GII Symposium 2026: Full Schedule

A free space to hang out, meet folks, work or relax! And where you can peruse the display table of publications by GII26 Authors with various purchase options.

Artists

You

You have agency to make choices in life. Engage!

Thursday July 9, 2026 8:30am - 5:00pm PDT
307 Design Studio Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97209

z Wellness

9:00am PDT

The "Un-Keynote" with Anthony Veneziale

Thursday July 9, 2026 9:00am - 10:30am PDT

75 Recital Hall

Opening plenary with Anthony Veneziale, co-founder of Freestyle Love Supreme

Artists

Anthony Veneziale also known as Two Touch, is the conceiver and co-creator of the acclaimed Freestyle Love Supreme.Anthony has been performing and teaching applied improvisation for more than 25 years and is a leader in the field of musical improvisation. He is the co-founder of... Read More →

GII26 Team

Joel Veenstra

Faculty | Co-Founder/Creative Team, University of California, Irvine | Global Improvisation Initiative (GII)

Joel Veenstra teaches improvisation, stage management, and collaborative production at the University of California, Irvine. He is active in the improvisation and applied improvisation world and serves on the Board of AIN and as the co-director of Global Improvisation Initiative... Read More →

Theresa Robbins Dudeck

Assistant Professor | Co-Founder/2026 Chair, Portland State University | Global Improvisation Initiative (GII)

Theresa Robbins Dudeck
Assistant Professor of Theater at Portland State University; Co-founder of the Global Improvisation Initiative (GII); and Director of P.I.E. (PSU Impro Ensemble). Theresa works internationally as a theatre practitioner with expertise in improvisation. She is a Fulbright Scholar (Brazil), autho... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 9:00am - 10:30am PDT
75 Recital Hall Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97266

All Play Event

10:00am PDT

Activating the Possible: GII26 Podcast Session

Thursday July 9, 2026 10:00am - 5:00pm PDT

205 Classroom

Live Podcast Recording with GII Presenters, hosted by Jonathan Pitts

Artists

Jonathan Pitts

Jonathan Pitts is an award-winning international improv theatre artist and storyteller living in Chicago. He's performed and/or taught in 30 countries and over 100 cities. He's the former Executive Director of Chicago Improv Productions; Co-Founder/Producer Chicago Improv Festival... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 10:00am - 5:00pm PDT
205 Classroom Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97222

Interview

11:00am PDT

Cog Creative: Navigating Dementia with Improvisation

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT

319 Classroom

Cog Creative is a programme of improv classes for those living with dementia, their supporters and health care workers.

Artists

Nicola Pauling

Nicola Pauling is a New Zealand (Aotearoa) based theatre practitioner and specialist in applied practice. She has produced numerous performance projects working across the mediums of theatre, film and radio and in partnership with government agencies, local government, health professionals... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT
319 Classroom Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Panel

11:00am PDT

Improbable Panel

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT

221 - Zoom Room

Conversation with Phelim McDermott, Lee Simpson & Matilda Leyser (UK)

Moderators

Theresa Robbins Dudeck

Assistant Professor | Co-Founder/2026 Chair, Portland State University | Global Improvisation Initiative (GII)

Artists

Lee Simpson

Artistic Director, Improbable

Lee is a founder member of Improbable, a Comedy Store Player and one of Paul Merton's Impro Chums. He’s also been a croupier, cinema projectionist and breakfast show DJ. He’s written plays, appeared in sit-coms and in some films, been on some Radio 4 panel shows and once did a... Read More →

Matilda Leyser

Co-Artistic Director, Improbable

Matilda Leyser is a British writer, director, aerialist, and the first female Co-Artistic Director at the UK-based theatre company, Improbable. She is widely known for blending improvisation, storytelling, and physical theatre, and for navigating her creative work alongside personal experiences as a mother and a leukaemia survivor... Read More →

Phelim McDermott

Artistic Director, Improbable

Phelim is a founder member of Improbable. He has won various awards such as an Olivier Award for Best Entertainment, TMA Awards for Best Touring Production and Best Director and a Critics Circle Best Designer Award. He was awarded a National Endowment for Science, Technology and the... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT
221 - Zoom Room Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97215

Panel, Virtual/Online

11:00am PDT

Epic Disney: A Brechtian Approach to Improvisation

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT

115 Studio Theater

Artists

Improvacateurs

The Improvocateurs are Samm Hill, Donna Arasin, Michelle Guthrie, Samson Carruth

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT
115 Studio Theater Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Performance, Demo

11:00am PDT

Human Connection & Improv: Solving Workforce, Mental Health & Inclusion Challenges through Authentic Connection

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT

225 Classroom

How do we solve a workforce development crisis, mental health and substance use challenges, and diversity gaps? The answer: human connection. Join us on this journey. Come connect with us.

