Improlympia 2012, an improv comedy festival-starts Friday night at 7 p.m. and goes all weekend long at the Evergreen College Campus in Olympia. This fourth annual Improlympia brings in comedy acts from cities as far as New York City and as near as Seattle and, of course, Olympia.

Comedy groups and troupes of all sizes put on sketches and revel in improv sessions on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights at 7 p.m. Think Saturday Night Live, or MadTV, or even Almost Live!, but local and in-person.

Olympia's own Generation Friends opens up the festivities on Friday night and hosts on Saturday. Drop the Root Beer and Run, also part of the Friday-night lineup, sprouted off of Generation Friends and is now based in Seattle. Groups from farther afoot include Austin's Opposites, NYC's Upstate, and L.A.'s Street Lighting.

Evergreen State College is located at 2700 Evergreen Parkway NW in Olympia. The festival will be held in Lecture Hall One, just off Red Square. Tickets are $5 for the public; free for Evergreen students.