David Shepherd (producer)
Encyclopedia
David Shepherd is an American
producer
, director, and actor
primarily noted for his work in improvisational theatre
to an old money
family, Shepherd grew up with left-leaning sensibilities. He studied English
at Harvard
and received an M.A. in the History of Theater at Columbia
. Disenchanted with what he perceived as a European dominated theater on the East Coast, Shepherd gravitated to the Midwest.
In 1953 Shepherd was one of the co-founders of the Playwrights Theatre Club in Chicago. In 1955 he and Paul Sills founded the Compass Players, the forerunner of The Second City
. Compass launched the careers of Mike Nichols, Elaine May, Jerry Stiller, Alan Alda, Alan Arkin, Barbara Harris, and Shelley Berman (to name a few) and started a revolution in entertainment. Since Compass, David has gone on to create numerous improv formats – including the Improvisation Olympics (a competitive theatrical sporting event), Responsive Scene Radio Show (listeners create their own stories on air) and MOVIExperience (improvising a movie) which culminated in the publication of his book “That Movie In Your Head.”
More recently he, Howard Jerome and Jamie "Willie" Wyllie created the Canadian Improv Games
, which are produced in association with Canada's National Arts Centre and which are the subject of the documentary film "In The Moment". In addition to leading workshops in Improvisation, David Shepherd has recently been involved in developing techniques for the creation of improvisational films with his partner, Nancy Fletcher. David has written a book entitled, That Movie in Your Head, about the process of improvised movie making. David resides near Amherst, MA. As of 2011, David was actively working on a new improvisational format known as Life-Play, which consists of improvised games that can be played on the phone or in person by two or more players.
2010 saw the completion of "David Shepherd: A Lifetime of Improvisational Theatre.” This documentary is an oral history detailing the career of David Shepherd and his contributions to Improvisational Theatre. The project was the brainchild of Jamie "Willie" Wyllie, co-founder and co-creator of the Canadian Improv Games (a national high school activity inspired by one of David’s formats), directed by Mike Fly (creator of the web series Improv Monologue Project), and written by David's protegee, Michael Golding. The documentary includes interviews with Bernie Sahlins (co-founder of Second City), Suzanne “Honey” Shepherd (Sopranos), Andrew Duncan (Compass/Second City), Charna Halpern (co-founder of iO), Janet Coleman (author of The Compass), Mark Gordon (Compass/Second City), Howard Jerome (actor, producer, director), Michael Golding (writer, educator), and Jamie "Willie" Wyllie (Canadian Improv Games). The documentary premiered in 2011 at the 34th Annual Canadian Improv Games and at the Boston Improv Festival.
David's ground-breaking experiments with improvisational formats have, for the most part, been incubated in his company Group Creativity Projects. David has received lifetime achievement awards from the Chicago Improv Festival, Second City, and the Canadian Improv Games.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
producer
Theatrical producer
A theatrical producer is the person ultimately responsible for overseeing all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The independent producer will usually be the originator and finder of the script and starts the whole process...
, director, and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
primarily noted for his work in improvisational theatre
Improvisational theatre
Improvisational theatre takes many forms. It is best known as improv or impro, which is often comedic, and sometimes poignant or dramatic. In this popular, often topical art form improvisational actors/improvisers use improvisational acting techniques to perform spontaneously...
Career
Born in 1924, in the city of New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to an old money
Old Money
Old money is "the inherited wealth of established upper-class families " or "a person, family, or lineage possessing inherited wealth." The term typically describes a class of the super-rich, who have been able to maintain their wealth across multiple generations.- United States :American locations...
family, Shepherd grew up with left-leaning sensibilities. He studied English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
at Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and received an M.A. in the History of Theater at Columbia
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. Disenchanted with what he perceived as a European dominated theater on the East Coast, Shepherd gravitated to the Midwest.
In 1953 Shepherd was one of the co-founders of the Playwrights Theatre Club in Chicago. In 1955 he and Paul Sills founded the Compass Players, the forerunner of The Second City
The Second City
The Second City is a improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
. Compass launched the careers of Mike Nichols, Elaine May, Jerry Stiller, Alan Alda, Alan Arkin, Barbara Harris, and Shelley Berman (to name a few) and started a revolution in entertainment. Since Compass, David has gone on to create numerous improv formats – including the Improvisation Olympics (a competitive theatrical sporting event), Responsive Scene Radio Show (listeners create their own stories on air) and MOVIExperience (improvising a movie) which culminated in the publication of his book “That Movie In Your Head.”
More recently he, Howard Jerome and Jamie "Willie" Wyllie created the Canadian Improv Games
Canadian Improv Games
The Canadian Improv Games is an education based format of improvisational theatre for Canadian high schools. To participate in the games, high school students form teams of up to 8 players and are required to pay a registration fee. The teams compete in regional tournaments, organized and...
, which are produced in association with Canada's National Arts Centre and which are the subject of the documentary film "In The Moment". In addition to leading workshops in Improvisation, David Shepherd has recently been involved in developing techniques for the creation of improvisational films with his partner, Nancy Fletcher. David has written a book entitled, That Movie in Your Head, about the process of improvised movie making. David resides near Amherst, MA. As of 2011, David was actively working on a new improvisational format known as Life-Play, which consists of improvised games that can be played on the phone or in person by two or more players.
2010 saw the completion of "David Shepherd: A Lifetime of Improvisational Theatre.” This documentary is an oral history detailing the career of David Shepherd and his contributions to Improvisational Theatre. The project was the brainchild of Jamie "Willie" Wyllie, co-founder and co-creator of the Canadian Improv Games (a national high school activity inspired by one of David’s formats), directed by Mike Fly (creator of the web series Improv Monologue Project), and written by David's protegee, Michael Golding. The documentary includes interviews with Bernie Sahlins (co-founder of Second City), Suzanne “Honey” Shepherd (Sopranos), Andrew Duncan (Compass/Second City), Charna Halpern (co-founder of iO), Janet Coleman (author of The Compass), Mark Gordon (Compass/Second City), Howard Jerome (actor, producer, director), Michael Golding (writer, educator), and Jamie "Willie" Wyllie (Canadian Improv Games). The documentary premiered in 2011 at the 34th Annual Canadian Improv Games and at the Boston Improv Festival.
David's ground-breaking experiments with improvisational formats have, for the most part, been incubated in his company Group Creativity Projects. David has received lifetime achievement awards from the Chicago Improv Festival, Second City, and the Canadian Improv Games.