Go see a livestreamed improv film from PHIT Comedy

Riffing on a format first tried out at New York’s Upright Citizens Brigade theater, Philly Improv Theater is aiming to shoot a fully livestreamed original improv film.

In Via Satellite: Improvised Film, a group of 10 performers will get the prompt of a movie genre from the audience. They will then scurry out of the theater — located on 20th and Sansom — and livestream their performances into the theater, where directors Kristen Schier and Andrew Whitehead look to mix and cut performances into an original film whose dialogue and theme are wholly improvised.

“This is the first the time something like this will happen in Philly,” Whitehead said. “This is going to be truly an improvised show where there is no definitive theme and actors will create whatever they feel inspired to at the moment.”

This Wednesday, PHIT creates an improvised film via livestream. Come be part of this #PhillyTheatre experience: https://t.co/GSOV4roLar

— Philly Improv Theater (@phitcomedy) May 14, 2018

The show will take place on three dates through May 30.

Does the gimmick of livestreaming really add to the already unpredictable nature of improv comedy?

Whitehead said the key difference to the Via Satellite experiment is that it will allow for the performances to be captured in a format that can be revisited.

“This show format offers a new take on improvisation,” Whitehead said. “Improv is usually a forum that’s left in the ether, that happens once and then goes away. This is almost like a snapshot into people’s lives. We’re excited to see where and how it happens”