The Hideout Theatre
| The Hideout Theatre | |
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| Address | 617 Congress Avenue |
| Homepage | http://www.hideouttheatre.com |
| Years of Operation | 1998-Present |
The Hideout Theatre is an improv theater in downtown Austin that draws its primary inspiration from the work of Keith Johnstone.
History
1998-1999: Austin Theatresports
Inspired by the improv he had seen in San Francisco, Sean Hill founded Austin Theatresports in 1998. This is the group that would shortly form the core of the Hideout Theatre, but they didn't have a theater space yet. Instead, they performed Theatresports shows at a number of venues in town, including The Hyde Park Theater.
1999-2004: Sean Hill Starts the Hideout
In the first years of the theater's operation, Sean Hill led building/renovating the initial theater space, and he produced the first shows there, starting with Theatresports, and expanding the program out to other Keith Johnstone formats such as Maestro and Gorilla Theater. He included some traditional longforms that weren't strictly Johnstonian, such as More or Less and Six Degrees.
2005-2009: The AIC Years
In the mid-2000s, Sean Hill took a more hands-off approach to the theater, and the Austin Improv Collective started to produce shows there, creating programs like The Threefer and The Double Barrel.
2009-Present: New Management
By mid-2009, Sean Hill's lease on the property came to an end, and he chose not to renew. Eager to see the Hideout Theater continue, Jessica Arjet, Kareem Badr and Roy Janik acquired the property.[1] They immediately scheduled regular two-month mainstage runs for Saturday nights. Over time, they steadily expanded the education program, and the weekly show schedule.
In January of 2013, they began running mainstage shows, as well as Maestro, in the building's larger, downstairs theater. The next month, they took over the building's café space. In April, they expanded the hours of the café, so performers could, at last, grab a drink or a bite to eat at the Hideout after finishing their shows.
Shows
The Hideout puts on a number of mainstage shows, and a variety of recurring shows such as Maestro and The Free Fringe.
For a complete list of Hideout shows, see the "Shows" page.
