History

The Out of Bounds West Improv Festival was born from the The Out of Bounds Improv Festival and Miniature Golf Tournament, which was founded in Austin, Texas, in 2002 by Well Hung Jury's Jeremy Lamb, as a way to get troupes from Texas and beyond to come and enjoy the Austin comedy scene. In the intervening years, the festival has expanded from a handful of troupes, mostly from Texas, performing on one stage for a couple of days, to a seven-day festival featuring as many as 40 troupes with 215 performers from across the country.

In 2003, after the second festival, Lamb left Austin for Chicago, where he formed Available Cupholders, a touring troupe, and left the festival in the hands of Mike D’Alonzo and Shannon McCormick, two longtime veterans of the Austin comedy scene. In their time in 2004 and 2005, D’Alonzo and McCormick opened the festival to two stages, doubling the amount of performers and audience. 2006 saw the return of founder and co-producer Jeremy Lamb, an additional larger venue, more classes, and a bevy of new, talented performers.

In the meantime, D'Alonzo moved to Los Angeles, California, and, in 2007, The Out of Bounds West Improv Festival was born, with Lamb eventually following in 2008. Oob West preserved the spirit of Out of Bounds Austin, while injecting the event with a decidedly West Coast feel.

In the Winter of 2009, Producers D'Alonzo and Lamb closed the doors on the Out of Bounds West Festival so they could devote more time to the growing needs of the Austin festival, now in its 8th year.