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IMPRO EXPRESSO
Contact:
Eugene SULEAU on 8223 3239 / 0414 248 892 / esuleau@tpg.com.au
Matt SMITH on 8332 1992 / 0418 819 178 / ace1@adam.com.au
Website:
http://www.impronow.com.au
The company has been running Theatresports in South Australia since just before the turn of the century (alright, that's only six years ago, but it sounds more impressive that way). Impro Expresso is run by professional actors and other professionals dedicated to maintaining and improving the art of improvisation across the state. It has a sister company in Impro Now.
Theatresports History
South Australia
Theatresports in South Australia began in the 1980s and ran under the auspices of the State Theatre Company. It played to packed houses in the Festival Centre and featured many stars, including Geoffrey Rush as Host.
It again surged in the early 1990s when it moved to the Royalty Theatre in Angas Street, attracting packed out houses under new company Improd. Its seasons boasted the likes of former Micallef Producer and actor Francis Greenslades, Sasha Carruozzo, Andrea Hopley and Michael Hill.
It went on to be run by Splash Theatre in the late 1990s at a number of venues until three years ago when a group of experienced Theatresports players, including the Paris trained Michael Newbold, took the venture overthrough the company Impro Expresso. Since then regular seasons have been held every year. The Theatresports Celebrity Challenge began in 2001 at the
Laughing Gas Comedy Club in Hindley Street (now Jive Nightclub). People had to be turned away from the doors; a scenario repeated in later shows.
Australia
Theatresports is played in every capital city. Seasons in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane regularly attract comedians and actors including Will Anderson and Andrew Denton. It is also played in thousands of schools across the nation, a very user-friendly introduction to the theatre for schoolchildren.
Internationally
Theatresports is played in more than twenty countries. It has also spawned TV shows including Whose Line Is It Anyway featuring Drew Carey.
Theatresports has been played in many styles over the centuries, but it was Englishman Keith Johnstone who was the major modern day developer of this form of theatre several decades ago.
He felt theatre had become pretentious, which is why the average man in the street didn't consider attending it. Johnstone wanted to bring theatre to the people who went to sporting and boxing matches, the same audiences that Shakespeare had written for in his day. So he combined elements of both the theatre and sports to form a hybrid called Theatresports. Teams would
compete for points awarded by judges as well as audiences, who would also be encouraged to cheer for good scenes and jeer the judges.
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