Butch Roy

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Butch's Info

Butch loves improv. It all started about 20 years ago with attending a show at the legendary Brave New Workshop, which turned into studying improv at the Brave New Institute, which later led to becoming the Technical Director at the Brave New Workshop, a position he proudly held for eight years. Somewhere in there he also earned his B.F.A. from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, got married, had some kids.

In 2002, Butch founded Improv A Go-Go, a weekly, all improvised showcase of some of the best local and national improvisers. Now in its eighth year, this Sunday night show still manages to sell out on a regular basis. In 2006, Butch started the Twin Cities Improv Festival (TCIF), a four-day event featuring shows and workshops. Held each June, TCIF has grown every year, attracting some of the most well-respected and talented improvisors on the continent.

“Butch Roy is first and foremost, an Improv technician. What I mean by that is that his skill-set is founded on solving problems instantly. Whether you need a thunder clap to help justify a moment in a scene that you haven’t yet realized you need, or to make the lights work in the next 5 minutes, he’s your guy. I often think back to when I was his understudy on a show for the Brave New Workshop and he would explain the cues for a scene which might involve simultaneously resetting the light board for the next transition, cueing up the next sound cue on the minidisc, and making the current sound cue into a live microphone with your mouth while holding down the guitar pedal in front of you that he rigged up as an effects processor. He always explained it as if this was what all tech people did. I still think he assumes he’s normal and that all technicians can do this. He’s not and they can’t. Butch Roy is perhaps the most versatile and phlegmatic technician I have ever known. And I have known many. Like I said before, he’s your guy.” – George Grubb

Butch performs with MAYHEM, Adorable, MurderClown, Five Man Job and Show X. As the Executive Director of HUGE, Butch brings vision, technical expertise and passion to every HUGE production.

Butch's Workshops

What a Relief, Everything is on Fire

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