2nd Annual Ocean State Improv Festival Comes to Contemporary Theater Company

You walk into a theater and you have no idea what might happen... and neither do the performers onstage! The Contemporary Theater Company embraces this excitement with the international 2nd Annual Ocean State Improv Festival, June 6-10.

Last year's festival was a huge success, and this year they are reaching for the stars. Thirty-four troupes from twelve states and five countries perform in thirteen shows over five days. With a schedule packed with Rhode Island favorites alongside world-class visiting troupes, this festival is going big for its second year.

"Over the years, we have been lucky to meet a lot of incredible improvisers from around the world," says General Manager Maggie Cady. "It's mind-boggling that so many of them will be here at the same time for the festival!"

The festival features local favorites from companies like the Contemporary Theater Company, the Providence Improv Guild, and Wage House, alongside intermationally known teachers and performers like Joe Bill of The Annoyance Theatre in Chicago and Rebecca Northan of Loose Moose Theatre Company in Canada.

With everything from an improvised Shakespeare play to musicals and puppets, it is all made up on-the-spot. This makes the festival full of one-of-a-kind experiences - no one has ever seen these shows before and no one can ever see them again.

The Contemporary Theater Company has had a lot of success with improv from Whodunit: An Improvised Murder Mystery to its weekly improv show, Micetro. Audiences may recognize Micetro, Theatresports, and Gorilla Improv on the festival schedule - all of which will feature performers from across the festival.

In addition to shows, the festival features fourteen workshops, including several multi-day classes.

"The workshops were a huge success last year," says Cady. "Taking workshops is a great way to connect with other performers, and get a taste of different styles of improv."

Festival passes entitle you to free tickets for performances, discounts at local businesses around Wakefield, and an Ocean State Improv Festival t-shirt. Audiences can purchase festival passes or tickets to individual performances on the theater's website, as well as register for workshops.

Make your way down to Wakefield and enjoy entertainment and the start of summer!

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