Artists

Brent Darnell

Founder/Owner, Brent Darnell International

I teach emotional intelligence and people skills to the construction industry using a lot of improv, storytelling, and gamification.

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT
225 Classroom Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Workshop

11:00am PDT

Improv for Role Playing Games

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT

327 Acting Studio

This session explores the role and use of improv for role playing games like Dungeons & Dragons and others. It covers key topics including: Character Development (Player Characters, NPCs), Storytelling, World Building and Game Play& Design.
The session also discusses how Game Masters (GMs) can use improv to collaborate with players, to provide opportunities for custom gaming experience, and to balance planned scenarios with sandbox settings.

Artists

Tiffany Anne Crotty

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT
327 Acting Studio Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97225

Workshop

11:00am PDT

Play the Problem: Improv, Cynefin & the Art of Navigating a Complex World

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT

7 Acting Studio

Bring greater weight to your improvisation or teaching. This interactive workshop will bring to life decades of research and practice around the Cynefin* framework, which helps you first identify the kind of problem you’re facing (Simple, Complicated, Complex, or Chaotic) and only then to choose an appropriate response. Improvisers have the skills to address today’s challenges—Cynefin is a road map for when and how to use those skills.

Artists

Caitlin McClure

Caitlin McClure helps leaders in healthcare, investment banking, cybersecurity and auto manufacturing to unlock the brilliance of their teams and show up as the leaders they want to be, every day. For more than 20 years she has been designing and facilitating face-to-face and virtual... Read More →

Don Waisanen

Don Waisanen is a “pracademic” who’s always striving to help others level up their understandings and practices for communication and leadership. He's a Professor at Baruch College, CUNY, an adjunct at Columbia and NYU, and the founder of Communication Upward, which provide... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT
7 Acting Studio Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97230

Workshop

11:00am PDT

The Improvisational Facilitator

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT

55 Boiler Room

Great facilitation doesn't just support improv—it is improv. Let’s explore the frameworks, practices, and personal strengths that will enhance your teaching and leadership in any context!

Artists

Kat Koppett

The Facilitation Advantage: How to Drive Impact, Build Relationships, and Lead with Influence

Facilitation skills are a force multiplier for leader effectiveness. They enable leaders to navigate complex challenges, inspire their teams, and achieve exceptional results. The essential ingredients to transform not-so-great interactions into productive, engaging, and inclusive... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 11:00am - 12:30pm PDT
55 Boiler Room Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Workshop

12:30pm PDT

LUNCH (on your own)

Thursday July 9, 2026 12:30pm - 2:00pm PDT

Portland (on your own)

Enjoy a meal in the amazing city of Portland

Artists

You

You have agency to make choices in life. Engage!

Thursday July 9, 2026 12:30pm - 2:00pm PDT
Portland (on your own) Portland, OR 97207

z Wellness

2:00pm PDT

Improvisation as a Tool for Creating Scripted Content

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

319 Classroom

Improvisation has long been a tool for honing creative skills and creating characters and stories in TV and film. In this panel, we will learn from professional writers and actors how they use improvisation to inspire and create the less ephemeral work of TV and film.

Artists

Andra Whipple

Andra Whipple is a UCI alumni and writer who has worked on Adam Ruins Everything, the WGA Awards, and other things you’ve never heard of. She’s a host of the WGA 3rd and Fairfax podcast, the co-chair of the WGA committee of women writers, and a WGA strike captain. She also... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
319 Classroom Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Panel

2:00pm PDT

OHSU Vital Talks: Improv in Medical Role-Play

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

225 Classroom

Oregon Health Sciences University trains doctors and nurses in handling end-of-life conversations with patients, parents and children of adult patients. They use skilled improvisors in role-play sessions with students. This panel session will discuss the benefits and challenges, and provide a demonstration or two of the training.

