**DUE TO THE STORM IN THE GULF, IMPROV: LEVEL ONE WILL BEGIN ON JULY 20TH. STAY SAFE, FRIENDS!**
IMPROV ONE Class Details:
Improv 1 – A Silverbacks Improv Class (Teacher Aren Chaisson)
Dates: Saturdays July 20, 27; August 10, 17, 24, 31.
Time: 10am – 12pm
Where: Cite Des Arts Dance Studio – 109 Vine St, Lafayette, LA 70501
Ages: 16+
Cost: $100
Silverbacks Improv Theatre, will begin another round of improv classes starting in July. Silverbacks began offering improv classes in the summer of 2015, and has had great success and fun with their students. Improv troupes Weaning Process, The Plural Noun, and recent grad troupe Lively Banter even found their beginnings in Silverbacks improv classes.
The Silverbacks will begin by offering Improv 1. Students will then have the option to continue to Improv 2, 3, and 4 if they choose.
IMPROV LEVEL ONE is an entry-level journey into the joys and thrills of improvisation, or improv. Students will learn and practice the application of “group mind” and the all-important “yes, and” – and other improv concepts and vocabulary. Students will practice new skills, perform and play in a safe, low-stakes and friendly atmosphere.
LEVEL ONE is perfect for the super fan of comedy or improv who has yet to perform, the curious introvert wanting to try something new or someone looking to improve their public speaking or quick decision making skills. At the conclusion, you can move on to Level Two or continue to take LEVEL ONE again – as many times as you’d like. You’re sure to get something new out of it each time!
Still on the fence? Hear from a former student!
“Silverbacks Improv Theatre classes were a great experience. I felt like I was in a slump, and these classes lifted me up. I made friends, gained confidence, and had the opportunity to play. The teachers miraculously offer a relaxed yet rigorous environment where challenge is welcome, but never judgment.” -Leslie Tidwell, founding member of The Weaning Process – Improv Troupe
Level One students will also have the perk of free entry to all Silverbacks produced improv shows while they are taking classes!
Register online here: https://squareup.com/store/silverbacks-improv-theatre or by calling 337-205-2129. Students may also message the Silverbacks Facebook page with questions:www.Facebook.com/SilverbacksImprov
Teacher Biography: Aren Chaisson, III – Aren is from Lafayette, Louisiana and teaches Talented Theatre in Iberia Parish. Since moving back from New York City in May 2011, he has performed in many productions, including John Proctor in The Crucible, Huey P. Long in The Kingfish, Dale Pittman in The North Plan, Harry “Jazzbo” Haywood in It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, Lenny in Of Mice and Men, Foreman in Twelve Angry Men, Cliff in Cabaret, Officer Lockstock in Urinetown and William Shakespeare in William and Judith. This past summer he was in his first CCT production as Jud in Oklahoma! Since graduating from University of Louisiana at Lafayette with a BFA in Performing Arts, he has performed in NYC, Chicago, Syracuse, Alabama, Indiana, on regional and national tours, and in short films and commercials. He studied improv with Armando Diaz at the Magnet Theatre in NYC and performs with Silverbacks Improv Theatre in Lafayette.
The Improv Rumble will pit teams of improvisers against one another in an all-out brawl. Everything’s made up, but YOUR VOTES REALLY COUNT. Who will go home the victor? The answer depends on YOU. Audience members will vote on their favorite performances to determine a team winner.
On Friday, December 14th, at 
IMPROV LEVEL TWO
Elaine Kibodeaux has been acting for 21 years and improvising for 17. She is a founding member and assistant artistic director of Silverbacks Improv Theatre, a Cult of the Stage Monkey (UL-Lafayette) Alumna (’01-’08), Co-Director of Your Spooky Friends (an Improvised Horror Troupe), and has studied and performed improv in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, Washington, D.C., and Chicago. Elaine began teaching Improv Fundamentals for Beginners in 2010 and has since added Improv Acting Techniques for Dancers and Movement for the Actor to her instruction repertoire. She is a belly dancer with Habibi Hips and Bal Amira, and is approaching her 12th anniversary at Oasis Bellydance Studio. She regularly uses her improv and acting experience to enhance her stage presence when dancing.
Rob Kirkpatrick isn’t originally from Lafayette, but he likes to say he got here as quickly as he could. He hosts Acadiana’s Morning News weekday mornings on NewsTalk 96.5 KPEL. It may surprise you that someone who reports news doesn’t take himself too seriously. Rob says it takes a sense of humor to handle everything that comes across his desk in the KPEL newsroom every day. Rob first started in radio while studying at UL-Lafayette. His first TV job was working alongside the KATC’s “BIG THREE” Marcelle Fontenot, Jim Hummel and Rob Perillo. In 2010, he took his show on the road and set out for roles in national newsrooms at FOX in Dallas and CNN in Atlanta. He grew up in Mandeville, and made the best decision of his life turning down LSU for the Mass Communication program at UL-Lafayette. Rob’s smile is infectious at the Townsquare Media Studios in Lafayette, where he has proven himself to be a force both on-air and behind the scenes when working for clients. Rob Kirkpatrick is married to Sarah and has two daughters.