Hey everyone! Open Window this month is Saturday, May 30th at 4 pm on Sidestage! This is a community event designed to give improvisers (or anyone improviser adjacent) an opportunity to meet and get to know each other better. You do not have to be a toastmaster, master storyteller, or writer. Just come and listen to, and potentially tell, some stories! Also, due to the timing of it, let’s do a potluck!! I will add a google sheet to say what you will bring so people don’t bring something someone else is making. The completely optional prompts are: What is something you had to stick with and saw it all the way through? What is something you would preserve or protect from time/damage/change? Someone taught me to ________, and I will never forget it. A peculiar or noteworthy sleep story you may have. I hope to see you there!

Kevin McKernan is helping St. Louis keep its local flavor, one business at a time Kevin McKernan owns a half-dozen of the kind of classic neighborhood businesses that feel increasingly endangered. He and his wife Erin own Donut Drive-In, the unpretentious shop in Lindenwood Park. They own Epiphany Lanes, a low-key bowling alley once run by the Catholic parish that still shares its parking lot. He founded The Improv Shop and they now own Cafe Manhattan and Blackthorn Pub, too... Read more at link

Melanie PennStaff

🎶 MUSICAL WORKSHOP AND SHOW 🎶 There's another special workshop happening at The Improv Shop next month: it's MUSICAL IMPROV BAG OF TRICKS, hosted Nashville's Cherry Bomb! There are two sections to choose from, both on Saturday June 20th: 9:00-12:00 and 1:00-4:00. This workshop is designed for folks with some prior musical improv experience, and the registration link is below in the comments. Also! Cherry Bomb will be performing an improvised musical at 7:00 that night, with The One Four Fives joining in for some fun in the second act. Ticket link is in the comments too, so consider getting advanced tickets early as this thing is gonna sell out faster than you can sing an F sharp! 🎹 https://theimprovshop.com/show/cherry-bomb-an-improvised-musical/ https://theimprovshop.com/workshop/musicalimprovbagoftricks/

Touch Baseball

Weekly post is up on Substack Emotion exercises ask a lot of improvisers. They demand we be vulnerable, make big choices, put on a performance, be present, and care. Sometimes they require character work or force us to edge into emotional territory real life rarely lets us explore... https://open.substack.com/pub/touchbaseballimprov?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=38zhiw

Come ask a stranger 𝑰𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒏? at our show. Could lead to a great friend like it did us. In fact, our form is about Nicole Durel & I getting to know each other. Thu, 9p - Side stage (Merry-Go-Round show!) The Improv Shop - STL This "Chair for a Woman" dates to Ancient Egypt. Reworked public domain image from the MET NYC. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/548636

Hi Improv Shop friends, Allow me to spin you a true tale. This week marked 7 years since I graduated from the Improv Shop’s training program. Shortly after I graduated, I started dating a veteran improvisor who I had a crush on based on the delightfully weird ways he improvised, bringing laughter to my heart. One of my lines to him at a party— “Oh you just turned 33?! So did I! Two months ago! We have so much in common!” As you can imagine, interest SOARED based on this tidbit alone— oh all the music, tv shows, commercial references we could share and continue sharing the next 7 years. Fast forward to 2026: Alex Ringhausen and I are married and he just turned 40! And I just turned 40 two months ago, wow. Naturally, this necessitates a show! And not only will this be a comedy show about growing up millennial and finding yourself suddenly waking up 40 one day! But ALSO this will be a BIRTHDAY BASH for the exquisitely kind and wonderfully weird human who is Alex Ringhausen. If you know and love Alex from over the years, or know me, or just think this would be fun: COME JOIN US! Celebrate Alex, and watch us entertain you! Saturday, 7pm, Side stage Cake will be involved.

