The Peoples Improv Theater (PIT), also known as the PIT, is a comedy theater and training center in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, founded by comedian

Ali Farahnakian Ali Reza Farahnakian (born October 26, 1967) is an American actor, writer, and improvisational comedian. He is the founder of The Peoples Improv Theater (The PIT) in NYC and co-starred in the Adult Swim comedy series ''Delocated''. Life and career ...

in 2002. Shows combine

improvisational comedy 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, a ...

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 ...

stand-up Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

, and

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

. Each show is hosted by a combination of "house teams" of comedians hired by PIT and by outside comedians. After closing several of their theaters due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The PIT now only resides in its PIT Loft location in the

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

neighborhood of Manhattan. Notable alumni of the PIT include ''

The Office ''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries. The original series of ...

'' actress

Ellie Kemper Elizabeth Claire Kemper (born May 2, 1980) is an American actress and comedian. She has been nominated for a Critics' Choice Movie Award, two Critics' Choice Television Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, three Satellite Awards, and seven Scre ...

,house improv team: Big Black Car comedian and voice actress

Kristen Schaal Kristen Joy Schaal (; born January 24, 1978) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. She is best known for her voice roles as Louise Belcher on ''Bob's Burgers'' and Mabel Pines on ''Gravity Falls''. She's also known for playing Mel on '' ...

, and comedian and actor Hannibal Buress.

History

The Peoples Improv Theater's Loft location was founded by

and Armando Diaz in 2002. The PIT moved its headquarters to 123 East 24th Street, New York on December 31, 2010. From September 1, 2015, the original location of the PIT became known as The Pit Loft and officially became the third venue of the PIT. Wednesdays were designated as "Super Free Wednesday" in the Striker location, with free shows offered to the public. Musical improv troupe ''Vern'' performed weekly since 2014. In 2018, Farahnakian opened The PIT Chapel Hill, also known as The PITCH, in his home state, at 462 West Franklin Street,

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census, making Chapel Hill the 17th-largest municipality in the state. Chapel Hill, Durham, and the state ca ...

. In February 2021, the PIT announced the closure of its Flatiron location, leaving only the Loft open in Manhattan. In June 2021, the PIT Loft reopened, hosting classes, jams, and open mics. The PIT also published comedy sketches to a collective YouTube channel name
PITtv

Notes

References

External links

Video interview with Ali (Reza) Farahnakian
{{coord, 40.74052, -73.98474, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-NY, display=title Performance art in New York City Former theatres in Manhattan Kips Bay, Manhattan Chelsea, Manhattan 2002 establishments in New York City Arts organizations established in 2002 Improv Theatre companies in New York City

History

See also

Notes

References

External links