Patti Stiles is an actress, director, author, playwright, teacher and

improvisation 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 impr ...

artist living in Australia.

Biography

She received her training at

Calgary, Alberta Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Canadian Prairies, Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,30 ...

Loose Moose Theatre The Loose Moose Theatre Company (LMTC), is a theater company based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It was co-founded in 1977, by Keith Johnstone and Mel Tonken. LMTC has an international reputation for developing the theatrical style of improvisation ...

under

Keith Johnstone Keith Johnstone (born February 21, 1933) is a British and Canadian pioneer of improvisational theatre, best known for inventing the ''Impro System'', part of which are the Theatresports. He is also an educator, playwright, actor and theatre direct ...

. It was there she worked with

in many forms of

. She performed regularly in

Theatresports Theatresports is a form of improvisational theatre, which uses the format of a competition for dramatic effect. Opposing teams can perform scenes based on audience suggestions, with ratings by the audience or by a panel of judges. Developed by di ...

, Gorilla Theatre and Life Game as well as performing in Keith's plays, directing and performing in the Theatre for kids program and touring productions. Stiles moved to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, and was the artistic director of Dream Kitchen Theatre, which produced

. She then moved to

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

and was artistic director of

Rapid Fire Theatre ''Rapid Fire Theatre'' (RFT) is an improvisational theatre company based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. History The origins of the company stretch to 1981, when Edmonton's Theatre Network became the third company in the world to regularly prod ...

from 1991 to 1996. She trained and directed company members such as

Mark Meer Mark Meer is a Canadian actor, writer and improvisor, based in Edmonton, Alberta. He is known for his role in the ''Mass Effect'' trilogy, in which he stars as the voice of the player character, Commander Shepard. His voice is featured in a numbe ...

, Josh Dean,

Nathan Fillion Nathan Fillion (; born March 27, 1971) is a Canadian-American actor. He played the leading roles of Captain Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds on '' Firefly'' and its film continuation '' Serenity'', and Richard Castle on '' Castle''. , he was starring as J ...

, and

Kevin Gillese Kevin Gillese (born 24 December 1980) is a Canadian actor, writer and improvisor from Edmonton, Alberta. Career Gillese started as a performer with the improv company Rapid Fire Theatre and also works regularly with the Atomic Improv and perf ...

. Her directing credits include ''The Maltese Bodkin'' which featured

(in one of his first theatrical roles) receiving an Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award for Outstanding Fringe Production. Stiles wrote her first

Theatre For Young Audiences Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA), also youth theatre, theatre for children, and children's theatre is a branch of theatre arts that encompasses all forms of theatre that are attended by or created for younger audiences. It blankets many differen ...

play, commissioned by the Provincial Museum, called ''If Whales Could Tell Tales''. It received an Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Nomination for Outstanding Production for Theatre for Young Audiences. Along with her Artistic Directorship she was heavily involved in the Edmonton Arts community performing for numerous theatre companies, plus the

Edmonton Fringe Festival The Edmonton International Fringe Festival is an annual arts festival held every August in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Produced by the Fringe Theatre Adventures (FTA), it is the oldest and largest fringe theatre festival in North America (based on ...

as actor, director and producer of their opening/closing ceremonies. Stiles was a founding member of ''

Die-Nasty ''Die-Nasty'' is a live improvised soap opera, running weekly in the city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada since 1991. ''Die-Nastys improv comedy format features a continuing storyline and recurring characters, live music, and a director who sets up s ...

: The Live Improvised Soap Opera'' (nominated for several

Canadian Comedy Awards The Canadian Comedy Awards (CCA) is an annual ceremony that awards the Beaver for achievements in Canadian comedy in live performance, radio, film, television, and Internet media. The awards were founded and produced by Tim Progosh in 2000. The ...

and winner of the 2006 award for Best Improv Troupe) and holds the record as the first female improviser to improvise 53 hours straight in the annual Die-Nasty Soap-A-Thon. Stiles lived in

London UK London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major se ...

for a short period; during this time she worked with many of the impro companies in London. There she trained

Deborah Frances-White Deborah Frances-White is a London-based comedian, author and screenwriter. She has both British and Australian citizenship. She hosts the podcasts ''Global Pillage'' and '' The Guilty Feminist''. She wrote the 2019 comedy film Say My Name. Ear ...

and Tom Salinsky founders of

The Spontaneity Shop The Spontaneity Shop is an improvisational comedy company formed in London in 1996. They base their work around the teachings of Keith Johnstone and have developed several original improvisation forms. History The Spontaneity Shop, then known a ...

and authors o
The Impro Handbook
which includes a dedication to her. Stiles moved to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

and became the

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the ...

