The Hoopla! 20th anniversary celebrations started in early April at their venue in London Bridge and over the next few months, they have a huge variety of improv shows from both new and established teams. Last night, Showstopper! The Improvised Musical made an appearance, with many of their members regular performers at Hoopla! over the past 20 years, and some of them currently teaching improv classes there. They were joined by two other groups of improvisers – The Inflatables, and Hell Yeah! in a two-hour show of music and laughs.
The evening began with four members of The Inflatables playing Whose Line Is It Anyway style games. The team were great at getting the audience involved, even having audience members control the show at one point. You have to have a lot of talent to be that brave in improv, and the team easily incorporated audience suggestions (and bird calls), while demonstrating their talents for story-telling and structure, even in short games. Funny and fast, they kept the audience entertained with desert explorers, twin brothers breaking up their mirror act, and unusual food chains.
Following them were performers from Hell Yeah!, a group of queer improvisers who have been performing for several years around the UK. Their show was based on a story from an audience member involving hats, hair dye and weddings, and each scene that followed was based on an element of the story, from a hat shop selling mind-control hats to the dangers of using too much hair bleach. There were some interesting characters and ideas and a lot of funny moments, but not all of the scenes landed with the audience. I felt they needed a greater awareness of this, which would allow them to change direction instead of continuing along a path that wasn’t working for them.
After the interval, a team from Showstopper! The Improvised Musical took over. Usually performing sell-out shows at the Cambridge Theatre in the West End, they brought a pared-down version of their Olivier-award-winning long-form improv, where they make up a musical based on audience suggestions of a location and different musical theatre styles. We were treated to Control Freak, the story of Jackie who worked in air traffic control at Heathrow. With songs in the style of Operation Mincemeat, Hamilton and Hadestown, we learned how Jackie focussed too much on her job and thought Rapunzel just wanted to dry her hair, while other characters drank to cope with the stress and complained about the price of cards in WH Smith. Even in comedy musicals, you find some pathos, and Jackie’s song about coming out of her tower and choosing love, created a character arc that helped to make the show a well-rounded story. Improv is impressive when it’s done well, but improvising songs that sound great and make sense is a whole other skill, so it’s no surprise that this is such a popular improv troupe. Whether you like improv, comedy, or musicals, this show has something for you.
The 20th Anniversary celebrations at Hoopla! Impro continue till the end of July. Tickets are available here: https://www.hooplaimpro.com/improv-comedy-club-london-bridge.html
Reviewer: Charlotte Mansfield
Reviewed: 29th April 2026
North West End UK Rating: