The Crunchy Frog Collective is a website devoted to all things to do with theatrical and comedy improvisation.

It for everyone who is involved in the wonderful world of improv to use:�people who go to shows, people who are learning how to improvise and people who are putting on shows and classes for others to enjoy. And it's free.

If you are part of an improv troupe and you want to become an associate group (this means you get a login to our news and calendar so you can tell everyone about what you are getting up to), email Dylan on [email protected]. We would be delighted to hear from you!

How it all began: Madness and Laughter

One bright Saturday morning in the spring of 2001, the leafy south London suburb of Balham awoke in alarm to strange sounds of a humorous nature seeping out of a tiny ramshackle theatre, aptly named the Chrysalis. For here veteran improviser Alan 'starter of many groups' Marriott had begun a series of drop-in workshops. His fiendish purpose was to discover fresh, new and talented victims to sacrifice to gods of improvisation.

Several years later, Alan and his group of improvisers were forced out of The Chrysalis by evil property developers* and moved to Stockwell Studios, a ramshackle ex-hospital run by an artists collective.
Two years after that, he was forced out again by evil property developers** and moved to The Stockwell Community Resource Centre.

Then in 2008, Alan was forced to go back to his native Canada after 25 years in the UK by evil property developers***. Dylan Emery took over the classes and moved them to The Bethnal Green Working Men's Club, then, after harassment by evil property developers ****, The Rag Factory in Brick Lane. And that's as far as the story has gone...

* this is true
** this is also true
*** this is a lie
**** no truth in this at all

Biographies

Dylan Emery, who has been running this website since its launch, has been performing, teaching and directing impro for almost 10 years. He has performed at The National Theatre, The Royal Court, the Bristol Old Vic, Latitude Festival and many times at the Edinburgh Fringe; he has also performed for BBC Radio 1 and 7 and hosted the Radio 4 series of Showstopper! The Improvised Musical .

He co-founded Grand Theft Impro, Showstopper and is a member of �hard-bardics� improvisers The School of Night. He is the creative director of The Sticking Place theatre company, which runs the famous annual 50-hour London Improvathon. He primarily trained under Alan Marriot and Ken Campbell.

Alan Marriott, who launched the Crunchy Frog Collective,�co-founded Grand Theft Impro along with Dylan but has now moved back to his native Vancouver.

Alan has worked with or taught almost every improvisational theatre group in London including: The Comedy Store Players, Dogs on Holiday, Brickbats Volunteers, South of the River (with Steve Frost and Jeremy Hardy) and The Top Dog Players.

He is also the creator of many successful impro shows, including The Impro Musical and Impropera.