As professionals, artists, and students in the field of improvisation, we have a responsibility to use our platforms to challenge injustice and guard against ‘art washing’ in our theatres and festivals. The escalation of the genocide (and underlying regime of settler-colonialism, apartheid, and military occupation) in Palestine reveals this phenomenon as a growing problem in our industry and we cannot allow our stages to facilitate the normalisation of oppression through silence.
Collective censorship silences the voices of people experiencing oppression and pretends that the genocide does not affect our sector. Furthermore, the lack of positioning by organisations attracts teachers, performers, students, and audiences with Zionist views, creating spaces that are inherently unsafe.
The intention of many festivals inviting artists from Israel is to position them solely as individuals and assume they do not represent their country or Zionist ideology. However, by failing to simultaneously express a clear stance on the issue for fear of causing discomfort or generating controversy, such events become complicit in the normalisation of state violence.
We demand that theatres and festivals maintain a strong, clear, and public position against the genocide in Palestine and colonial oppression everywhere. This positioning must be visible to the public and reflected in communication channels online and in person at all stages of participation. Recommendations for doing so are are listed below, and constitute the minimum requirement for signing this pledge.
In this way, invited professionals and individual participants must decide whether to join an event with the knowledge that the organisation has taken a clear stance. The goal is not to veto anyone based on their origin, but to ensure that the improvisers who attend do so under shared ethical principles; otherwise, they are free not to participate.
We understand that neutrality in the face of genocide does not exist and that remaining silent only serves to validate violence. We invite festivals and theatres to be unafraid in creating safe spaces, and we offer our public support to take this step forward collectively.
For these reasons, we the undersigned theatre companies, festivals, industry professionals, artists, and students agree to uphold the GRIP guidelines to create safe environments and favour the participation of people facing oppression.
Signed by
GRIP (Global Resistance of Improvisers for Palestine) on behalf of the individuals, theatre collectives, and festivals below.
GRIP MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
IMPROV THEATRES & COLLECTIVES commit to the following measures:
– Share the GRIP Social Media Image* & statement to your social media accounts as a permanent post
– Display the GRIP Logo* prominently on your website with a link to the statement
– Permanently display the GRIP Poster* with a link to the statement at venues
IMPROV FESTIVALS commit to measures totalling 10 points minimum:
Pre-Festival & Registration
– Share the GRIP Social Media Image* & statement to your social media accounts as a permanent post (2 points)
– Display the GRIP Logo* prominently on your website with a link to the statement (3 points)
– Include Zionism & Colonial Oppression as a form of racism in your festival’s Code of Conduct (2 points)
– Include a clause during registration whereby participants accept the terms of the GRIP statement (3 points)
– Include a clause in teacher’s offers/contracts whereby they accept the terms of the GRIP statement (2 points)
During Festival
– Display the GRIP Poster* with a link to the statement at key festival venues (3 points)
– Acknowledge and condemn the genocide in the opening/welcome speech (3 points)
*While using GRIP assets and statements are a convenient option for many organisations, alternative or custom media and statements are also acceptable as long as they do not dilute or soften the message, thereby damaging the integrity of the campaign.
Improv Festivals, Theatres & Collectives
Alligator Improv
Barcelona Improv Group
Bleach Improv
Cascades Improv
Cia Risas
Coffee & Cigarettes Theatre Collective
Compagnie Synapse
Daus
Festival de Impro Pergamino
FIT (Formación Específica en Improvisación Teatral)
Gather Improv
Global Impro
Good Camel Comedy Theater
Grupo Estelar
Hilando Impro
Impro Barcelona
Improdutivas
ImprOlive Teatro
ImproMadrid
ImproPalestina
Impro.Sp
ImproVivencia
Improv Sitges
Isla Impro Fest
