Samiyyah Ali
(she/her)
Washington Improv TheaterBeginning with her acting debut as “Playing Card #2” in a middle school rendition of Alice in Wonderland, Samiyyah has a long history of playing made-up characters.
Over time, and once Samiyyah was given actual lines to deliver onstage, she fell in love with all things theater, including dancing ballet in the Nutcracker, playing the violin for musicals, and performing the monologues of old, wise Black women in period pieces. After finding that her work as a lawyer wasn’t that funny, she began taking improv and sketch classes in 2017.
These days, you can find her performing with WIT ensembles LIZARD GIRL, Kinfolk (2024 FIST Champions), and Lena Dunham. Samiyyah also performs with Baggage Claim, STAT! An Improvised Medical Drama, Shibacle, and other teams that exist only in her head. In the past, she was happy to be among the cast of WIT productions (y)OUR Town and Not a Pyramid Scheme, as well as HoldUp! A Black Book Club, Just for Laughs’ Characters Welcome, and Story District’s Out/Spoken. As improv is often a family affair, Samiyyah hosts the Ultimate Queer Game Show and co-directs What Had Happened Was: An Improvised Black Sitcom alongside her wife and funnier half, Krystal Ali.
Inspired by a true story.
Photo Credit: Jeff Salmore