Chicago Improv Productions

09/12/2024

A new improv book was released today written by Matt Fotis. I’m honored to share #24 with the great Susan Messing. We’re part of the chapter called “The Second Wave Luminaries” (along with iO House Teams; Tj & David; Mark Sutton; Joe Bill; Frances Callier; Shaun Landry & Oui Be Negroes).

The thing about lists (Year’s Top 10 Movies; Rolling Stone’s 100 Best Guitarists, ect), everyone has different points of views about them: who’s on there, who’s not, what order, and why, but that’s what creates conversation, criticism, debate and discussion.

What I like about Matt’s book is that he lists everything in 8 distinct chapters: The Icons; The First Groups; The Second Wave Luminaires; Film & Television; The (Further) Expansion Of Improv; The International Powerhouses; The Fourth Wave.

This book goes from Viola Spolin to Zoomprov. In it he lists actors, troupes, schools, theatre, film, and TV. His final sub-chapter is called “The Person You Can’t Believe I Didn’t Include” and he lists many names of people, national and international, and theatres that he could have listed, so he gets it. As he writes in his book’s first sentence, “This list is not definitive.”

He knows any future edition of his book (if there is one) that he may add or subtract names of current or future improvisers. No list is ever complete. Each list ever made by anyone always has different conscious and unconscious preferences contained within.

I also want to point out, in his title, Matt didn’t write “Fifty Best Improv Performers” or “Fifty Most Famous Improv Performers”, but “Fifty Key Improv Performers”, and the use of the word “key” Is key to his insights, his choices, and where he’s coming from.

For me, this book is well written and easy to read. It’s a lovely, shorter, and more academic alternative to Sam Wasson’s book “Improv Nation”, and it fits well in the same genre.

Get the book. It’s a great conversation starter. Plus you get to read about many of the improv artists ranging from the past to the present, and from Chicago to all around the world.

06/09/2021

Chicago Improv Productions is excited to announce that we have received a grant from the Young Leaders Fund, an initiative of The Chicago Community Trust! This grant will help launch a brand new CIP program in the fall. We will be rolling out this new initiative in the coming weeks, but this new education program will provide an improv curriculum to up to 40 students and provide teaching artist contracts to up to 8 new CIP teachers. We are so excited for tonight's reception and to meet all of the other grant recipients. Thank you to everyone on the Art and Culture committee for backing our newest endeavor and for supporting our mission of education and pay equity in improv!

12/24/2020

Here's the link to the WBEZ-FM radio interview former Chicago Improv Productions' Executive Director Jonathan Pitts did yesterday about the CIPs' archives he donated to the Chicago Public Library. They also talked improv and played two archival show clips from Chicago Improv Festival (circ. 2010) featuring duos Susan Messing & Tim Meadows and Joe Bill & Jill Bernard.

A massive collection of improv material — from video performances to show programs — will be available for future researchers and performers.

12/22/2020

Today, CIP Founder and former Executive Director Jonathan Pitts will be on WBEZ-FM's talk show "Reset" around 11:40am (CST) to talk about the Chicago Improv Productions' archives he donated last week to the Chicago Public Library's Special Collections and Preservations Division. Be sure to tune in!

12/18/2020

For Immediate Release: December 18, 2020

23 Years of Chicago Improv Productions’ Archives Donated by Jonathan Pitts to the Chicago Public Library’s Special Collections And Preservation Division

On Monday, December 14, 2020, Jonathan Pitts, founder and former Executive Director of Chicago Improv Productions, donated the entire collection of 23 years worth of Chicago Improv Productions’ archives to Sarah Zimmerman, Chicago Theater Librarian, Special Collections and Preservation Division of the Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago Public Library.

“We’re very excited to accept this artistically important and historically significant collection from Jonathan”, says Sarah Zimmerman. “These Chicago Improv Productions archives become the primary source materials about improv in our ongoing Chicago Theater history collection.”

Chicago Improv Productions’ collection are archived from its many programs including Chicago Improv Festival, College Improv Tournament, Teen Comedy Fest, Chicago Podcast Festival, CIP Touring Co., and Education Outreach. The archival collection is a time capsule that showcases multiple generations of this beloved Chicago art form, while also having a national and international perspective on the work. The archives document improv’s pioneers, world renowned improv theatres, celebrity improvisers, improv artists from 51 US cities, improv artists from 27 countries, as well as student improvisers from 155 colleges and 33 high schools.