Moderators

Patrick Short

GM, CSz Portland

Artists

Jared Chiarchiaro

Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU)

Jared Chiarchiaro is an Associate Professor of Medicine and the Clinical Chief for the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at OHSU. He received his internal medicine training at Duke University Hospital and his Pulmonary and Critical Care fellowship training at the University... Read More →

Katie Stowers

Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU)

Dr. Katie Stowers is a graduate of Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine. She completed her internal medicine residency and palliative medicine fellowship at The Ohio State University. Katie is an associate professor of medicine. She serves as the Interim Director... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
225 Classroom Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Panel

2:00pm PDT

Making DAME: Exploring Under-represented Aspects of Female Identity through Improvisation and Community Connection

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

115 Studio Theater

An interactive, educational, and playful roundtable discussion on methods of creating opportunities and safe spaces for discourse and exploration on the complexities of female experiences.

Artists

DAME

Elegant improv, comfortable shoes. DAME has been playing together since 2023 and performs at various venues throughout Portland. The ensemble members represent various backgrounds in age, sexuality, culture, family, and careers. DAME's grounded and fun style explores identity, society, and the redefinition of expectations... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
115 Studio Theater Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Performance, Demo | Panel, Demo

2:00pm PDT

Stories That Move Us

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

327 Acting Studio

Stories That Move Us invites participants to explore personal storytelling through Playback Theatre and improvisation, transforming lived experiences into dynamic, collaborative performances.

Artists

Damilola Apotieri-Abdulai

International Improv Artist, Playback Nigeria, CEO

Oluwadamilola Apotieri-Abdulai (NG) is the CEO of Playback Nigeria and a member of the board of Centre for Playback Theatre (USA). He is a confidence coach and communication skills trainer dedicated to bringing effective change to individuals and organizations through theatre and improv. He is Nigeria’s first Applied... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
327 Acting Studio Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97225

Workshop

2:00pm PDT

The Audacity of Nope: Replacing Passive Agreement with Generous Redirection

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

55 Boiler Room

Keith Johnstone’s playful “Nope” encouraged improvisers to discard ideas that didn’t serve the evolving relationships or narrative. In this workshop, we will explore how to honor the spirit of “Yes And” by generously killing original, “brilliant” offers that do not inspire your partner or support the unfolding collaborative creation.

Artists

Theresa Robbins Dudeck

Assistant Professor | Co-Founder/2026 Chair, Portland State University | Global Improvisation Initiative (GII)

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
55 Boiler Room Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Workshop

2:00pm PDT

Vulnerable Improvisation: The Aesthetic of Chaos, Viscerality & the Dramaturgical Discourse of the “Wild” in the Contemporary Scene

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

221 - Zoom Room

This session aims to promote discussion on vulnerability as a central and philosophical axis of contemporary theatrical improvisation, moving it beyond the exclusive sphere of play, risk, and light entertainment. The analysis begins with the play "WILD IMPROVISATION" (authored and directed by Aline Bourseau), which adopts long-form improvisation as a form of dramaturgical discourse capable of addressing viscerality, chaos as an aesthetic language and carefully planned narrative discourse, and socially "savage" or marginalized themes, or those not popular within improvisation (such as domestic violence, abuse, hate speech, etc.). The connections between improvisation and philosophical concepts of freedom, becoming, imbalance, ethics, and the Deleuzian "violent encounter" with what is "Outside" will be explored, proposing a technique not only as a performing tool but also as a thought practice and an ethical-aesthetic exercise of (re)existence. The debate will focus on how performative surrender and the abandonment of defenses—vulnerable improvisation—create a territory of investigation that allows reflection on the human in its constitutive contradiction: the boundary between the civilized and the visceral.

Artists

Aline Bourseau

Brazilian, born in Rio de Janeiro. Actress, Director, and Researcher with over 20 years of experience in the performing arts. She began her career in 1999, accumulating experience under the direction of names such as Barbara Heliodora, Luiz Furlanetto, Demétrio Nicolau. With an academic... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 2:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
221 - Zoom Room Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97215

Workshop, Virtual/Online

3:45pm PDT

Improvisation for Personal & Community Healing

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT

225 Classroom

Practitioners from a variety of fields to discuss the research, merits, challenges, and applications of improv for personal and community healing. We will look at work in the fields of conflict resolution, counseling and therapy, palliative care, and medical leadership. This talk will investigate questions like: How has impro changed these fields to date? What does the Venn diagram between "Healing and Health" and "Impro Practice and Skills" look like? Where might there be more opportunities for improving personal and community health using impro?

