Improv Arts is a new model for artist driven performing arts organizations. Rather than operating as a single
performing company, Improv Arts provides the operating infrastructure for multiple companies, sharing operational resources
enabling artists to focus on making art.
We create. We perform. We educate.
Performance Companies:
Jonathan Matis. Photo by Cameron McPhee
Daniel Burkholder/The PlayGround: A movement based improvisational performance group. Read Daniel's Blog, act-re-act, to keep up with upcoming performances and insights into improvisation.
DC Improvisers Collective: An ensemble exploring the intersection of jazz, contemporary
composition and experimental music.
Low End String Quartet: A "new and improved" version of a string quartet comprised of bass, electric guitar, cello, and violin; amplified to rumble your ribcage.
Education and Outreach:
Programs for young people:
The Low End String Quartet introduces young audiences to chamber music that rocks. Participants learn basic vocabulary of
music terms, names of instruments, and concepts of pitch, rhythm, and timbre; the building blocks of musical composition.
Daniel Burkholder / The PlayGround engages audiences through interactive dance, music and student participation while they
learn about humanity's reliance on and need for water. Students learn about everyday uses of water, the water cycle, and
how human behavior effects our water supply. They also develop a greater appreciation of dance and the performing arts.
Our programming for young audiences is curriculum-based, exciting, engaging, participatory, and memorable. During 2008 and 2009,
our staff worked with an arts-education consultant who provided training and support, enabling our performing companies
to generate powerful and effective engagements specifically designed for students in grades K - 8.
Daniel Burkholder, Jennifer Clark
Stone and Audrey Chen Photo by Christine Stone
Programs for Professional Dancers: Workshops led by our own faculty, as well as leading practitioners from around the world.
Improvisational performance is spontaneous, and occurs completely in
the moment, however the craft of improvisation is developed over time,
with experience and rigorous practice. Improv Arts
Inc. provides a mechanism to support long-term collaborations that will
encourage deeper inquiry into the practice of improvisation, especially
across disciplines, allowing artists working in different forms to
learn from one another. Improv Arts Inc., through its long-term
residency at Joe's Movement Emporium will serve as a focal point for
improvisation in the DC region by leveraging resources, presenting
public events, sponsoring workshops, and providing a tangible hub for
collaborative activities.
Record Label:
Improv Arts records are available from Bandcamp as well as your
favorite digital music retailers. Our entire catalog is indexed here.
