Jet City Improv

Jet City Improv is an Improvisational theatre troupe from Seattle, Washington, United States.[1][2] The troupe was founded in 1992 and is operated by Wing-It Productions, a 501(c)(3) non-profit company, from their theater located at 55th Avenue and University Way NE in Seattle's U-District.[3]

The front of Jet City Improv, from across University Ave.

History

Jet City Improv was founded in 1992 by Mike Christensen and Andrew McMasters and debuted with a free show on March 18, 1992, at the Second Story Studios in Seattle.[4] In July 1993, Jet City Improv began performing every Friday night at the Northwest Actors Studio, moving to the Belltown Theater Center in October 1994, where they performed on Fridays and Saturdays at 10:30pm, a tradition that Jet City maintains until the present day.

In December 1994 Christensen and McMasters founded Wing-It Productions, a 501c3 Non-profit organization, to take on the production of Jet City Improv's activities. Jet City Improv's performances were relocated to the Ethnic Cultural Theater on the University of Washington campus in 1997. In October 1997, Jet City debuted the first Twisted Flick, an improvised re-dubbing of Creature from the Black Lagoon.[5] Jet City produced the inaugural Jet City Improv New Year's Eve show on December 31, 1999, entitled the "Y2K Bash" . In June 2000 Twisted Flicks began performing for the Fremont Outdoor Movies. In January 2001, Jet City Improv moved performances to the University Heights Center for approximately one year. Twisted Flicks moved into the Paradox Theater in September 2001.

The Lost Folio, Jet City's first longform show, premiered in April 2002. In February 2003 Jet City Improv took over the lease to the former Paradox Theater, thus bringing all performances into one venue. It was renamed the Historic University Theater. In February 2003 Jet City Improv co-produced the first annual Seattle Festival of Improv Theater (SFIT).[6]

Programming

Jet City primarily produces three shows: Jet City Improv, Twisted Flicks, and the Jet City Presents Series. Jet City Improv is a 90-minute improv show performed three times a week. Twisted Flicks consists of a B-movie played with the sound turned off, with improvised dialogue and sound effects over the top based on suggestions from the audience, as well as an improvised score from a musician. Jet City Presents is a rotating improvised longform show, performed on Thursdays and Fridays.

Jet City also runs improv courses and drop-in classes for the public, as well as educational products for school students and corporate team-building and communication workshops. The company began an outreach program in early 1998 providing free performances for events, children's camps and fundraisers. This program performs annual performances for the NW Burn Foundation, American Cancer Society and other children's camps. The program was expanded in 2001 to provide free workshops for at risk and incarcerated youth in the Seattle Area, with classes running weekly at the Seattle Juvenile Detention facility and the Sanctuary Arts Center.

References
  1. Pak, Samantha (2007-10-05). "Laughter in Emerald City". The Daily of the University of Washington. Archived from the original on 2012-07-08. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  2. Dizon, Kristin (February 13, 2003). "Jet city improve is up to its tricks with really bad pix". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. p. E1.
  3. van Huygen, Meg (January 21, 2004). "Improv Done Right (Finally); Jet City Improv's Colossal, Glow-in-the Dark Brains". The Stranger. Vol. 13, no. 18. p. 23.
  4. Armstrong, Ken (August 6, 2011). "Sex-crimes cop by day, improv artist by night". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  5. Solomon, Rachel (December 16, 2010). "Seattle Improv - Fun Made Fresh Daily". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  6. "Improv Will Tickle Your Funny Bone". The Everett Herald. February 11, 2010. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  • Evening Magazine. "The Best of Western Washington 2013". www.best.king5.com. Retrieved 8 November 2013.

47°40′08″N 122°18′46″W

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