Improvisations Unlimited was a modern dance company based at the University of Maryland, College Park, from 1978-1992. The company grew out of an advanced improvisation class led by dance professor Meriam "Mim" Rosen. When students began performing outside the classroom, Rosen approached the university dance department for permission to start a company, and Improvisations Unlimited was founded the same year. Rosen served as director throughout the company's duration.
The company began with informal performances of improvised movement, but gradually introduced more structured choreography, though still within a largely improvisational framework. Improvisations Unlimited commissioned or performed works by choreographers including Ping Chong, Jeff Duncan, Daniel Nagrin, Don Redlich, Kei Takei, and Dan Wagoner; many of these choreographers traveled to the university to work directly with the company as visiting artists. The company developed a repertoire of works and workshops, which they performed and conducted for a wide array of audiences, including dancers, children, older adults, and populations with special needs throughout the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and the Eastern Seaboard.
Improvisations Unlimited was incorporated in 1985. It was governed by a Board of Directors and supported by Friends of Improvisations Unlimited, as well as nationally and regionally administered grants. Citing lack of financial and other support, Rosen disbanded the company in 1992.
From the guide to the Improvisations Unlimited Collection, 1970-1997, 1978-1992, (Special Collections in Performing Arts)
