u/JakeCarter79

I heard that Dad’s Garage is exploring the idea of launching an improv/comedy festival next year, and it got me wondering what people actually want from a festival these days.

If you travel to festivals (or would consider it), what makes one worth your time and money?
Some things I’m curious about:
Would you rather see a festival focused mostly on improv, or one that also includes sketch, stand-up, clown, musical improv, podcasts, etc.?

Are there things that immediately make you decide not to attend a festival?

I’d love to hear from performers, teachers, producers, and audience members. If you could build your ideal festival, what would it include?

This is mostly a hypothetical question, but I’m curious what people think in 2026.

For years, the conventional wisdom was that places like Second City, UCB, Groundlings, etc. were the places to train. They’ve produced an incredible number of successful comedians, but a lot of those people came through in the ’90s and early 2000s. Since then, the comedy landscape has changed a lot. Second City was recently bought by a private equity firm, many theaters are still recovering from the pandemic, and there are so many more paths into comedy now through podcasts, social media, YouTube, and independent projects.

Obviously nobody can predict the future, but if I had a magic wand and could move anywhere and fully commit to training, which city and theater would give me the best shot at eventually doing comedy full time?

Would you still say Chicago and Second City? UCB in LA? Groundlings? Atlanta and Dad's Garage? Somewhere else entirely? Or do you think the “move to one theater and climb the ladder” model is outdated? I feel like Second City, UCB and Dad’s Garage are probably the best bets.