Impro Academy Paris

Florian Bartsch, who had been experimenting with improvisation internationally since 1997, founded the Impro Academy in 1999 to create a formal training environment for theatrical improvisation in Paris. In May 2001, Bartsch and a group of students performed the first Improfessionals show, 'Improvisation Insanity', at Cafe Oz near Pigalle, establishing Paris's first anglophone impro performance company. The academy's influence spread beyond the English-speaking expatriate community as French-speaking audiences discovered the Improfessionals' style and enrolled in training. Over two decades, the school developed distinct artistic tracks while continuing to produce corporate training alongside its performance curriculum. The 2025-2026 season reflects a curriculum focused on specialized disciplines rather than general improv instruction.

Impro Academy Paris distinguishes itself through specialist training streams, combining the comedic traditions of North American improv with European physical theatre and musical forms. The school's dual French and English programming reflects a deliberate bridging function between Francophone theatrical culture and the international anglophone improv community.

As the founding institution of Paris's anglophone improv scene and the incubator of The Improfessionals, Impro Academy Paris holds a foundational position in the development of English-language improvisational theatre in France.