Brace New Workshop Will Present IT'S NOT THE HEAT, IT'S THE STUPIDITY Next Month

Hennepin Theatre Trust has announced that Brave New Workshop will return with It’s Not the Heat, It’s the Stupidity: 2 Hot, 2 Stupid running Friday, May 31 through Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024 at the Dudley Riggs Theatre (824 Hennepin Ave.) in downtown Minneapolis. Summer in Minnesota is a sacred time — even when we haven’t really had much of a winter. That extra daylight is a precious and fleeting opportunity to have as much fun as possible even if we have to make ourselves and everyone around us completely miserable. Brave New Workshop recognizes the need to shove 10 pounds of fun into a five-pound bag, so for the second year in a row they will be performing a different show every weekend throughout the summer! 

Join the Brave New Workshop for an evening of all-improvised comedy with a rotating cast of comedy all-stars. Each performance is a one-of-a-kind original that has never been rehearsed before and will never be performed again because it is entirely created from audience suggestions. But don’t miss out, because just like summer, it’s only here for a brief time. 

It’s Not the Heat, It’s the Stupidity: 2 Hot, 2 Stupid is directed by Caleb McEwen, Music Director, Jon Pumper and Technical Director Matthew Vichlach.

An in-person student/educator rush ticket offer will be available for all performances in person on the day of selected performance for 50% off with a two-ticket limit and valid student/educator ID.

Group discounts:

You can get 15% off your group of 8 or more, and you don’t even need to talk to a person! Simply select your performance to buy tickets now, or keep reading for more discounts and ideas.

If you have a group of 20 or more, you are the Costco of friendship, and that means deep discounts.

You can save 20% by contacting us to complete your purchase. Let us make sure you get everything you can out of your event!

Age recommendation: PG-14

Putting together an event that requires customized entertainment, renting space at the theatre, catering or drinks for your party, or something so off-the-beaten-path you have to whisper it in confidence? Intriguing. You have our attention. Let’s make this happen! Just call us at (612) 332-6620.

The Brave New Workshop has been crafting audacious and original satirical sketch comedy and improvisation since 1958 and is the longest running comedy theatre in the United States. Dudley Riggs, a fifth-generation circus aerialist who performed all over the globe, originally founded BNW as the “Instant Theatre Company.”  Riggs assembled and led a talented group of writers and performers intending to make people think by first making them laugh. The company opened off-Broadway with a show consisting of vaudeville-style sketches, burlesque blackouts, and something completely new:  the use of audience input in the creation of “instant theatre.” This “theatre without a net” would be the beginning of comedic improvisation as it is widely known today.

After touring nationally, Dudley and his “Instant Theatre Company” found a permanent home in the Twin Cities in 1958, and the name Brave New Workshop, was added in 1961. In 1997, co-owners John Sweeney and Jenni Lilledahl purchased Brave New Workshop from Dudley Riggs to ensure long-term sustainability and honor the unique history of the theater. In 2021, Hennepin Theatre Trust purchased the Brave New Workshop and the downtown facility (824 Hennepin) from Sweeney and Lilledahl to steward the theatres' rich world-class sketch comedy and improv tradition.

Since the beginning, Brave New Workshop has made its home on Hennepin Avenue – first in the original East Hennepin location, then in uptown from 1961-2010. Their mainstage theatre home is now in the downtown facility at 824 Hennepin in the heart of Minneapolis’ theater district. In the more than 60 years since its founding, Brave New Workshop has produced more than 400 original productions and exposed over 4 million people to the theatre’s unapologetic and unwavering brand of sketch comedy and improvisation. With an impressive list of alumni, including Louie Anderson, Lizz Winstead, Stevie Ray, Al Franken, Melissa Peterman, Tom Davis, Mo Collins and Cedric Yarbrough, the Brave New Workshop is a true Minnesota institution.

Jon Pumper (Music Director) has been with the Brave New Workshop since 2017. In addition, he served as the Music Director for Stevie Ray’s Comedy Cabaret at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatres. He also works as the Director of Music for Grace Lutheran Church of Northeast and runs a successful music/comedy YouTube channel that has garnered over 180K subscribers and 87M views as of January 2023.

Matthew Vichlach (Technical Director) designs lights, sound, images, and videos for each Brave New Workshop production. He also serves as the Technical Director for The Hennepin event center. He has been working professionally in theatre for almost twenty years doing sound design for theatres in the Twin Cities including Yellow Tree Theatre, Theatre Mu, Theatre Pro Rata, Commonweal Theatre, and many more.

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