Jun
27
News Coverage of iO West Crash
CBS covers the damage done to our beloved theater.
Please follow the link to view the video.
Jun
26
THEATRE CLOSED TONIGHT
Classes will continue as scheduled
ALL SHOWS ARE CANCELLED and the
THEATRE IS CLOSED until further notice.
Please check back for more information. Shows and events will resume once the theatre is repaired.
ALL CLASSES WILL CONTINUE AS SCHEDULED
UPDATE
At approximately 4pm on Thursday, June 26th, an out of control SUV traveling eastbound on Hollywood Blvd. crashed through the front of the building, coming to a stop in the iO West bar.
Nobody was injured.
Damage to the exterior and interior of the building is extensive and means that
the Mainstage and Bar are CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
Phone service and power at the theatre and office has been interrupted, but will be restored soon.
Updates will be posted as soon as they are available
Jun
23
NEW IMPROV CLASSES BEGIN THIS WEEK!
NEW IMPROV CLASSES BEGIN THIS WEEK!
NEW CLASS SESSION BEGINS NEXT WEEK! Click here for Schedule & Registration Info
Jun
13
SCREENWRITING CLASS BEGINS JULY 9th!
Begins July 9 - Ends July 30
SCREENWRITING WORKSHOP Wednesdays 7-10pm / 4 Weeks Begins July 9 – Ends July30 $200
Taught by John Hindman
This four week class is designed to give you the tools you need to write a screenplay and also address some of the common pitfalls, mistakes, and miscalculations that writers make. Many great ideas never make it because the writer didn’t have a grasp on the basics of cinematic story telling and the art of screenwriting.
John Hindman is the founder of the iO West Writing Program, now in its sixth year. He has written for both television and film. As a story consultant he has provided analysis for studios, producers, and of course his students. He is the writer/director of “The Dream of the Romans”, starring Jeff Daniels and Lauren Graham which is currently in post production. John was recently included on Hollywood’s “Black List”, a year-end list of the best screenplays.
May
28
May
06
PRESS: Charna dishes about life on The Real World!!
iO's founder breaks the news about her time on the hit MTV show.
When the cast of MTV’s The Real World Hollywood showed up to the iO Theater in Los Angeles, they had no idea what to expect. Fortunately, neither did their teacher, iO Owner and Founder Charna Halpern who went on to work with them over the run of the show.
Apr
14
David Cross (Arrested Development) Packed the House as The ArmandoMonday, April 28th at 9p.m.
Monday, April 28th
On Monday, April 29th Emmy-Winner, David Cross (Mr. Show, Arrested Development) gave insightful monologues about the significant differences between turtles and tortoises, the difficulties of flying with a hatbox on a diamond route and why that Ralph’s on La Brea is so rockin!
If you missed this weeks armando, shake off that frown and resolve to make to this unpredictable laugh-o-rama in May!
In case you you don’t know what an armando is: The Armando takes a suggestion from the audience then uses it as inspiration to tell personal stories which will, in turn spur iO WEST’s veteran improvisers, to perform a series of hilarious scenes on the spot that will keep the laughter coming.
The cast includes Dan Bakkedahl (Daily Show, 30 Rock), Betty Cahill (SNL), Mike Coleman (The Factory),Josh DuBose (Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip), Mary Pat Farrell (Weeds), James Grace (Super Troopers), Dave Hill (La La Land), Jason Pardo (The Brothers Solomon), Miles Stroth (Global, Inc.), Adrian Wenner (Scrubs) and Irene White (Carpoolers).
Reservations are strongly recommended.
The Armando Show is an hour-long improvised comedy show inspired by an audience suggestion, which the celebrity hosts interpret through a personal and truthful improvised monologue. Inspired by that monologue, a cast composed of veteran Chicago and Los Angeles alumni perform scenes that, in turn, inspire a response from Armando. This propels hilarious interchanges between Armando’s monologues and the company’s scenes.
LA Times reviewer F. Kathleen Foley describes the performance by saying, ” ...this free-associative repetition melds into Zen-like flights of fancy….”
This show is the reason to see live improv in Los Angeles.
May
06
The Chris Farley Show - Get Your Copy Today
Learn about the man behind the legend!
May 10th at 8 p.m.
If you missed the book release and panel for “The Chris Farley Show” You can still get a copy of this fantastic look into the life of a legend.
About the Author
Tom Farley, Jr.., Chris’s older brother, is president and managing director of The Chris Farley Foundation, which educates young people about substance abuse and addiction.
Tanner Colby is former head writer of the National Lampoon Radio Hour and coauthor of Belushi: A Biography.
About the Book A biography of the Saturday Night Live star as told by his friends and family
No one dominated a stage the way Chris Farley did. For him, comedy was not a routine; it was a way of life. He could not enter a room unnoticed or let a conversation go without making someone laugh. Fans knew Chris as Saturday Night Live’s sweaty, swaggering, motivational speaker; as the irresistible Chippendales stripper; and as Tommy Callahan, the underdog hero of Tommy Boy. His family knew him as sensitive and passionate, deeply religious, and devoted to bringing laughter into others’ lives.
But Chris did not know moderation, either in his boundless generosity toward friends or in the reckless abandon of his drug and alcohol abuse. For ten years, Chris cycled in and out of rehabilitation centers, constantly fighting his insecurities and his fears. Despite three hard-fought years of sobriety, addiction would ultimately take his life at the tragically young age of thirty-three. Fame on SNL and three straight number-one box office hits gave way to a string of embarrassing public appearances, followed by a fatal overdose in December 1997.
Here is Chris Farley as remembered by his family, friends, and colleagues—the true story of a man who lived to make us laugh and died as a result. The Chris Farley Show is an evocative and harrowing portrait of a family trapped by addiction, a father forced to bury a son, and a gifted and kindhearted man ultimately torn apart by the demons inside him.