Yes But Why Podcast

In this week’s Yes But Why Podcast episode, I talk to Morgan Phillips, performer of improv and music since 1994. Morgan Phillips is an improviser and improv coach based in New York City. He is the creator and temporary Artistic Director of Not A Bit Comedy Theater. Morgan has been studying and performing improv on a regular basis for almost 30 years. He loves performing improv. In 2015, Morgan did online improv scenes with over 1000 improvisers. Morgan loves teaching improv. He taught at UCB NY from 2016 until March of 2020. In our conversation, Morgan talks to me about temp jobs, acapella, and the New York City improv scene. Morgan loves to sing as evidenced by the multiple years singing in a professional acapella group. When he got into improv, he started with short form at Chicago City Limits. He says he liked their theater space and their focus on musical improv was a BIG plus as well. Morgan talks to me about his experience with UCB NY. From taking classes to auditioning way too many times just to get on

In this week’s episode of Yes But Why Podcast, I chatted with joyful storyteller, Shweta Bhat. Shweta Bhat is a software professional, a teacher, a writer, a psychologist, a theatre artist, an improviser and a poet. She is a counsellor, trainer and consultant at SASHA (Support Against Sexual Harassment). Shweta is also the host and editor of “Voice – The SASHA PoSHcast,” a monthly podcast dealing with topics around the theme of sexual harassment prevention and gender equity. Shweta teaches improv with Improv Comedy Bangalore. She also performs with the troupes, The Adamant Eves (ICB) and Typical Heroes (Zmack) Shweta is a performer of playback theatre with citylamps, and she is currently a part of the international team of the Social Justice Improv Project.In our conversation, we chat about stage fright and social anxiety. We talk about how difficult it can be to make friends both as a child and as an adult. We discuss about what it takes to get comfortable with being seen.Shweta shares that after the obligat

This week on Yes But Why, I connected with parent support coach and certified hypnotherapist, Laurie Wagner Storlie. Laurie Wagner Storlie is a child development expert with an extensive background in producing and performing improv comedy. She shows parents how to find parenting hacks using the rules of improv. Laurie is also the host of the podcast, “Improvised Parenting.”In our conversation, we talk about how Laurie got into improv and how she has been using it for years to tap into her own creativity. Laurie tells me about how she uses positive language and the “Yes And” philosophy of improv to guide overwhelmed parents back to sanity. We chat about her adventures in billiards, poetry writing and meditation. Laurie provides some great tips on how to create a game out of anything. She tells me how she connected with fellow improvisers during the pandemic and how she navigates her neverending font of creativity. Support Laurie Wagner Storlie by listening to her podcast, “Improvised Parenting.” (I will be

This week on Yes But Why, I chatted with Austin comedian, Kat Ramzinski. Kat Ramzinski is a Stand Up Comic, Writer, Actor and Musician, best known for her story-telling abilities and that time she was stabbed. Kat has been showcased on the comedy docuseries “Cracking Up” on the Mental Health Channel, and the PBS show “Stand Up Empire”. Kat has performed Stand Up comedy at Moontower Comedy Festival, End of the Earth Fest, Ladies are Funny Fest, and Rob Van Dam’s “Whole F’n Comedy Tour.” She has acted in short films, voiced characters in animated series, and hosted a wrestling podcast called SuperChick Party. As her musical comedy/hip hop persona Versace Kolache, Kat has been featured on NBC’s “First Look” and she has earned the title of reigning Fantastic Fest Nerd Rap Throwdown Champion.Her Versace Kolache performances include comedy rap battle videos and parodies, some that she performs herself and others she has written for others, that have amassed over 20-million views on the Chickbait and Nerdist Youtub

This week on Yes But Why, I had the pleasure of speaking with pianist, composer, and music director, Ammon Taylor. Currently based in Austin, Texas, Ammon Taylor is The Paramount Theatre’s Education Music Director and an active member of Austin’s theatre community. With a Bachelor of Music in composition from UT Austin, Ammon has been using his background in classical, jazz, and musical theatre to set children’s narrative inventions to music with Story Wranglers, and to create scores for improvised musicals on-the-spot with The Hideout Theatre’s house shows and troupes. In our conversation, Ammon talks about how music has been part of his life since he was born. He tells me about his obsession with Beethoven at 9 years old and how that developed into playing in angsty rock bands when he was a teen.Ammon tells me about moving out on his own to Seattle and then the world traveling adventures that followed. Later, he went to college at UT for music and we go down the rabbit hole of loving Austin. Then he tells m

