Performing in the 2010 Green Show on Wednesday, June 23 (Jane Austen UnScripted); Friday, June 25 (Tennessee Williams UnScripted); Saturday, June 26 (Jane Austen UnScripted); and Sunday, June 27 (Shakespeare UnScripted).
Jane Austen UnScripted; Tennessee Williams UnScripted; and Shakespeare UnScripted
Improvised plays from audience suggestion. We aspire to spontaneous literature.
Website: www.improtheatre.com
Shakespeare Unscripted has been performed by Impro Theatre since 1999. Originally directed by Brian Lohmann and Dan O'Connor at the Globe Playhouse in Los Angeles, this show has received standing ovations at festivals in Chicago, New York and Austin. Cast members were part of the critically acclaimed run Unexpected Shaxpeare, which was granted a season slot at the Colorado Shakespeare Festival in 2006. The current company of eleven has been working together since October 2006 and is a mix of veteran improvisers with at least 20 years of experience, and younger players trained in our school. Shakespeare UnScripted recently completed a 6 week run at the Theatre of Arts in Hollywood and received glowing reviews. Shakespeare Unscripted is rehearsed using techniques for improvising classical texts, including many that Brian Lohmann has taught at A.C.T., The Old Globe and to OSF company members since 1992. This method is currently being assembled into a book titled "Shakespeare Through Improvisation", the aim of which is to aid students of Shakespeare in sharing their own individual voices through Shakespearean craft, and to promote deeper understanding of, and connection to, his plays. We hope audiences will leave our shows feeling that they can play with language more freely in their day to day lives, and that our work will inspire them to see Shakespeare as an avenue for creative exploration. Impro Theatre is a repertory theatre company that creates full-length plays in the moment based on a few simple audience suggestions at the top of the show. The majority of company members began work together in the late 1980's as members of different Theatresports' leagues. The company was largely intact as members of Los Angeles Theatresports by the mid 1990's. A unifying passion for creating plays spontaneously, rather than improvising comedic games and sketches, led them to begin work on Unscripted Rep in 2006. Company members are all working professionals who have appeared in feature films (Peggy Sue got Married, A Mighty Wind, He Was a Quiet Man, Multiplicity, Reno 911, Finding Amanda, Kung Fu Panda, Mars Needs Moms and West Bank Story), directed, produced, hosted and acted in television shows (Sons and Daughters, World Cup Comedy, The Tick, Seinfeld, The Practice, ER, Gilmore Girls, Becker, That Showbiz Show with David Spade, LIFEGAME, Curb Your Enthusiasm) and worked in regional theatre and Off-Broadway. Most importantly, they share a commitment to developing the spontaneous nature of live theatre and pushing the boundaries of ensemble creativity.
Impro Theater on Community: Our company members cut their teeth teaching improvisation in the 1990s to anyone who wanted to learn. We see it as a "populist" art form, one that allows anyone to create theatre, no matter what their experience or educational background. Our Los Angeles shows are frequented by students from the Asian American community. Many of our members teach classes run by "Cold Tofu" at Maryknoll cultural center in Little Tokyo. We also reach out to the student communities at Pepperdine University and at Cal Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. We see ourselves as being a link in the tradition that celebrates the spontaneous nature of great theatre; a tradition that extends back through classical Commedia Dell'Arte and reaches forward to contemporary experimental performance. We talked about this when we performed in 08, and would still like to try jamming with the Freestyle Rap subgroup of the Hip-Hop community. There is a kinship in the way they spin language and the way we do: the love of rhyme and rhythm, and the tightrope between device and discovery. The community workshop we taught in 2008 was well attended (by many different age groups!) and connecting with Ashland's residents is something we want to continue. We would also like to share our craft with seniors who may never have seen improvised full-length plays. We feel there is value in offering workshops for retirees, so they can try their hand at improvising in the style of Shakespeare.
Impro Theatre in Festival Noons
This is a ticketed event!
Saturday June 26th at 12pm in Carpenter Hall
Interactive Demonstration: "How Do You Improvise Jane Austen?" Discovering Secrets of Manners, Wit and Character and Bringing Them to Life," Brian Lohman, Dan O'Connor and members of the Impro Theatre Ensemble, Los Angeles, CA
For more information, including ticket prices, please visit http://www.osfashland.org/browse/production.aspx?prod=189&date=6/1/2010