The Hideout Theater

Another great article, this time in the Austin Chronicle, just appeared about Johnstone and his upcoming visit. It features an interview with Hideout owner Kareem Badr, and mini-interviews with Andy Crouch, Kaci Beeler, Shannon McCormick, Shana Merlin, and Jeremy Lamb. Here’s an excerpt:

And Johnstone’s teachings have a big influence at the Hideout, don’t they? He’s not the one being brought here just because Del Close is, ah, unavailable?

Badr shakes his head, black curls shifting in the bright afternoon light. “The Hideout – definitely when it started, and still, at its core – is very Johnstone School. I mean, improv is improv, it’s all pretty much the same basic skills, but Johnstone comes at it from a different side. He stresses storytelling and narrative, whereas Del Close and the so-called Chicago style are more about, ah, really strong characters and more realistic situations. Johnstone is more about unlocking the inner child in your head and letting the really fantastical happen.”

Read the rest of the article here and then buy your tickets to the Johnstone Maestro.

The Austin A.V. Club just posted a huge writeup, with video,  about the influence of Keith Johnstone and the importance of his upcoming visit.

They focus on four things That Johnstone had a direct impact on. Here’s the short list:

• Whose Line Is It Anyway?
  “A further key to the show’s success in the U.S. (and its subsequent ABC version) came straight from the Vancouver TheatreSports League, where popular castmates Ryan Stiles and Colin Mochrie both learned the art of the make ‘em ups.”
• The Kids In The Hall
  ” Johnstone’s website quotes McKinney as saying of his former director, ‘I don’t think I’ve met many geniuses in my lifetime… but he was definitely one of them.’”
• Some seriously wigged-out actors in masks
  “On paper, it all adds up to a bunch of people donning goofy, papier-mâché faces and screaming at mirrors—which it is, but in an eerily primal, ritualistic way.”
• Improv in Austin
  “Shows at The Hideout—especially Maestro—have provided common ground for improvisers and audiences, a rallying point for the community. And that community has one cantankerous British theater director to thank.”

For the whole writeup, check out the full article, and then buy your tickets to the Maestro on Saturday.

The strangeness of this upcoming weekend cannot be overstated.

Keith Johnstone is coming to town, and besides teaching some intensive workshops,  he is also going to direct Maestro.

Just who is Keith Johnstone?

He’s one of the founders of modern improvisation.

His teachings are the underpinning of The Hideout’s style… both what we teach and perform.

He INVENTED Maestro, along with Theatresports and Gorilla.

The shows he invented are performed in countries around the world.

His insight into status is legendary.

In short, it’s insanely exciting for us to have him come down.

But it’s also a bit scary.

It’s a bit like your parents coming to visit.

And like all good children, we want to impress our parents.

To try and do that, we’re holding the biggest, most ambitious show we’ve ever done.

For the first time ever, Maestro is coming to the Long Center, and we’re trying to fill 150 seats rather than the Hideout’s usual 50.

Tickets are available now, and can be purchased online.

Please consider coming. This kind of event doesn’t happen very often.

Roy Janik
Artistic Director