We Apply IMPROV to BUSINESS
Hoopla For Business is the corporate training and events arm of Hoopla! - the UK’s first improv theatre and training centre.
The HOOPLA! Story
Hoopla is the UK’s first improvisation training school and London’s first dedicated improv theatre. We’ve come a long way since 2005. What started as a once-a-week workshop in a room above a pub in Balham, South London, has become a thriving cultural institution: with thousands of people coming through our doors every year to take a class or see a show.
All the world’s a stage
In our corporate work, we take the ideas, skills, and methodologies from our theatre off-stage, and apply them to the real business challenges of our clients. This happens in lots of different ways but what all our work has in common is a steadfast commitment to the improv principles we began with right at the start: deep listening, playful co-creation, and a belief in the power of a well told story to change not only the audience but the storyteller, too.
We help people achieve their impossible.
Impossible sounds like a big promise. But the truth is: impossible is a relative thing. It’s different for every individual, every team, and every organisation. And for over 20 years we’ve helped people do things they thought they could never do. It’s what gets us out of bed in the morning. It’s (literally) what keeps us up till late at night.
Who We Are
Max Dickins
Max is Creative Director of Hoopla Business and an alumni of the prestigious Marketing Academy leadership programme. In his other life, he is the author of three books, most recently the best-selling Billy No Mates. He loves applying what he’s learned writing for the page - and performing on the stage - to the business world and has worked previously with Tyra Banks, Richard Branson, (Spanx founder) Sara Blakely and - less good, admittedly - the candidates on BBC1’s The Apprentice.
Steve Roe
Steve is the founder of Hoopla and has been performing and teaching improv for over twenty years across Europe. In 2010 Steve founded London’s first improvised comedy club, and in 2012 this was recommended as the best place to see improvised comedy in London by The Daily Telegraph, Time Out and many more. Before setting up Hoopla, Steve worked as a Management Consultant at Accenture, where he was a Consultant in their Communications & High Tech Division. He has also worked in television, spending five years at channels including ITV, BBC 2 and Channel 4.
Plus, a big team of the most experienced facilitators in the business!
What We Believe
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Connecting with others is usually the best part of anything – in life and at work.
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Improv trains you to stay present so you can perform at your best in the moments that matter.
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People care more about solutions they have co-created – and they are more likely to take part when they feel psychologically safe to do so.
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Human beings think, speak and dream in stories – not in jargon or PowerPoint slides.
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Laughter helps us enjoy our work, learn more, and makes difficult conversations easier.
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The fastest way to learn a skill or to solve a problem is to get started on the doing.
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Things are more interesting – and we all have better ideas – when different sorts of folks are included in the conversation.
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Play helps people rediscover their creative spark and approach problem solving with more joy and less fear.
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The world can seem exciting or terrifying depending on whether your blood is pumping or you’re dead in your feet. Energy changes our focus: it helps us see what is possible. And energy is a behaviour that can be taught.
Want to go on an adventure?
‘There are people who prefer to say ‘yes’ and there are people who prefer to say ‘no.’ Those who say ‘no’ are rewarded by the safety they attain. Those who say ‘YES’ are rewarded by the adventures they have.’
- Keith Johnstone