Impro Melbourne Impro Melbourne is an improvisational theatre company in the Australian city of Melbourne. Formed by Russell Fletcher and Christine Keogh in 1996 it is now run by Artistic Director Katherine Weaver, General Manager Rik Brown and Committee. Impro ...

from 2004 to 2009 and again 2014–2019. During this time she wrote her second theatre for young audiences play Water of Life. She tours internationally performing and teaching improvisation to theatre companies around the world. She authored her first book, ''Improvise Freely'', in 2021. Stiles has performed improvisation all over the world and worked with

Colin Mochrie Colin Andrew Mochrie (; born November 30, 1957) is a Scottish-born Canadian actor, writer, producer and improvisational comedian, best known for his appearances on the British and US versions of the improvisational TV show ''Whose Line Is It A ...

Brad Sherwood Bradley Sherwood is an American actor, singer, comedian, game show host and writer. Career His first acting job was a recurring role on ''L.A. Law'' as Ned Barron, which lasted for six episodes from 1991 to 1992. Sherwood was introduced to im ...

Wayne Brady Wayne Alphonso Brady (born June 2, 1972) is an American television personality, comedian, actor, and singer. He is a regular on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' He was the host of ...

Joe Flaherty Joseph Flaherty (born June 21, 1941) is an American actor, writer, and comedian. He is best known for his work on the Canadian sketch comedy '' SCTV'' from 1976 to 1984 (on which he also served as a writer), and as Harold Weir on ''Freaks and G ...

Josie Lawrence Josie Lawrence (born Wendy Lawrence; 6 June 1959) is an English actress and comedian. She is best known for her work with the Comedy Store Players improvisational troupe, the television series ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' and as Manda Best in '' ...

Peder Falk Jan-''Peder'' Falk (born 20 September 1947) is a Swedish actor, screenwriter and director. He has worked for Stockholm's stadsteater for most of his career, and is most known for his role at Carl Gripenhieln in the soap opera Nya tider, and for th ...

Helge Skoog Helge Skoog (born 6 August 1938 in Borås, Sweden) is a Swedish actor and comedian, who became well known during the 1980s appearing on the TV series '' Teatersport''. During the 2000s (decade), he took part in the TV program ''Parlamentet''. S ...

Pippa Evans Pippa Evans (born June 1982) is a British comedian, known for her work in character and improvisational comedy. Early life and education Evans attended Notting Hill and Ealing High School, an independent school for girls, where she was head gi ...

Ruth Bratt Ruth Bratt is an English actress and comedian. Bratt has appeared in the BAFTA award winning BBC2 series ''People Just Do Nothing''. In 2022 she was at the Edinburgh Festival in "Starship Improvise" with the Mischief Theatre. Life Bratt was a r ...

Peter Spellos Peter Spellos is an American voice actor. Notable roles Animated Television Series * BattleTech: The Animated Series - Captain Miles Hawkins * Bureau of Alien Detectors - Moose Trengganu Anime * ''Black Jack'' - Mr. Brane * ''Bleach'' - K ...

Rebecca De Unamuno Rebecca De Unamuno is an Australian actress and comedian. She has written and performed for a number of television comedy series, short films and stand up comedy shows. In 2013 she starred in '' Spank! The Fifty Shades Parody''. Career In 2 ...

Julia Zemiro Julia Zemiro () (born 14 April 1967) is a French-born Australian television presenter, radio host, actress, singer, writer and comedian. She is best known as the host of the music quiz and live performance show '' RocKwiz''. Zemiro is a fluent ...

Edi Patterson Edi Christine Patterson is an American actress and writer. She has primarily acted in comedies. She is best known for portraying Fran in the film ''Knives Out'' (2019), Veronica in the series '' Partners'' (2014), Jen Abbott in the series ''Vice ...

Ron Pederson Ronald Pederson (born January 8, 1978) is a Canadian ( Métis) actor, comedian and theatre director who has worked extensively throughout Canada and in the United States. He has performed with most of Canada's major theatres including The Stratf ...

Dana Andersen Dana Andersen is a Canadian actor, improvisor, filmmaker, writer and director. He has served as director of the live improvised soap opera Die-Nasty, and has been a core member of the troupe since its founding in 1991. From 1995-1999, he co-hoste ...

, and Alan Cox.

References

External links

*
Impro Melbourne

Rapid Fire Theatre

Die-Nasty homepage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stiles, Patti Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Canadian expatriates in Australia Place of birth missing (living people)