Moderators

Brad Fortier

Principal, Fortier Creative Consulting

Brad has been performing, teaching, and directing improv since 1996. He has a unique interdisciplinary MA that combines anthropology and improvised theater. He has authored 2 books on the anthropology of improv, as well as a chapter in the first volume of Applied Improvisation bo... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT
225 Classroom Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Panel

3:45pm PDT

Reindigenizeing Improvisation Storytelling

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT

319 Classroom

In this round table, we will discuss how applying Indigenous knowledge systems to improvisation benefits the ways in which we understand storytelling. We will discuss how global Indigenous knowledges are strategically silenced through settler colonization in impro theater, and how to Reindigenize (rather than “decolonize”) our art form.

Artists

Cassie Funmaker

Cassie Funmaker (they/them) (Ho-Chunk Nation) is currently working on their Bachelor’s degree in Theater Arts at Portland State University. This is Cassie’s first production with Bag&Baggage. Other favorite roles include Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play (as Maria; Marge Simpson); Measure... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT
319 Classroom Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Panel

3:45pm PDT

Making Your Improv Auditions Equitable and Ethical

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT

7 Acting Studio

In this workshop, you’ll learn what you need to do to have equity in casting and how to design an inclusive, ethical casting process.

Artists

Mary C. Parker

Mary C. Parker has over ten years of improv comedy experience across Pittsburgh, London, Portland, and Seattle, performing at festivals in Edinburgh, Pittsburgh, and Richmond. She is a member of the Pro Team at CSz Seattle, serves as the Education Lead at Bandit Theater, and is founding... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT
7 Acting Studio Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97230

Workshop

3:45pm PDT

The Information Is In The Room: Improvisation for Inclusion

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT

327 Acting Studio

An exploration of embodied inclusion through improvisational movement exercises, and discussions of how improvisation is the primary tool for facilitating inclusion across abilities and ways of being.

Artists

Aaron Wheeler-Kay

Creative Manager, Echo Theater Company

I am a teacher and director specializing in hybridized physical theater. Circus arts are one tool I use in collaboration with other disciplines to tell stories infused with themes of access and inclusion. I am a certified Master Instructor of the DanceAbility Method, a modality for... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT
327 Acting Studio Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97225

Workshop

3:45pm PDT

The Pedagogy Beneath Johnstone’s Exercises: Less Pressure, More Play

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT

115 Studio Theater

This in-person workshop is a practical teaching lab for anyone drawn to improv—teachers, applied improv practitioners, performers, and beginners—who wants to explore the facilitation choices that make relaxed playfulness more likely.

Artists

William Hall

Fratelli Bologna

BATS Improv co-founder. Actor, director, trainer, facilitator and mask teacher.
Find Improv games and activities on: www.ImprovGames.com

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT
115 Studio Theater Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Workshop

3:45pm PDT

Welcome to the Cypher: Intro to Freestyle Improv

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT

55 Boiler Room

Improvising Freestyle Rap with the co-founder of Freestyle Love Supreme

Artists

Anthony Veneziale

Thursday July 9, 2026 3:45pm - 5:15pm PDT
55 Boiler Room Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Workshop

5:15pm PDT

DINNER (on your own)

Thursday July 9, 2026 5:15pm - 7:00pm PDT

Portland (on your own)

Enjoy a meal in the amazing city of Portland

Artists

You

You have agency to make choices in life. Engage!

Thursday July 9, 2026 5:15pm - 7:00pm PDT
Portland (on your own) Portland, OR 97207

z Wellness

7:00pm PDT

Love, Shakespeare

Thursday July 9, 2026 7:00pm - 8:00pm PDT

55 Boiler Room

Witness the magic of unscripted Shakespeare, as a troupe of traveling players performs one of the Bard's “forgotten” comedies. Love, Shakespeare troupe members: Rose Bonomo, Rachel Rosenthal, Andy Perkins, Peri Ahmadi, Jake Hull, Tyler Quinn, Kristen Schier

Artists

Love, Shakespeare

Step into the offbeat world of Love, Shakespeare, where seasoned comedians attempt something audacious: a fully improvised Elizabethan play based on your suggestions! Follow a merry band of players, former buddies of the great Will himself, as they unravel one of the Bard's “unfinished” gems. Each show is an unpredictable tribute... Read More →

Thursday July 9, 2026 7:00pm - 8:00pm PDT
55 Boiler Room Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97231

Performance

8:15pm PDT

Worlds Collide: FreeStyle Love Supreme meets American Immigrants

Thursday July 9, 2026 8:15pm - 9:15pm PDT

75 Recital Hall

A musical, improvised show containing elements from Freestyle Love Supreme, and Anthony’s American Immigrants.

Artists

Anthony Veneziale

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75 Recital Hall Lincoln Hall PSU, 1620 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97266

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