About Us

The Improv Conspiracy's mission is to foster and showcase the best improv and comedy in Australia.

Our core values are Community, Diversity, Education, Excellence, Inclusivity, Innovation & Experimentation, Performance and Teamwork.

The Improv Conspiracy is Melbourne's leading source of Chicago-style longform improvised comedy, with a brand new theatre and training centre in the Melbourne CBD.

Our performance ensembles train and perform weekly in Melbourne all year round. In addition to our four weekly comedy nights, we routinely participate in local and international arts festivals such as the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Perth's FRINGE WORLD Festival and the Out Of Bounds Comedy Festival in Austin, Texas.

We offer public workshops designed to teach members of the Melbourne arts community how to put on their own entertaining improvised shows. Our Chicago-style workshops program is the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere, offering five core levels of instruction plus advanced study elective courses. Since its inception in 2012, over 500 of Melbourne's most talented and creative performers have trained with us and raved about their experiences.

We also offer corporate workshops in which we apply the basics of improvisation to business-friendly topics like team development and public speaking.

There is no prior acting or comedy experience required to start training with us... we'll teach you everything you need to know! Students who complete the training program are eligible to audition for one of our performance ensembles.

Our members have trained and performed with some of the best improvisation schools and troupes in the USA and Australia, including:

Press and Reviews

★★★★ "These guys make improv an art form." - Herald Sun
"More and more hysterical as the show progressed." - The West Australian
"The standard of acting and comedy was brilliant ... do yourself a favour and go see these guys." - Isolated Nation
"Highly satisfying... you'll appreciate the mental and physical gymnastics." - Herald Sun
"Watching these guys improvise is like watching an Escher drawing." - Inpress
"Trying to pick a favourite performer or scene from the night is impossible… professional, accomplished comics with excellent acting skills." - Yawp
"The Improv Conspiracy and The Harold provide an evening of both well-grounded and lighter-than-air performance that is exciting to watch." - Katherine Phelps

A brief history

September 2011: First private Harold format training session held with improvisers from established local companies such as The Baby Seals and The Big HOO-HAA!
February 2012: First public Harold performance, and the launch of our monthly show "Improvised Show & Tell" at the Dan O'Connell Hotel
August 2012: The casting of our first two Harold teams, The Peeping Toms and NASA Dropouts
August 2012: First public Level 1 workshop held
September-October 2012: "Introducing the Harold" runs for 12 shows at the Croft Institute during the Melbourne Fringe Festival, including a few sold out shows
October 2012: First public Level 2 workshop held
January 2013: First Level 1 and Level 2 week-long intensive workshops held
January 2013: Announced our third and fourth Harold teams, The Wrong Shoulder and Elevator DJs
January 2013: The launch of our fortnightly show "Harold Night" at the Dan O'Connell Hotel
March-April 2013: "Our Friend Harold" runs for 16 shows at the Croft Institute during the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, selling out the entire regular season run
May 2013: First public Level 3 workshop held
September 2013: Our brand new format "A Night in Chicago" debuts at the Melbourne Fringe Festival
January 2014: Harold Night goes weekly at the Dan O'Connell Hotel, featuring six new teams: Superstitious, Foggy Windows, Skeleton Kisses, Thunderdog, Drinks With Gary and Your Elected King
January 2014: The Improv Conspiracy Touring Company's first out-of-town performances. Seven sold out shows at Perth's FRINGE WORLD Festival!
March 2014: Second sold-out season at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, including our first 4-star review (Herald Sun)
June 2014: First public Level 4 workshop held
August 2014: First International performance at the Out Of Bounds Comedy Festival in Austin, Texas
September 2014: The launch of our second weekly show - The Red Hot Improv Jam, Rotating Tap and The Remix are now every Sunday night
December 2014: Team-A-Geddon — The dismantling of all existing Harold teams, and relaunching with: Dirt Squad, Friend at the End, Endless Cash, Shake-A-Stick, Airblade and Bass Drum Kitten.
March 2015: The opening of The Improv Conspiracy Training Centre & Theatre in the Melbourne CBD
October 2015: Friday and Saturday night shows added at the Theatre
January 2016: All shows moved in-house to the Theatre from the Dan O'Connell Hotel - now offering shows 4 nights each week!

Meet the Team

Meet the management team behind our theatre, workshops program and amazing community.


Adam Kangas is the founder and Artistic Director of The Improv Conspiracy. Firmly believing that improv is for everyone, he's committed to continuing the explosive growth of our business and community while honouring our mission statement and core values.


Laura Buskes is our Theatre Operations Manager and Assistant Artistic Director. She oversees most of the day-to-day tasks around the theatre, and assists with the planning and actioning of the company's long-term artistic goals.


Broni Lisle is our Education Director. He works hard to ensure that our public and corporate workshops are safe, fun environments with high-quality instructors and relevant comedy curriculums.

Diversity & Inclusion Coordinator

Diversity & Inclusion Committee

More on Diversity & Inclusion