Turbo Turkey was conceived by Adam Hegg following his completion of Jet City’s one-year program of Theatrical Improvisation Classes. Norm Bellas completed the same Jet City improvisation program, one quarter after Adam and joined him in 2009 to co-found Turbo Turkey. The first Turbo Turkey show was all improv and occurred at the Stone Soup Theater in Wallingford, in 2009.
The scope of Turbo Turkey was soon expanded to include sketch comedy and occasional standup comedy. They recruited a dialect-prolific standup comic, Josh Rodriquez , and an experienced actor with a talent for character voices, Michael Tangendahl. Adam, Norm, Josh and Michael, formed Turbo Turkey’s core of writer-performer-directors.
In 2014 Turbo Turkey further expanded by adding five young and very talented performers, Lara Fox, Robert Keene, Lauren Scoville, Matt Johnson, and Grace Xie, resulting in a more diversified and balanced ensemble. This year, the troupe’s regular rehearsals have included both theatrical improvisations and original sketch comedy.
Turbo Turkey has also performed shows at the Eclectic Theatre, the JewelBox Theater, One-Eyed Jack’s Road House, the Ballard Underground, and the Burian Actor’s Theatre (BAT). Since 2014 at BAT, the Turks have been performing weekly one hour improv shows following every Saturday play performance, and now they look forward to doing sketches at four events for Seattle Sketch Month in June, 2014