IMPROotje amsterdam 2026
October 10 & 11 - the Zonnehuis Blauwe Zaal, Amsterdam Noord
48 improvisers. 6 directors. 6 shows.
1 community.
IMPRO Amsterdam only comes around once a year and we want more improv. So for the third year in a row we’re throwing an all-Netherlands mini-festival: IMPROotje Amsterdam (“little IMPRO Amsterdam”). It’s a celebration of the many improv communities all around The Netherlands that make our big annual festival possible.
It’s also your opportunity to audition to be a part of the 2027 IMPRO Amsterdam Festival Ensemble, joining a group of incredible international performers on the mainstage of the Zonnehuis.
Applications to be a performer open on 8 August!
all about improotje amsterdam
48 Improvisers:
48 performers from all over the Netherlands will be matched with guest directors to learn a brand new format in one day and perform it that evening. It’s a chance to play with new people, learn from an IMPRO Amsterdam director, and perform in a style you may not have tried before.
As one of those performers, you’ll experience exactly what IMPRO Amsterdam ensemble members do on show days - a six hour workshop from a top director (in this case, at a highly subsidized cost), followed by a show in the evening, open to the public. The goal is to give you a sense of what being an ensemble member is like, and to give the IA artistic team a sense of how you’d thrive in the festival environment.
When we’re assigning performers to directors, we often try to push people out of their comfort zone. IMPRO Amsterdam shows are extremely stylistically diverse, and we want to see how you handle that. If you’re comedy forward, how do you do in a grounded, dramatic set? If you rely on talking, how do you do in silent scenes? The challenge is half of the fun, though, and you’ll be performing in front of an extremely warm audience (and an artistic team that knows and understands that you’re out of your comfort zone).
Six incredible improvisers from the Netherlands will direct our 48 performers in unique showcases.
Our directors for IMPROotje 2026 will be:
Salòme Attias (Netherlands)
Jenny Hasenack (Netherlands)
Nardje Trepels (Netherlands)
Emma Wessleus (Netherlands)
Simon Lukacs (Netherlands)
Nora McLeese (Netherlands)
Follow our socials to get to know them a little better!
6 directors
IMPROotje Amsterdam is a two day affair, with three showcases per night, varying in tone, structure, and (of course) cast. It’s a great taster for the main festival - we believe that impro can be anything!
6 shows
Yes, IMPROotje acts as an opportunity for us to select the local members of our Festival Ensemble, but it’s so much more. It’s also an opportunity to spotlight the incredible performers who make up our community. It’s a chance to nerd out with fellow improvisers from other cities, learn from folks outside of our normal cycling range, and revel in all the talent we have here at home.
1 community
IMPROOTJE amsterdam FAQ
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Members of the IA festival ensemble need to be all-rounders, capable of playing big and silly as well as grounded and emotional. We want to see what you can do!
We watch a lot of improv throughout the year across the Netherlands, and we recognize that we may only be seeing a part of your skillset. With IMPROotje, we want you to show us all of your facets - if you usually play comedy, we might place you in a drama. If you usually play physically, you might be asked to talk a lot!
We know that this means that you might be a little out of your comfort zone, but that’s designed to be part of the fun. Ensemble performers at the main festival are often asked to try new things, and we are looking to see how you adapt to that - not just how good your performance is that night.
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To be considered for the audition and the ensemble, you must:
Be a resident of the Netherlands (or you will be one by the time the main festival begins on 20 February 2027).
Be available during the entirety of hte festvial
Not have been a member of the ensemble in BOTH 2025 and 2026.
Have a high degree of English language competency.
Additionally, to be a good fit for the IA ensemble, you should be:
An experienced improviser who is capable of learning a new format within 3-6 hours
A supportive player who knows when to step forward and when to let others shine
A solid teammate - you show up on time, respect your colleagues and your directors, and give it your all.
Available! IA ensemble members are expected to be present for all 8 days of the festival, participating in shows and workshops. We do pay performers, but this may not offset lost work hours. Questions about that? Please please talk to us! We love questions.
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Performers who have been selected to join the Festival Ensemble will know by 1 October. If you were not selected, you will be notified shortly after.
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Listen, casting the festival is by far the hardest part. We have to consider the ensemble as a whole, not just the individual.
Sometimes a performer is brilliant but doesn’t mesh well with the other folks who were selected. Sometimes they were too similar in play style to someone else. Sometimes it comes down to demographics - we want folks from a range of improv communities all around the country, an even mix of genders, a variety of perspectives.
In short, if you weren’t selected, it doesn’t mean that we didn’t like you or that you won’t get selected another year. Basically, there’s just too much damn talent in this country to make our jobs easy.
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Selections will be made by the IA Artistic Team: Erica Maity (Artistic Director) and Bodei Brouwer (co-Artistic Director), with feedback from the directors and other members of the Production Team.
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Absolutely not! We’ve spread IMPROotje out over two days so that we can better fit into more people’s schedules, as well as to give the Artistic Team a little breathing room.
We know that travel and accommodation are expensive. If you’d like to come for both days, you certainly can - but if it doesn’t work for you, it’s not a problem at all.
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Fill out the form below and select “I’m not available on these dates”.
We know that October is a busy month for everyone. While we’d like to mandate that all potential Ensemble members come to IMPROotje to audition, if we find that there’s a huge group of people who are unavailable those days, we’ll see about a secondary make-up set elsewhere.
That said, we hope to make decisions by 1 October, so if you are out of the country for all of September and October, we may not be able to consider you this year. Fortunately, IMPRO Amsterdam happens annually - we really want to see you next time!
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Absolutely! IMPROotje Amsterdam has a little something for everyone. We will have workshops from top teachers in the Netherlands and Belgium. You can also see some excellent improv and support your friends by watching them audition in the main shows.
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That’s right! Tickets for the shows and non-audition workshops will go on sale soon. Please sign up for our mailing list and/or subscribe to our socials to get updates.
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Yes, particiption in IMPROotje Amsterdam (taking a workhsop and performing in a showcase) costs €75.
Basically, we charge for participation to pay the teachers and pay for the venue. IMPRO Amsterdam is a stichting which does not make a profit. If we do make any extra money, it will go directly back into the festival.
We’ve also dramatically lowered the cost of the showcase workshops to make them more accessible. Typically, a 6-hour workshop at IA costs €120. Still, if you have trouble covering the €75 to participate, please let us know. We don’t want finances to be a barrier.