Wayward Improvised Theatre

Founding (2024)

Wayward Improvised Theatre was founded in Ottawa, Ontario in 2024, bringing experienced leadership with a board whose combined improv experience totals over four decades. The company's Director of Operations, Lindsey McGowen, has a background that includes work at Hideout Theatre in Austin, Texas. Wayward performs at Arts Court, the same venue used by The Improv Embassy, and participates in the Ottawa Improv Jamboree calendar.

Programming

Wayward presents improv shows twice monthly across four formats: short-form games, long-form relationship and character-driven scenes, narrative full-length improvised plays, and Maestro competitive improv. The multi-format approach gives the company flexibility in serving Ottawa audiences interested in different improv styles.

Wayward Improvised Theatre brings experienced multi-format improv programming to Ottawa across short-form, long-form, narrative, and Maestro styles from its 2024 founding.

Maestro is Wayward's flagship monthly show, licensed from Keith Johnstone's International Theatresports Institute format. Each edition features ten Ottawa improvisers competing in games and scenes based on audience suggestions, with the final performer crowned Maestro and awarded a Canadian five-dollar bill. Wayward produces improv bi-monthly at Arts Court, rotating between short-form, long-form, and narrative formats. The company also presents seasonal specials, including a Holiday Show in December.

Wayward Improvised Theatre established itself as Ottawa's newest dedicated improv producer in 2024, adding a regular performance venue to a city with an active but dispersed improv community. By licensing the Maestro format through ITI, Wayward connected Ottawa's scene to Keith Johnstone's competitive improv tradition. The company's bi-monthly residency at Arts Court provided a consistent public stage for local improvisers who had previously relied on festival appearances and one-off bookings.