Melanie PennStaff

Hi again, Improv Shop! Big thanks to Taylor Snyder for creating a cool new newsletter formatting that helps us link to the website for show descriptions and the wiki for its inventory of teams. 🤝 And happy birthdays to Charles Harris, Taylor Dukeman, Kevin Miko, Emily Hogan, Alfredo Jahn, Michael Weems, Elizabeth Bolhafner, and everyone celebrating birthdays this week! 🎂🎂 Here's some stuff to look forward to: Thursday Show Programming Thu, May 7, 7:00 PM House Team Night & Jam Basement Family, D.I.C.K, Moist Thu, May 7, 7:00 PM The Menagerie Bumblefuck, Plot Twist, Experi-Mental Thu, May 7, 9:00 PM The Merry-Go-Round Catt Map, Goon Platoon, The Nightcaps, It Wasn't Me Friday Show Programming Fri, May 8, 7:00 PM THE ASTERISK* In this show, we give the suggestion to YOU. Every... (This week's theme is "maternal figures.") Fri, May 8, 7:00 PM Big Team Bash An irresponsible number of improvisers enter the s... (The big teams featured for this show will be Floorplay, Heavy Meadow, and Comic Strip!) Fri, May 8, 9:00 PM Cagematch Cobbler, Mansplain Fri, May 8, 9:00 PM TV Dinner: Sitcom Night with Basement Family Basement Family Knotty By Nature The fiber arts craft club Knotty By Nature meets again this Saturday May 9th between 10:00 and 2:00 at Espresso Yourself Coffee & Cafe! Come bring a craft project and socialize with friends. 🧶 Contact Cassie Ema at crepn2@gmail.com for information! Musical Jam This Saturday May 9th is also the second Saturday of the month, so time for another Musical Jam, 5:00-6:15 in sidestage! The Musical Jam is a free dropin workshop open to anyone regardless of musical ability or improv experience, so tell your friends. Big thanks to Tara O'Nay and Brandon Bowers for facilitating and to Rinn Netherton for MDing! 🎹 Saturday Show Programming Sat, May 9, 7:00 PM We Are 40 Alex turns 40 on May 4th. Janelle turns 40 two mon... Sat, May 9, 7:00 PM Shoes Off: An All Asian Improv Show Shoes off, welcoming you into our home of improv. ... Sat, May 9, 9:00 PM 80085 4 U 80085 Sat, May 9, 9:00 PM Grandma’s Den Hang with Mansplain Just some femmes and a them channeling their dude ... (Manplain will be hosting friend teams Catt Map and Bankrupt.) RUNNING CLUB) This Sunday May 10th, the weekly run+jog+walk meetup convenes again, starting 10:15-10:30 at the Stone Shelter in Tower Grove Park. All paces welcome, so bring friends and dogs! 🏃 Monday Jams This Monday May 11th, come out for more miniworkshops 6:00-6:45-ish: Student Jam with Austin Kellogg! Grad Jam with Nathan Engle! Nathan's workshop will focus on yes-and and trust, and Austin's workshop will focus on spatial work à la "Set Design." 😎 Both will be awesome and fun. Monday Show Programming Mon, May 11, 7:00 PM Teams Level 2 Student Showcase Join our Teams Level 2 students as they showcase t... Mon, May 11, 7:00 PM Teams Level 1 Student Showcase Join our Teams Level 1 students every Monday at 7p... Mon, May 11, 9:00 PM The Gift What’s in the box?! Three improv teams take turns ... (...plus a special musical showcase around 8:30 in mainstage by the Musical Level 2 team Ooogly Boogly!) 🎶 Class Registration About one more week before we start closing class registration for the May-July session, so be sure to register by May 13th for core classes and workshops; HMU if you'd like to set up a payment plan or retake a class with a discount. 🤑 I believe that's a wrap for now, fam! Happy Mothers' Day to all the parents, grandparents, stepparents, petparents, grandpetparents, parental figures, guardians, caretakers, cool aunts, and everyone who has complicated familial relationships. Thanks for sharing your time and care with this theater and this artform; hope you have a great week. 🫶

Hello hello my improv friends!! Did you know that May is Asian American Pacific Islander Month?? Well, now you do! So come celebrate with some of your favorite Asian/Pacific Islander improvisers! Saturday, May 9th. 7pm on the Main Stage Welcome into our improv home, it's Shoes Off! (But actually keep them on, plsss)