The Improv Embassy Theatre Company

What The Improv Embassy Theatre Company does

The Improv Embassy Theatre Company is a registered Canadian non-profit improv comedy school and performance organization headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario. It was founded as Experimental Farm Theatre by Dani Alon and Chris Hannay in 2014, renamed and incorporated as a non-profit in summer 2016, and is now governed by a Board of Directors with artistic and operational direction led by facilitators and Team Leads. The company operates from a dedicated, physically accessible studio at 441 MacLaren St, Suite 330 in Ottawa's Centretown neighbourhood, and is the only school in Ottawa dedicated specifically to improv comedy.

The core product is a structured, multi-level improv curriculum built around Upright Citizens Brigade and iO Theater-inspired methods. Offerings include a 4-week Intro to Improv, four levels of longform improv (101–401, each 8 weeks, covering Armando, Harold, and related formats), an 8-week Short Form course, a 4-week Improv Refresher for experienced players, and pay-what-you-can community jams (the "Preserve" all-levels jam and an Advanced jam). Adjacent offerings include student teams, house teams (Armando, Harold, Fembassy), summer study groups, specialty and guest-instructor workshops, and ticketed freestyle comedy shows such as The Comic Book Show and Quest Friends Forever. Corporate Workplace Workshops — applied improv for team building, professional development, conference energizers, bilingual programs, and remote-team reconnection — are a separately branded commercial line under a dedicated Corporate Team Lead. The flagship cultural event is the annual Ottawa Improv Festival (OIF), held at Arts Court Theatre and Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre.

Revenue comes from per-class and per-workshop fees (paid via Corsizio for classes and directly via [email protected] for corporate work), pay-what-you-can jam contributions (suggested $10 / supporter $20), show and festival ticket sales (Eventbrite), and City of Ottawa Arts Funding Program grants specifically supporting the festival. Corporate clients span government departments (National Research Council, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Canadian Museum of History), enterprise (PwC, Ericsson Canada, IBI Group), technology/construction (Giatec), and nonprofits (Oxfam Canada, Ottawa Rock Camp for Girls). The marketing stack is largely organic — Facebook/Instagram/TikTok, a Mailchimp newsletter, blog content, case studies, and earned media in OBJ, CTV, and CBC.

Name

The Improv Embassy Theatre Company

Legal name

The Improv Embassy Theatre Company

Website

https://improvembassy.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Improv Embassy Theatre Company is a registered Ottawa-based non-profit improv comedy school delivering a progressive 4-level longform and shortform curriculum, pay-what-you-can community jams, corporate workplace workshops, and the annual Ottawa Improv Festival.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Performing Arts Education

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (711110), Performing Arts Companies (7111)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Improvisational Theatre (MPAGABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Theater & Drama Education (Acting, Improvisation, Musical Theater) (EDAMAAAG), Theatre Education, Training & Conservatories (MPAGABAN), Fringe & Experimental Performing Arts (MPAGABAI)

Keywords

• Improv comedy classes
• Corporate team building workshops
• Improv theatre school
• Workplace professional development
• Comedy festival programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Ottawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Improv Classes: Revenue from 4-week Intro to Improv classes and 8-week Longform and Short Form improv courses. Classes are priced and registered through Corsizio platform.
2. Corporate Workplace Workshops: Customized improv workshops for corporate teams, delivered for team building, professional development, and celebrations. Booked directly through corporate team.
3. Improv Jams: Pay-what-you-can (PWYC) jam sessions. Suggested payment of $10 to cover costs (room rental, facilitator pay). Supporter option at $20 to support nonprofit activities.
4. Show Tickets: Revenue from ticketed shows including student performances, special events, and festival programming.
5. City of Ottawa Funding: Financial support from City of Ottawa Arts Funding Program for the Ottawa Improv Festival. The festival broke even with this support but would have lost money without it.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Improv Embassy Theatre Company is a registered non-profit improv comedy school based in Ottawa that delivers a progressive improv curriculum (Intro to Improv, Longform levels 101–301, and Short Form), pay-what-you-can community jams, customized corporate workplace workshops for team building and professional development, and produces the annual Ottawa Improv Festival featuring local, national, and international acts. Instruction is grounded in New York Upright Citizens Brigade and Chicago iO Theater-inspired longform and short-form methodologies.

