2005)"In Chicago, Honoring Athletes of Improv" ''The New York Times''. Retrieved January 5, 2009. New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Improvisational Theatre
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. Improvisational theatre exists in performance as a range of styles of improvisational comedy as well as some non-comedic theatrical performances. It is sometimes used in film and television, both to develop characters and scripts and occasionally as part of the final product. Improvisational techniques are often used extensively in drama programs to train actors for stage, film, and television and can be an important part of the rehearsal process. However, the skills and processes of improvisation are also used outside the context of performing arts. This practice, known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alternative Comedy
Alternative comedy is a term coined in the 1980s for a style of comedy that makes a conscious break with the mainstream comedic style of an era. The phrase has had different connotations in different contexts: in the UK, it was used to describe content that was an "alternative" to the mainstream of live comedy, which often involved racist and sexist material. In other contexts, it is the nature of the form that is "alternative", avoiding reliance on a standardised structure of a sequence of jokes with punch lines. Patton Oswalt has defined it as "comedy where the audience has no pre-set expectations about the crowd, and vice versa. In comedy clubs, there tends to be a certain vibe—alternative comedy explores different types of material." In an interview with ''The A.V. Club'' after his performance in the 2011 comedy-drama film ''Young Adult'', Oswalt stated: I had come up out of that whole alternative scene, which was all about, "Don’t try it, man. Just go up and wing it. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves as the program's showrunner. The show premiere was hosted by George Carlin on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title ''NBC's Saturday Night''. The show's comedy sketches, which often parody contemporary culture and politics, are performed by a large and varying cast of repertory and newer cast members. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity guest, who usually delivers the opening monologue and performs in sketches with the cast, with featured performances by a musical guest. An episode normally begins with a cold open sketch that ends with someone breaking character and proclaiming, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!", properly beginning the show. In 1980, Michaels left the series to explore other opportunities. He was r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre
The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (shorter UCB Theatre) is an American improvisational theatre company and training center founded by the Upright Citizens Brigade troupe members 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. Members of the Upright Citizens Brigade originally trained with Del Close at Chicago's ImprovOlympic where they created their signature ''ASSSSCAT'' show, the success of which led to the troupe founding the UCB Theatre in New York City. Philosophy The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre Training Center teache ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
IO Theater
iO, or iO Chicago, (formerly known as "ImprovOlympic") is an improv theater and training center in central Chicago, with a former branch in Los Angeles, called iO West and in Raleigh, North Carolina called iO South. The theater taught and hosted performances of improvisational comedy. It was founded in 1981 by Del Close and Charna Halpern. The theater has many notable alumni, including Amy Poehler and Stephen Colbert. The theatre closed briefly in 2020, though the building was purchased in 2021 and reopened on November 3, 2022. Description iO concentrated on "long-form" improvisational structures, in contrast to the "short-form" or "improv game" format of Theatresports, ComedySportz or the television show ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' The iO's signature piece is the "Harold", and the theater featured other forms of improvisation, as well as sketch comedy and stand-up comedy. The building had four performance spaces: * The Del Close Theater - This was the second-largest of iO's the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Second City Training Center
The Second City Training Center was founded in the mid-1980s to facilitate the growing demand for workshops and instruction from the world famous The Second City theatre. Training Centers are located in Chicago, Toronto and Los Angeles. Satellite centers formerly existed in Metro Detroit, Las Vegas, Cleveland and New York City. History The centers offer a variety of classes for different ages. Programs of study include improvisation, comedy writing, acting & scene study, stand-up, clowning, music improvisation, and teen & youth courses. The flagship program is the Conservatory which trains performers in the Second City style of creating sketch comedy through a process of improvisational techniques. The Conservatory requires an audition to enter the program and culminates with a show written and performed for several weeks by the graduating class. Chicago Conservatory Graduates are eligible to audition and perform with the Training Center House Teams. Each center also offers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
