iO West, the Los Angeles branch of Chicago’s iO Theater (formerly ImprovOlympic) founded by Del Close and Charna Halpern, is closing its doors for good next week.
At first it struck me as odd that many of my comedy friends on social media were talking about this like someone close to them had passed away, but I eventually realized that I've just been out of the comedy scene too long. If this happened to my home theater back in the ImprovBoston days, I probably would have reacted the exact same way. Running a theater is an inherently risky business and 25 years is quite an accomplishment. I hope everyone finds a new home to keep doing what they love.