More than a Theater
A historic space for comedy in Hollywood
Our Story
The Hollywood-based Pack Theater has been a staple of Los Angeles comedy for over 15 years.
“I never meant to open a theater,” says founder Miles Stroth, “I just wanted to teach, but people stuck with me and eventually they needed stage time so we opened a night and then it became larger and larger”. What began as one improv class under the Miles Stroth Workshop 15 years ago grew into a community that puts on shows 5 nights a week in the heart of Los Angeles and a training center that boasts some of the most talented teachers in the world specializing in improv and sketch comedy.
The growth of the pack has always been about recognizing the needs of the community and as Stroth states “getting out of their way”. Managing Director Royce Shockley has been a pack performer and showrunner since the beginning and helped bring the theater through an epidemic, a location change, and works hard to ensure the theater lives its values. “The majority of our shows are run by POCs and members of the LGBTQIA+ community,” says Shockley. The theater works to empower writers and performers and reflect the community of Los Angeles and is run. by its community of writers and performers.
The Pack Theater name and logo get their inspiration from the Hyena. Hyenas work in groups and are known for their industriousness and their distinct laughter making it the perfect representation for an indie community-run comedy theater (despite the occasional confusion for a wolf).
In 2010, Eric Moneypenny Joined The Miles Stroth Workshop to add sketch comedy writing to the existing improv curriculum. In 2012, Heather & Miles (Heather Anne Campbell & Miles Stroth) entered UCB's improv Cagematch show and went on a wild, historic, record-breaking, undefeated run of wins that brought new students and interest to the training center.
2015, The Miles Stroth Workshop officially changed names to The Pack Theater with co-founders Eric Moneypenny, Brian James O'Connell, Emily Candini, and Sam Brown. After a couple of months of test shows and building a full-time, 7-day schedule,
The Pack launched officially as a full-time theater on Saturday, July 23, 2016 at 12:00PM with PACKCON, a one-day, 16+ hour comedy festival featuring hundreds from the Pack community along with special guests like Bob Odenkirk, Adam McKay, Ian Roberts, WKUK, and many more. PACKCON would become a staple showcase for the following 4 years.
When the COVID-19 pandemic caused a shutdown in 2020, The Pack Theater stopped in-person shows but never closed, instead moving its classes to Zoom and continuing its programming of 7 nights of shows over Twitch which brought in performers from all over the world to The Pack’s digital stage.
In 2022, The Pack reopened in a new space at The Complex until the closure of those historic Theater Row spaces. In 2023, The Pack moved two blocks down the street to its current home as the theater in residence at The Broadwater which allows for more stage accommodations and social spaces including The Plunge bar.
