On the Fly Impro

Founding and Growth (2003)

On the Fly Impro was established in Adelaide, South Australia in 2003 and has grown to become the state's primary resource for improv training. With approximately 30 performers, the company runs a full schedule of workshops and performances accessible to students from beginner through advanced levels.

Formats

The company performs and teaches the full range of Keith Johnstone's competitive formats: Gorilla Theatre, Maestro, and Theatresports, as well as original formats developed by the ensemble. The breadth of Johnstone formats places On the Fly Impro squarely in the Australian Theatresports tradition while maintaining its own distinct voice.

Role in Adelaide Improv

On the Fly Impro operates alongside ImproNOW!, the other Adelaide improv company, which holds the International Theatresports Institute licence for South Australia. The two companies together anchor Adelaide's improv scene.

On the Fly Impro brings Keith Johnstone's competitive formats alongside original work to Adelaide, positioning itself as South Australia's primary improv training resource since 2003.

On the Fly Impro performs licensed Keith Johnstone formats alongside original productions. Maestro, the company's signature show at Hymn Bar, pits Adelaide's improvisers against each other in a winner-takes-all competition voted on by the audience; the format sold out its Adelaide Fringe runs in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022. Theatresports pits teams head-to-head competing for the South Australian Theatresports Cup. Gorilla Theatre features five competing directors vying for bananas and the symbolic gorilla title, with failed scenes triggering audience-assigned forfeits such as interpretive dance. The Bat is an original sensory format performed in complete darkness, building an improvised sonic landscape entirely in real time. The Mullet serves as the company's mid-year graduation showcase. Impro Open Mic Night is a monthly drop-in show welcoming performers from across South Australia's improv community.

On the Fly Impro was established in Adelaide in 2003 and grew into South Australia's leading improvisational training organisation, sustaining a community of approximately thirty active performers across beginner to advanced levels. Holding licensed rights to Gorilla Theatre, Maestro, and Theatresports from Keith Johnstone's Loose Moose tradition, the company gave South Australian audiences consistent access to internationally recognised formats while simultaneously developing original work. The organisation is governed by an elected committee with positions covering artistic direction, productions, marketing, and training, giving it an unusually formal structure for an independent improv company of its size.

The company's training pipeline has produced a generation of practitioners who continue performing and teaching across the state, and its recurring Adelaide Fringe presence has introduced improvised theatre to a broad cross-section of the South Australian public. The Maestro format in particular, with four consecutive sold-out Fringe runs, demonstrated that competitive improv could sustain substantial audience demand in a market not historically associated with the form. On the Fly Impro's vision of a skilled South Australian improv community recognised internationally has driven ongoing engagement with visiting artists and participation in the broader Australasian improv circuit.