ImprovCon is a new convention devoted entirely to improvisational theater in all its forms. San Diego native and improviser Chris Colthurst founded the event, which launches Thursday at Town and Country Resort and Convention Center.
ImprovCon will bring together performers, educators and theater leaders from across the country for dozens of panels, workshops and performances over the four-day event. You can take workshops about using improv in music, Shakespeare or role-playing games. There are also panels on turning improv into a business or using it to improve brain health.
"You can choose to watch some shows, you can listen to some panels, and you can step in and take some workshops and do some beginning improv workshops," Colthurst explained. "We also have workshops that talk about applied improv. So if you're an educator, we have some workshops about how to use improv in your classroom to help your students be better writers or to make you a better teacher."
Because improv is about more than just comedy. It’s about being present in the moment and learning to collaborate with others.
"So you have people who take those skills and use it in a corporate environment or a therapeutic environment and really focus and listen for people to gain these skills of active listening and being present," Colthurst added.
Jackie Bookstein is with Mockingbird Improv in Liberty Station and will be involved with ImprovCon.
"It's super exciting to have such a big event right here in our little hometown," Bookstein said. "The San Diego improv scene has been growing quickly but is still pretty new. So having ImprovCon here, I just think is a great way to put us on the map. We've been getting more and more people coming down from L.A. and from Chicago even teaching master classes here, and they all come away with a similar reaction of like, wow, the community here is just so friendly and warm and welcoming. So I'm just really excited to have people come experience what we've got going on here."
Bookstein will be running a free workshop on Expressive Arts and performing in Tales from the Tavern.
Brandon Hensgens is with Finest City Improv and will be running a pair of workshops, including the intriguingly titled Improv Self-Defense. He is also part of three performances, including Jackie Improvised Martial Arts Movie, which is improvised in the style of a Jackie Chan Hong Kong action movie.
Hensgens pointed out that if you enjoy ImprovCon, you can continue to enjoy improv in San Diego with what Finest City and Mockingbird offer.
"Improv theaters are their own third space for a lot of people, even if they don't want to see a show or perform," Hensgens said. "A lot of people come to our theater just to be there, to relieve the day's stress for themselves, to have fun with other people who want to have fun. And with Finest City and Mockingbird, you can see a bunch of shows throughout the week. Or take a class. It's completely free, by the way, too, just to entice you even more."
"We really try to lower barriers because we want improv to be an accessible thing for everyone," Bookstein added. "A lot of people who come into those intro workshops are nervous, and we ask them off the top, 'Who here is a little scared right now?' And every hand will go up. And that's one of the amazing things about improv is that we're all stepping out of our comfort zone together, which is inherently a very bonding activity. So you get a bunch of nervous people together. We've tried to make it as welcoming for them as possible. It's free. It's very friendly. And then by the end of the two-ish-hour workshop, you have a group of strangers who are now all good friends, and they're talking, and the energy in the room is just amazing. And that's what draws people in a lot of the time is just the feeling that they get from doing improv. How good it feels."
ImprovCon promises a first-of-its-kind immersive convention experience dedicated to celebrating the art, business and future of improvisation.