Product overview

The Improv Embassy is a non-profit theatre school and performance organization offering a comprehensive curriculum of improv comedy education and public performance opportunities. The core educational offerings include Intro to Improv (4-week beginner course), Longform Improv levels 101/201/301 (8-week progressive courses teaching Armando and Harold formats), Short Form Improv (8-week course in game-based improv), and The Improv Refresher (4-week course for experienced players). The company runs The Preserve All-Levels Improv Jam and Advanced Jam (pay-what-you-can sessions). Its Workplace Workshops division provides corporate team-building using improv principles. The flagship annual event is the Ottawa Improv Festival featuring local, national, and international acts. Additional offerings include Specialty Classes, Student Teams, House Teams, Summer Study Groups, and public freestyle comedy shows. The organization is governed by a Board of Directors with artistic and operational direction from facilitators and Team Leads.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Intro to Improv

Quantifiable outcome

• Hundreds of Ottawa students introduced to improv since 2016
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Carleton Dominion-Chalmers CentreminorOthersFestival venue for 2024 Ottawa Improv Festival (March 14-16). Two shows held at this venue during the festival.
• Arts Court TheatrecoreOthersPrimary venue for Ottawa Improv Festival 2016-2020 and 2024-2025. Also hosts various shows and events. Located at 2 Daly Avenue, Ottawa.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Boom Chicago: Amsterdam-based improv and comedy theater running classes, shows, and corporate training programs. Same business model mix but geographically distant, with international corporate workshop clients.
• Mont Improv: Montreal-based improv school and performance group offering French- and English-language improv classes and shows. Comparable educational offering, primarily serving Quebec rather than Ontario.
• The Groundlings: Los Angeles-based improv and sketch comedy school offering progressive classes and performance ensembles. Comparable curriculum structure and community-driven model, but operates exclusively in a different geography.

Direct peers

• The Hideout Theatre: Austin, Texas improv theater offering progressive classes, shows, jams, and a corporate workshop division. Closely comparable community-driven nonprofit-style model and curriculum depth.
• The Impatient Theatre Co. Toronto-based improv theater and school running classes, shows, and festivals. Comparable scale and curriculum approach to the Improv Embassy, serving the Greater Toronto Area improv community.
• iO Theater: Chicago improv theater and school (formerly ImprovOlympic) that originated the Harold format referenced in the Improv Embassy's curriculum. Runs progressive improv classes, shows, and a corporate training program — closely aligned business model.
• Bad Dog Theatre: Toronto-based improv comedy school and theater offering progressive longform and shortform classes, shows, and a strong corporate workshop division. Canadian peer serving the same corporate and consumer segments just outside Ottawa's market.
• Upright Citizens Brigade: NYC-based improv theater and training center founded by Amy Poehler and others. Offers the same progressive improv curriculum (101-401) that the Improv Embassy explicitly teaches, plus shows and community jams — a direct methodology peer.
• Second City Works: Corporate training and team-building arm of The Second City, focused exclusively on applied improv workshops for businesses — the same B2B segment where the Improv Embassy derives enterprise revenue.
• The Second City: Chicago-founded improv comedy school and theater with training centers in Toronto and other cities. Operates the same core business model: tiered improv classes, performance shows, and a corporate training division (Second City Works) — a directly comparable larger-scale operator.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/improvembassy
• Instagraminstagram.com/improvembassy
• TikToktiktok.com/improvembassy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-improv-embassy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Improv Embassy Theatre Company