The Improvised Shakespeare Company took over Jones Theater Nov. 1 to remix Shakespeare’s stories for the Pullman community.

The Improvised Shakespeare Company was founded in 2005 and consists of twenty male members, each with 10 years of professional improvisation under their belts. This is their first time coming to WSU.

As the name suggests, everything in each of the show is improvised, using the language and themes of William Shakespeare. The actors ask the audience for a play title, and then the actors develop the title into a story. Take their WSU performance: “Naked in the Woods.”

“Our main goal is to support and build off what the other person does,” said Blaine Swen, creator and director of The Improvised Shakespeare Company. “The moment someone starts singing, we start singing.”

Swen was joined in Pullman by Joey Bland and Brenan Dowling, both experienced actors with different theater groups.

“The guys in the company are at a certain caliber,” said Bland. “I haven’t walked out of a show thinking we had some rocky starts.”

For “Naked in the Woods,” Swen, Bland and Dowling performed a play that combined themes from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “The Taming of the Shrew.” The actors portrayed characters such as a Duke, the banished cousin Claudio and mischievous forest fairies. They even introduced Angelo, the genealogist, and Jeanette, the librarian.

“You can play whoever you want to no matter the gender, age, or even how much knowledge you have of the field. Whatever you decide to do becomes right,” said Dowling.

Swen said the costumes – loose white shirts, knee-length black pants, tights, and black shoes – are just enough to suggest an Elizabethan-era without a distraction. Since there are no other costumes or props, the actors rely on the audience’s imagination to hold characters on stage.

“It’s so much fun to explore a moment on stage that you never saw coming,” said Dowling. “We’ve done a ton of musical improv.”

While the actors may slip in some modern day speech, they managed to speak in a typical Shakespearian tone most of the time. Swen said the shows are like “a love letter to Shakespeare while having fun with his world”.

The Company members study Shakespeare as a part of their rehearsal process. They study Shakespeare plays, talk to professors specializing in the subject and even take Elizabethan vocabulary quizzes.

 “The thing that makes the show tick is that we’re having so much fun,” Swen said. “These guys make me laugh so much.”