About

"Oh, cool! Ryan Stiles! Hey, didn't he use to own the Upfront Theatre before that place shut down?"

Yes. Wait, no. Umm...kinda??

So, the Upfront Theatre still exists (yay!). And while we're no longer officially affliated with Ryan, he's still a friend and supporter.

In early 2020, we reinvented ourselves as a non-profit (fancy, right?). And we have a new mission: to entertain, educate, and connect our community through the craft of improvisation and the gift of play.

For this fundraising season, Ryan is stepping up with an epic improv show, A Night with Ryan Stiles and Friends: A Fundraiser for the Upfront Theatre, on December 16th at the Wild Buffalo. All proceeds raised through ticket sales, silent auction, and donations will go to support the Upfront Theatre.

Like other non-profits, we rely on the gracious donations of supporters like you! Your donations keep classes and shows affordable, help us reach new audiences, and make sure the lights stay on and the team stays fed (figuratively, of course).

Thank you for participating in this fundraising event.

- The Upfront Theatre Community

Auction Preview

The following items will be available during a silent auction that will take place the night of the show. Bidding will begin at 6:30pm when doors open, and will be accepted until the end of intermission roughly halfway through the show. Auction item winners will be asked to provide immediate payment via their phones through a QR code. Auction items were generously donated by friends of the Upfront Theatre.

ITEM	DESCRIPTION	VALUE
	Show Poster Signed by Ryan Stiles Commemorate the night with a limited edition 17x11 show poster signed by Ryan Stiles himself. Add it to the Ryan Stiles shrine in your guest room closet; get your apartment security deposit back by using it to cover a hole in your wall; or offload it on an unsuspecting coworker at an office white elephant gift exchange—the possibilities are endless!	$75
	Free Shows for a Year at the Upfront Theatre Make 2024 the Year of Improv with free shows at the Upfront Theatre. Your VIP (Valued Improv Patron) pass grants you a front-row, back-row, or middle-row seat to all of the uproarious shows put on by the Upfront Theatre during the entire year. One free pass for every show in 2024. Non-transferrable.	$1500
	Free Shows for a Year at the Wild Buffalo Win a year of free shows at the Wild Buffalo House of Music, Bellingham's premier music venue that has hosted acts such as Macklemore, ODESZA, Snoop Dogg, and Sharon Jones. With this free pass in your hands, it's like your Spotify playlist has come to life, minus the awkward ads. One free pass for every show in 2024. Non-transferrable.	$15,000
	Upfront Theatre Quilt You won't be the only thing leaving in stitches after the show. (Our lawyers are making us clarify that that is a quilting pun, not a threat of violence.) This one-of-a-kind quilt features the classic Upfront Theatre logo hand-stitched on a comfy fabric that will keep you warm on lonely nights when there are no improv shows. There's also a Ryan Textiles play on words that we are obligated to make in this description. So there you go.	$5,000,000
	Raspberry Chocolate Cake There is nothing vanilla about this auction item! A chocolate raspberry cake soaked in limoncello, filled with macerated raspberries, raspberry preserves, rum chocolate ganache, and covered in a raspberry mascarpone frosting. Did we mention raspberries? Serves 6 people if eaten; serves 1 person if thrown in their face.	$70
	10 Bellingham Theatre Guild Tickets When our thespian overlords take over the world, you'll want to make sure that you're already well cultured in the theatre. With 10 tickets from the Bellingham Theatre Guild—a nonprofit volunteer organization that has been producing theatre in Whatcom County since 1929—you can up your theatre cred by 1000%. Tickets are transferable and can be used for any show produced by the Bellingham Theatre Guild during the 2024 year.	$180

Ryan Stiles & Friends (& Silent Auction)

A Fundraiser for the Upfront Theatre