Brian Kapell was born in Madison, Wisconsin, and arrived in Berlin in 2003 from Los Angeles. He established Laughing Lizard Productions in 2005, which produces improvisational comedy shows and education programming throughout Berlin, and co-founded Spirit Yoga und Spa Gmbh in 2004, which is widely-recognized as one of the leading Yoga Studios in Europe. He graduated with Distinction from the University of Nottingham with a PGCEi in Education, he holds a Master of Fine Arts Degree in Theater Management from California State University- Long Beach, and he graduated with Distinguished Honors from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a Bachelor of Arts degrees in both Theater (Acting Specialists Certificate) and Communicative Disorders. He is a certified English Teacher (CELTA) and Interpreter for the Deaf.
In 2003, he was part of the production team for the Tony Award-nominated Broadway revival of the musical Big River with Deaf West Theater and the Roundabout Theater in NYC, USA. As co-founder of ComedySportz in 1985 (a comedy improvisational theater format that is now performed in over 30 cities around the world), Mr. Kapell established himself as an innovator in interactive performance formats. He founded the Laughing Lizard Lounge Comedy Club, in Washington D.C., in 1988 to explore the relationship between audience and artist. His work with and for children includes having written, directed and produced 11 musicals for youth, as well as performing with California Theater Center, a professional children’s theatre in Sunnyvale CA. He worked with all the professional Theaters of the Deaf in the USA, including Cleveland Signstage Theater and Deaf West Theater in LA. Since 2005, he has continued to produce, direct, teach, and perform improvisational comedy with ComedyShorts Berlin on a weekly basis. He is a Learning Support Specialist at the Berlin International School, and is the co-director of the Primary School musicals, including The Lion King, Shrek the Musical, and Alice in Wonderland. He is the father of two sons, Benjamin and Philip. He is an avid camper, and enjoys playing the drums.