The bang Comedy Theater and Improv Studio was founded in 1995 by Peter and Aliza Murrieta as a purveyor of intelligent comedy and a studio dedicated to the ongoing study and performance of improvisation.
Located in the Los Angeles Fairfax district, bang hosts public performances every Thursday through Saturday evenings with special events and classes held in the space the remainder of the week.
Thursdays and Fridays feature improv shows including master performances by iProv in Schwag! plus the longest running student show in LA, The Big Show. Semi-regular master performances also include veteran bang and Second City performers in Stacy’s Not Here, and macabre Victorian-era ghosts in The Doubtful Guests performed by bang and Hothouse improvisers.
Recurring Thursday shows feature the best of improvised storytelling, personal essay and spoken word. Shows include The Truth (called “improvisation with a point” by the Wall Street Journal), personal essay show Piñata featuring acclaimed comedians, TV writers & spoken word artists, and Open Mic, bang’s hot new night for music, magic and variety.
Saturday nights feature performances of original theater works, with a focus on well-reviewed, award-winning one-person shows. Recent works include Obie Award winner Heather Woodbury’s The Last Days of Desmond Nani Reese: A Stripper’s History of the World, Máire Clerkin’s The Bad Arm: Confessions of a Dodgy Irish Dancer and Brenda Adelman’s My Brooklyn Hamlet: Where Father Kills Mother and Marries Sister Recent performances also include comedic duo Sabrina Hill and Jennifer Tracy in LA Women, called “smart, comedic and hilarious” by the LA Weekly.
Special events include the monthly performance by LA’s only olde time radio theater troupe Fake Radio, seasonal fare like Mick Moloney & The Sweet Set for St. Patrick’s Day, and The Lady Party Benefit featuring acclaimed singer-songwriter Nellie McKay.
Noted actors who have performed at bang include: Fred Willard, Sarah Silverman, Rainn Wilson, Jeremy Piven, Willie Garson, Dan Castellaneta, Andy Dick, Kathy Griffin, Margaret Cho, Bobcat Goldthwait, Taylor Negron, Rachel Dratch, Greg Proops, Ryan Stiles, Jeff Garlin, Janeane Garofalo, Eric Idle and many more.
Bang is also an acclaimed improv studio offering four levels of improv classes plus a Masters Program. Additionally the studio offers specialized classes such as Teen Improv and Scene Study. Bang’s teachers are not only experienced improv instructors, they are also professional actors, writers, and directors. Bang founder and teacher Peter Murrieta is the showrunner and producer of the Disney Channel’s Wizards of Waverly Place. Other bang teachers include co-founder Aliza Murrieta, who is an alumna of The Second City (Chicago) and a former touring company member. Also teaching are noted voice actor and Director of the bang Conservatory, Ezra Weisz, and MADtv writer Jenna Jolovitz. Successful television writers Evan Gore and Theresa Mulligan also lecture at bang.
Some of bang studio’s noted alumni include General Hospital’s Yennifer Behrens, hostess extraordinaire Michelle Merkin (ABC’s The Next best Thing, et al), and Quinceañera star Jesse Garcia. Other bang faculty and alumni have worked recently on ABC’s Pushing Daisies, Disney’s The Wizards of Waverly Place, Discovery Channel’s Mystery ER, and in many, many national commercials.
Additionally the bang space is available for rental for events, shoots and classes.
