Delighting audiences with stellar improv shows and plays, The Hideout Theatre is a premier comedy club in the city. A coffee shop onsite serves delectable snacks, which you can munch on while you watch performers put on their best act. The theater also offers improv classes and conducts workshops for adults and kids alike.

Right next door to Esther's Follies, its sibling act is a venue for local and visiting comics. Featuring all the elements of the stand-up comic's typical venue; dimly lit, crowded audience, bar, central stage; it has sustained the careers of many a local comedian for ages. In the past, it has showcased people such as the late, great comics Sam Kinison and Bill Hicks, both of whom began their careers in Texas. Beer and other drinks are cheap and the comedy is pretty constant. A stable of regular performers keeps the place friendly do not be surprised if the Esther's Follies gang turns up a lot.

One part vaudeville and one part stinging political/social satire, this place has been amusing and delighting its guests, as well as the pedestrians who pass by its front-stage windows and observe its goings-on, since the late 1970s. A troupe of multi-talented performers write, act, sing and dance their way across a broad and constantly updated comedic map that pokes fun at our elected officials, celebrity icons, and regular citizens. It is not all for laughs, though; a magical act comes on a couple of times per show to startle and captivate your senses. This is a true downtown institution.

Austin has long been a serious hotbed for film & TV production, and, with many talented artists living here, there is great competition for this industry's attention. Thus, in addition to a rotating lineup of shows, it is nice to see that The Institution Theater dedicates itself to providing intimate, affordable acting & sketch writing classes. As if all of that were not enough, the instructors of this company offer "Corporate Training" packages. The idea of this package is to help young business people effectively and efficiently communicate within the workplace through improv.