Modo Impro
Moth & Butterfly
Mylaga Improv
OlvídaloTodo
Orilla Impro Fest
Piérdete en Chicago
Potluck Improv
Push Play Theatre
SalaSalada
Shiiink! Festiva D’Improvisationl
Status Magazine
Swaajp Improtheater
The Bazaar
The Big Sing Musical Improv Festival
The Bluff Education Hour
The Improv Boost
Individual Improvisers
Aarushi Agni
Adua Dalla Costa
Agata Silvan
Agustin Sosa
Alba Bresolí Aliberch
Ale García
Alexis Ramos
Alfie Laragione
Alfonso Garzas
Aline Coccia Rosa
Amalia Schoinaraki
Amanda King
Ana Bragado
Ana María Mateo González
Anamaria Meneses
Ana Marija Hauko
André Pedro
Andrés Felipe Lugo Moreno
Anna Patrikiou
Anne Hyvönen
Antoine Noirant
Antón Coucheiro Faílde
Anton Glavas
Aree Witoelar
Argini Zanna
Ariel Ezra
Arfie Mansfield
Armando Martinié
Arthur Nguyen
Assad Khan
Athena Valantasi Mantellou
Azahara Murillo Vicente
Bahar Ghodsian
Beata Różalska
Ben Verhoeven
Billy Kissa
Blanca Garcia
Brendan Guillouet
Brenda Re
Brooke Segler
Catherine Higgins
Catherine Murphy
Carl Clancy
Carla Ieraci
Carlo Raffaelli
Carlos Sánchez Reyes
Carson Alanes
Cené Hale
Chema Moreno Martín
Chloe Kennedy
Chloi Syranidou
Chris Mead
Christian Rivero
Claudia Mazzola
Claudio Maraniello
Clément Delord
Cole Dennis
Coralie Mangin
Cristina Rosano Morin
Damien Bestard
Daniel Picó García
Daniel Isidoro Ramírez Villalta
Dante Sorgentini
D’Arcy Briggs
David Keeling
Desh Deepak
Diego Ingold
Dominika Bakun
Doug Pennant
Edison Villa Morocho
Eilis Scally
Eirini Avgoustaki
Elena Chatziri
Elena Dalmau Bibiloni
Elena Roig Castellana
Elisa Peroni
Ella Galt
Emily Murphy
Emma New
Emmanuil Zouraris
Emily Graver
Eoin O’Sullivan
Ermis Nastoulis
Ester Mosca
Eva Cubillo de Olazabal
Fabian Leon Bonilla
Fayrouz Ahmed
Felix Moral Calleja
Feña Ortalli
Fernando Somohano Real
Ferran Luengo
Filippo Maceratesi
Flo Blondiaux Pirson
Florent Le Saout
Francesco Mora
François Gobard
Furia Marín
Gabriel Caropreso
Gala Martínez-Romero Martín
Gianluigi Baldassarri
Gillian McBride
Gisela Roeder
Giulia Montefiore
Greg Leresche
Hugo Mezine
lea Charlet
Invi Brenna
Irene Pardo
J Bala
Jacob Wolf Lefton
James Witt
Janne Berg
Jaša Levstik
Jasper Steurs
Jenet Le Lacheur
Jerome Besse
Jo Garrity
Johanna da Rocha Abreu
John Lane
John Pekkari
Jonah Habebe Fazel
Jonathan Nguyen
Jose Luis Gomez Calvo
Julia Petäjä
Julien Bertrand
Julieta Jazmín Torres Caamaño
Kaci Beeler
Katarina Veselko
Kamylla Pereira
Kareem Badr
Katie Nixon
Kathleen Kenny
Kayleigh Reichman
Kiki Miller-Hohnen
Kimberly Poppe
Kitty Ouok
Kiva Murphy
Konstantinos Aggelis
Kyriaki Arampidou
Lambrini Xenou
Lampros Lamprinos
Lana Lodge
Laura Maynard
Lea Ríos Brea
Leanne Shellshear
Lena Rossel
Liam Paltani
Lidia González
Louise Hemfrey
Lucas Munilla Duenas
Luis de Pablo
Madhura Murar
Marcelo Paz Gonçalves
Margo Carr
Maria Bernardes
Maria Olofson
María Sánchez Lizcano
Mariana Alicia Palau
Marie de Waal
Marieke Mandemaker
Mariel Guinea González
Marina González Giménez
Marina Papadopoulou
Marisa Lopez
Maro Lesioti
Martina Lembo
Mathias Barazas Varallo
Matías Lioi
Matteo De Vos
Megan Scott
Mercedes Vaquero Abellán
Micah Philbrook
Michail Kaplantzis
Michele Mercadante
Michelle Whitaker
Miguel Molina Montes
Miles Lizak
Misia Coghlan
Mónica Ballesteros Silvestre
Moysidis Tryfon
Natacha Seuret
Natalia Puertas Góngora
Neil Curran
Niceol Blue
Nicolas Grout
Nikoleta Dogoriti
Nilo Netto
Nina Anyayahan
Noha Mousbah
Odile Cantero
Órla Mc Govern
Paul Clerget
Paula Cristina Sánchez Novo
Pauli Reese
Paolo Rotolo
Pepa Duarte
Peter Nordstrand
Per Gottfredsson
Pol Subirana
Priscilla Eyles
Rachel Navetta
Rachida Hsain
Raisa Frayhayt
Rebecca McKeown
Rebecca Tanwen Morgan
Regina González Ocampo
Reixa Buffet
Ricard Olivé
Ricarda Veh
Richard Flower
Richie Murphy
Robin Chakrabarti
Robyn Berk
Romain Marchand
Rosalind Beeson
Rosalind Gregoire
Rowan Boyle
Sajben Emma
Salla Lintonen
Salman Qureshi
Sam Gutierrez
Samira Jerbaoui
Samuel Berger
Santi Avendaño Martínez
Sara Valle
Sarah Eager
Sarah Essén
Sarah Geen
Sarah Parsons
Sebastián Molina Grande-Caballero
Shaakira Vania
Sharon Knight
Shaun Landry
Sie Thibert
Sophie Mooney
Sonia Weaver
Stefano Yakko Giacché
Stefanos Valantasis Mantellos
Stephanie Rae
Stephen Davidson
Stylianos Melas
Susa Cofiño
T Cheung-Damonte
Tamara Maasdam
Tanusree Chaudhuri
Tara Judah
Tarek El Saad
Taylor Lamontagne
Theodoros Chatzimaris
Thibault Astry
Tizzy Gregory
Trevor Silverstein
Úrsula Urgeles González
Valentino Fanton
Verónica Antonucci
Vlasios Tsiamas
Will Naameh
Xana del Mar López García
Xavier Bozo
Yacine Nemra
Yvonne Landry