Jonathan Pitts says, “I’m very happy that this work, which was made in Chicago, will remain in Chicago, free and available for academic researchers, improvisers, and the public, in perpetuity. I’m very excited that this work becomes its own legacy, and that these lively shows and events can live once more for whoever wants to see them.”

The Chicago Improv Productions’ archival collection includes:

616 Videos (each with 1-3 shows, and/or awards speeches and/or backstage interviews)
286 CDs (photos of shows, backstage candids, workshops, awards, parties)
7 External Hard Drives (8.82 TBs of videos and photos)
61 posters (signed and unsigned)
20 years of Chicago Improv Festival press kits and program books
5 bankers boxes with audio tapes, marketing materials, media interviews, organizational papers, press clippings, and press releases

Once catalogued, the Chicago Improv Productions Records at the Harold Washington Library Center (400 S. State St., Chicago, IL 60605) will be available for viewing by appointment only. For more information contact the Special Collections and Preservation Division at 312.747.4875 or [email protected]

For interviews, contact Jonathan Pitts at 773.875.6616 or [email protected]

12/08/2020

It's Tuesday, which means a new Improv at Home! This week we teach a fun twist on charades, Kitty Cat Career! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pz9i4LeIhfw

To see more programming like Improv at Home, please consider a tax deductible donation to Chicago Improv Productions: https://charity.gofundme.com/o/en/campaign/cip-winter-fundraiser

If you are not in a place to give financially, please like and tag someone in the comments who might want to bring some imagination and fun games into their home!

The second installment of CIP's Improv at Home series! This week Cari, Mary and Donovan teach a fun twist on charades, Kitty Cat CareerTo help CIPs mission, ...

12/02/2020

We are thrilled to see that almost 100 people viewed our first Improv at Home video yesterday!

After yesterday's video, several artists and performers reached out to see how they could get involved and work with us. This isn't surprising in the least; it is estimated that 5 million people work in live entertainment, with many of those people living in major metro areas like Chicago. The improv theaters we love in Chicago and throughout the suburbs have had to stay closed and have laid off much of their staff because they still have rents and bills to pay.

CIP is a unique entity in this environment. Because we don't have a theater and relatively low overhead costs, we can step up and help get teaching artists and performers back to work in a digital environment while we wait for our favorite live venues to come back. But we can't do it alone.

No donation is too small. Enough $10 donations can add up to a lot of paychecks for artists. If you are not in a financial position to donate, a like or share can help our community a great deal. Let's do everything we can to keep this Chicago art form alive and keep its artists employed.

Giving Tuesday is here, and Chicago Improv Productions wants to give YOU our educational series Improv At Home! Improv at Home is a series of quick fun lessons on how to play improv games at home with your family, roommates, or even those in Zoom ...

12/01/2020

It's Giving Tuesday! We are so excited to launch our Improv at Home series. Our first video teaches one of our favorite games One Word Story. This is a great game for all household sizes with anyone ages 4 and up

CIP's mission is to bring low to no cost improv education to students of all backgrounds and skills while continuing to provide competitive pay to it's teaching artists and performers. If you want to help us with this mission on Giving Tuesday, here are 2 BIG ways to help:

1.) Our Giving Tuesday GoFundMe is LIVE! If you are in a position to donate money, your GoFundMe contribution will help us to put money directly into the hands of teaching artists, hire grant writers, create more outreach projects like Improv at Home, and relaunch our website. You can make a tax deductible donation here: https://charity.gofundme.com/o/en/campaign/cip-winter-fundraiser

2.) We can't fulfill our mission unless people see our video! Like our page and share this video with your friends, family, coworkers, or anyone you know with kids of any age to help us bring improv education to those who need a little laughter (and in 2020, isn't that everyone?)

3.) Stay tuned every Tuesday for the new Improv at Home video! You can subscribe to our YouTube channel so you never miss a fun improv lesson you can do right from home.

A big thanks to Bonnie Culhane, Donovan Mullings, Mary Hynes, Thomas P Clune, and The Banditry (who made the amazing animations for our Improv At Home series) for all their work on our Improv at Home series!

Thank you everyone for your support and happy Giving Tuesday!

Chicago Improv Productions presents Improv at Home, a series of quick improv lessons you can do at home with your family. This week's video is an improv clas...