Residency: Washington Improv Theater

WIT’s year-long residency brings unscripted performances to Studio

For its 25th anniversary season, Washington Improv Theater (WIT) embarks on
a year-long residency at Studio Theatre. WIT is the District’s premier destination
for improv and home to a roster of company ensembles featuring the District’s
most experienced improvisers. Inspired by audience suggestions, WIT's dynamic
and unpredictable shows are presented by the most experienced and talented
improvisers in the city.

WIT's residency features:

  • Harold Night, the 12-years-and-running free weekly event on Wednesday night.

  • Shows by our company ensembles including the veteran musical ensemble iMusical.

  • Director-led productions like MLM-skewering show Not a Pyramid Scheme
    and the light-hearted Western Tumbleweed!



SEE A SHOW

Our alumni include Natasha Rothwell (The White Lotus), Aparna Nancherla (Comedy Central’s Corporate), and Rory Scovel (Apple TV+’s Physical).

Give improv a try: Take a class or bring us to your office

Take an eight-week Foundations of Improv class: Discover a new sense of freedom
and play. Meet other fun and interesting people. Taking a class at Washington Improv
Theater is the perfect way to unleash your creativity and connect with others. You don’t
need any previous experience to take a Level 1 class at WIT.

Anyone and everyone stands something to gain by taking a class with Washington Improv
Theater. Go ahead, take the plunge. Classes are held at venues across DC (not at Studio).

TAKE AN INTRO CLASS

Bring improv to your office through WIT@Work: Download our brochure and find out how an
improv training can help your team connect and achieve more together. The ideas and techniques
that fuel successful improv empower people to work together in exciting and productive ways.

WIT@Work, WIT’s organizational training arm, has worked with clients including Deloitte,
Capitol One, Google, and more. Find out how an improv training can help your team connect
and achieve more together.

LEARN MORE ABOUT WIT@WORK

WIT's 2022-2023 season

Playing It By Ear featuring iMusical (Sept. 30 - Oct. 22 in the Milton Theatre)

WIT begins our Studio Theatre residency with a music-themed run. WIT’s ensembles draw inspiration from lyrics, background music, and more. 

About iMusical: For fifteen years, veteran ensemble iMusical has joined the unpredictable playfulness of comedic improvisation with the emotional power of musical theater. A cast of singer-improvisers instantly creates a compelling new show with each performance, comprised of completely improvised scenes, lyrics and music, all inspired by a single audience suggestion. The Washington Post called iMusical “spot on.”


Ask Me Anything: Changemakers (Nov. 18 - Dec. 10 in Stage 4)

Social media never fails to tell us all the ways the world seems to be falling down around us, but there are also people doing amazing things to change world for the better. This run features interviews with people who are making the world better. From politicians to artists, we’ll interview local changemakers and use those interviews as inspiration for a set by WIT’s improvisers.

Also featuring Motherload: This run also features a remount of Motherload, the winner of Capital Fringe’s Best Comedy. Created and performed by WIT ensemble members Jenna Hall and Justine Hipsky, the show is an autobiographical dark comedy about the wounds that accompany complicated mother-daughter relationships. 

Fighting Improv Smackdown Tournament (Jan. 13 - Feb. 11 in the Mead Theatre)

WIT brings our no-holds-barred (but totally friendly!) improv tournament to Studio! For our fifteenth tournament, audiences are invited to vote for their favorite teams to advance until there is one victor!


Washington Improv Theater presents... (March 10 - April 16 in Stage 4)

WIT shines a spotlight on our family of company ensembles. From the science-based improv team The Hypothesis to veteran all-female ensemble Hellcat, our ensembles are eclectic, funny, and always spontaneous.


Money Changes Everything featuring Not a Pyramid Scheme (May 19 - June 10 in Stage 4)

We’ve all got the late-stage capitalism blues. But we’re still finding joy amid the corporate hellscape. This run features shows about how money motivates people, changes relationships, and just -- well -- changes everything.

About Not a Pyramid Scheme: Want to become a "boss babe?" Peek behind the curtain of the scam-ridden (yet earnest!) community of multi-level marketing schemes. Directed by Kaelan Sullivan Fleury with Assistant Director Clare Mulligan, Not a Pyramid Scheme comedically explores the quest for meaningful connection and financial independence in an exploitative and regressive industry.


Genre is a Construct featuring Tumbleweed! (July 7 - July 29 in Stage 4)

What’s a genre anyway? We’ve all seen film noir and romantic comedies, but these days genre can be anything from Law & Order: SVU-style procedurals to the Real World/Road Rules Challenge. WIT’s ensembles take nods from popular and not-so-popular culture in this nod to genre.

This run concludes with Improvapalooza, WIT’s annual festival of experimental improv.

About Tumbleweed!: Calamity! Love! Foolishness! You are “Wanted!” to see a delightfully silly improvised western filled with colossal characters, extraordinary action, and a live score. Giddy up and let Tumbleweed! take you on a journey through the wild, wild west. Directed by Jared Smith.