# Viola Spolin ## Entertainer. Philosopher. Teacher. Studied under Neva Boyd at Hull-House. Took what she learned to her role as "drama supervisor for the Works Progress Administration Recreation Project in Chicago." (ref: Second City's online bio of Spolin) Here, she created the first collection of Theater Games. Many of these games are still used today in the world of Short-Form improv. After her time with the WPA, she continued to refine her Games and her understanding of theater's impact on the developing human person. Her life's work, the book _Improvisation for the Theater_, stands as the foundational text of improv canon.