XL Festival
The Happy Valley XL Improv Festival is a four-day longform improv comedy festival held annually in State College, Pennsylvania, hosted by Happy Valley Improv at The Blue Brick Theatre. The festival presents 12 shows across three evenings, with up to 21 teams performing sets of 19 to 23 minutes each. In addition to performances, the festival offers workshops capped at 16 participants per session, as well as Penn State campus tours, downtown scavenger hunts, and visits to local attractions.
History
Happy Valley Improv was founded in January 2017 by four Penn State-affiliated improvisers who began meeting weekly in a church basement. In 2021, the group took over the space at 209 W Calder Way and converted it into The Blue Brick Theatre, which serves as the festival's permanent home venue. The festival reached its fifth annual edition in 2026.
Significance
The festival draws performers from cities across the United States and welcomes hundreds of spectators to State College each year. It also runs a Festival Ensemble program that casts individual improvisers who apply without existing teams, broadening participation beyond established groups.
Need current dates or submissions? This is a historical archive. Visit improvfestivals.org for live festival listings.
How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). XL Festival. Retrieved September 21, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/festivals/xl-festival
The Improv Archive. "XL Festival." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/festivals/xl-festival.
The Improv Archive. "XL Festival." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/festivals/xl-festival. Accessed September 21, 2026.
The Improv Archive is a systemically maintained repository. The archive itself acts as the corporate author.