Improbable People
‘If theatre didn’t exist, this would be a good place to start’ - Keith Johnstone
Led by Phelim McDermott, Lee Simpson and Matilda Leyser, Improbable is a theatre company which defies categorisation. We create work on every scale and at the heart of our work is the practice and philosophy of improvisation. We use this to inspire people to create a better world. We work with the understanding that change comes not from one person, group or ideology, but grows from the symbiotic interactions between us. We connect individuals to their sense of agency, grow community, and empower people to dream and create a healthier and more equitable society.
Our practice enables us to make shows like Perfect Show For Rachel, Akhnaten, and My Neighbour Totoro, and to engage with people through workshops and mentoring to offer tools and techniques that empower them in their lives, their creativity, and their communities. We work in partnership with those in science, business, medicine, academia, and education to develop new applications for improvisational processes and we create spaces for local, national, and international communities within the cultural sector and beyond to work on urgent issues.
Why your support matters
The world is increasingly a place where conversation feels tricky, stuck, or closed off. Improbable holds a space where things stay open, because of our decades of facilitation work. But holding that space requires resources.
To keep our work accessible, to support the artists who take risks with us, and to ensure our community events remain subsidised for those who need them most, we have to find new ways to sustain ourselves. Every year, we must raise over £300,000 beyond our core funding and box office income to keep our practice alive and our doors open to the unexpected.
When you support Improbable, you aren't just funding a production, you are protecting a philosophy. You are ensuring that there is a place for the "yes, and," for the mess, and for the radical act of dreaming together.
Help us sustain and share the practice of improvisation, long into the future.
Image: Manuel Harlan copyright RSC and Nippon TV
Become an Improbable Person
For thirty years, Improbable has existed in the spaces between: between the scripted and the improvised, between the forest retreat and the opera house, between the moment something is imagined and the moment it becomes real. Our work is not held in a single building, but in the people who make it, the practice that sustains it, and the community that shows up to breathe life into it.
As we look toward to the future, we are looking for the people who want to travel with us.
Improbable People is a constellation of those who believe that deep listening, dreaming, and improvising are vital to the world. Supporting us in this way is a way of connecting with our work and other Improbable People to ensure that this specific, playful way of being in the world continues long into the future.
This is an invitation to see, and participate in, the messy, beautiful reality of how we make things happen.
Holding the space
We believe that connection shouldn't depend on the size of your bank account. To keep this group inclusive and accessible, Improbable People is a monthly, pay-what-you-can commitment.
Your support helps us bridge the gap. We are hugely grateful for our core funding, but on top of that, we have to raise over £300,000 every year to make our shows, support our artists, and keep our community events subsidised. Whether you contribute the cost of a coffee or the cost of a theatre ticket, you are directly enabling the rehearsals, the research, and the "what-ifs" that define our work. You are helping us protect a way of working that prioritises the process as much as the result.
Staying in the room
Being one of the Improbable People is an invitation to get closer to the heart of what we do. Each month, we’ll share a different way into our world:
Dispatches from the heart: Editorial pieces and stories from our archives about the moments that shaped us and where we’re going next…
A window into the work: Multimedia content, from rehearsal room glimpses to audio reflections by the artists we collaborate with…
Connection and community: Opportunities to gather with us and each other, including exclusive discussion groups and spaces to explore the practice together…
Perhaps you have been part of our journey for years, or perhaps you are just finding us now. Either way, we would love to count you among us.
Join us - get closer to our work
For those who support us with a larger gift, we create opportunities to get intimate with our work. We create production circles where supporters get special access to behind-the-scenes experiences. When we produce internationally we welcome our supporters to join us for exclusive receptions and events.
If you would like to discuss supporting a specific production, contributing at a higher level, or simply want to talk to a human being about your donation, please reach out to Anna at anna@improbable.co.uk.
Be part of our 30th anniversary
In 1996, we started with a roll of Sellotape and an empty space. Since then, we’ve stretched that roll of tape through numerous rehearsal rooms, shows, the West End, and as far the Met Opera in New York. We couldn’t have planned this – we’ve followed where the tape led us. To mark this milestone, our new 30th Anniversary Campaign will support 30 artists, reach 30,000 audience members, and welcome 300 Improbable People into our inner circle. This year is an invitation to help us sustain the practice of improvisation for the next thirty years and beyond.
Thank You
We are incredibly grateful to the following organisations, funders, and individuals for their support:
Arts Council England
Dr. David G. Knott & Françoise Girard
Heni Koenigsberg
Kate Olvr & Jeremy Young
Patrick Handley
Elizabeth Adams & John Elliott Backstage Trust