Acts to dish out off-the-cuff comedy at improv festival at Baobab Stage

Memorizing scripts and rehearsals are usually a given for putting on a show. However, when it comes to improvisational theater, there is no preparation.

“Anything can happen, and that’s what makes it beautiful,” said Irene Marquette, an improvisational comedy performer and workshop instructor for the Improv Goblet Comedy Festival. “Its nature is fleeting.”

The festival returns for a second year to the Baobab Stage theater at Town Square Las Vegas, 6587 Las Vegas Blvd. South, with shows set for 8 p.m. to midnight Oct. 3 and 4.

Paul Mattingly, a Las Vegas comedian and founder of the festival, has been pursuing improvisational comedy since he was 17. He said he wanted to expose the city to “really cool” comedy groups after working with The Second City, a Chicago improvisational comedy enterprise, during the early 2000s.

There is a “small but thriving improv community in Las Vegas,” said Mattingly.

Improvisational comedy is a “singular once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said Marquette. It involves writing, performing, directing, editing and creating for the audience on the spur of the moment, making it exciting live entertainment, she said.

Improvisational comedy groups from all over the country are scheduled to perform at this year’s festival. Groups include Bear Supply, The Cobranauts, Elevator and Improvised Star Trek.

In addition, improvisational comedy workshops are planned for 11 a.m. and 1, 3 and 5 p.m. Oct. 4.

Mattingly said that although the workshops will be especially beneficial for performers, anyone can attend. He said that getting up and playing with strangers is half of what makes improvisational comedy fun.

Marquette said her specialty is getting people to come out of their shell, trust their instincts and ideas and learn to collaborate. She said improv also helps people become better communicators and listeners, since they have to build off each other, she said. The skills come in handy for everyday life, she said.

“I love improv and love the way it asks you to approach a scene or life,” she said. “So much can be applied to life.”

Tickets are $10 for the festival and $20 for each workshop.

For more information, visit facebook.com/improvgoblet.