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KEITH
JOHNSTONE

February 21, 1933 - March 11, 2023

Keith Johnstone passed away on Saturday, March 11, 2023.  His company continues to both preserve and extend his legacy of teaching about spontaneity and creative life.

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DON'T BE PREPARED.

An artist who is inspired is being obvious. He’s not making any decisions, he’s not weighing one idea against another. He’s accepting his first thoughts."

- Keith

KEITH JOHNSTONE was one of the few internationally recognized authorities in the field of performance for the stage.  His ideas have been applied in many sectors of life, including management, writing, film-making, teaching, psychology and therapy of various kinds. Dozens of Improvisation companies exist world-wide by performing in formatted shows, many of which Keith created, including Theatresports™, Maestro Impro© (or Micetro©  Impro), Gorilla Theatre™, and The Life Game©. Keith wrote two best selling books about his Theatre and Performance theories and practices, in addition to many plays and short stories.

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IMPRO FORMATS

Theatresports™, Gorilla Theatre™ and Maestro Theatre™ are known worldwide. The Life Game©  was produced by London’s Improbable Theatre Co. (directed by Phelim McDermott). It toured Great Britain and the USA to great reviews.

PUBLICATIONS

His books, Impro and Impro For Storytellers, have been translated into many languages. His plays are produced internationally.

INFLUENCE

Keith’s ideas about improvisation, behaviour and performance appeal to a wide variety of groups: from actors to psychotherapists, improvisation companies to drama schools and theatre companies, business and management training specialists to humanities research institutes. For over six decades, universities, organizations, and companies everywhere invited Keith to teach them about his ideas, and how they might apply them.

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INSTITUTION

Keith founded the Theatre Machine improvisation group in England in 1967, touring Europe and North America; was the Co-founder and Artistic Director of The Loose Moose Theatre Company in Calgary, Canada, from 1977 to 1998; retired from the University of Calgary as a professor emeritus in 1995; and founded The International Theatresports™ Institute in 1998.

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