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I reconnected with writer/director Elena Weinberg. I also got the opportunity to sit down and chat with Elena’s husband and creative partner, writer/actor, Duncan Coe!Elena Weinberg is an actress, writer, director, producer, and production manager. She has made quite a few independent films alongside Duncan Coe with their production company, TurtleDove Films. Elena is known for her work creating the webseries, #ATown and directing the movie, A Room Full of Nothing. A few films she has recently produced, Dancers(2021), Between the Trees (2021), and A Grievance with Gravity (2020), are currently doing the rounds at film festivals all over the country. Duncan Coe is an actor and director, known for The Long Road Home (2017), I'll Come Running (2008) and A Room Full of Nothing (2019). Duncan is the co-owner of TurtleDove Films and a freelance screenwriter and film editor. Duncan is the writer and lead actor in the feature film, A Room Full of Nothing. You can also see him in the

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I had a great conversation with actor/producer, Alya Lei. Alya Lei is an actress and producer, known for Lucifer (2016), 13 Reasons Why (2017) and Moonlighter (2018). She has worked on network television shows, been cast in numerous independent films, corporate industrials, and booked principal roles in commercials. She is consistently working on her craft with a variety of acting coaches.Alya is a podcaster and can be heard hosting “The Actor's Resource podcast with Alya Lei” on all the podcast platforms. She is also a member (and producer) of "FreeFall International" Improv troupe - an international group of actors and creators, established during the pandemic, who perform live, unscripted shows for people all over the world. In our conversation, Alya talks a lot about all of the acting teachers who have inspired her: Richard Seyd, Scott Sedita, and Jo Kelly. We discuss the hard work that goes into being an actor and all of the methods one can employ to develop their craft.

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I showcase my talk with comedian and filmmaker, Jer Moran. Jer Moran is a filmmaker and cartoonist based in Austin, TX. He has written and directed various short films and his work has been shown at the Austin Spotlight Film Festival, Austin Comedy Film Festival, Austin Micro Film Festival, and GELOS Comedy Film Festival. Jer is also a comedian and musical improviser who can be seen at the Hideout Theatre, Fallout Theater, Coldtowne Theater, and the Institution Theater. He performs as one half of the Gothic musical improv duo “House of the Bleeding Chicken” and he is also a member of the Fallout Theatre sketch troupe, “The Floor is Lava.” In our conversation, Jer tells me about his obsession with cartoons as a kid. Jer loves “Rocko’s Modern Life” as well as the Hanna Barbera oeuvre. We talk about the artists who have creatively influenced us. Jer names weird and provocative animator, Bill Plympton as one of his inspirations. He also gushes about his love for the movie, “Pi

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I interview comedian John Gebratatose. John Gebretatose has been dedicated to the comedy scene in Minnesota's Twin Cities for more than a decade. He performs stand-up, improv, and sketch comedy. John is an improv instructor as well as the Director of Diversity & Inclusion at HUGE Improv Theater in Minneapolis, MN. He has taught improv workshops in theaters, hospitals, corporate workspaces, K-12 schools and colleges. Over the past few years, John has become a leader in the efforts to change the face of American improv, making it a more welcoming and representative artform. He has led and facilitated diversity and inclusion programming for improv theaters all over the world through his mission to uplift all voices. John is a co-founder of renowned Twin Cities improv troupe Blackout Improv and a founding member of the sketch comedy show, Late Nights Minneapolis. He is also the co-founder of the Black and Funny Improv Festival. John has traveled the world performing, teachin

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I present my chat with Travis Charles Ploeger, the director/founder of Washington Improv Theater's longest running ensemble, iMusical: The Improvised Musical. Over the course of his career, Travis Charles Ploeger has helped to create and perform over 2,000 improvised musicals to audiences across the country. He joined Washington Improv Theater and created iMusical in 2006, after an eight-year career as the music director and pianist for Chicago City Limits in New York City. As a director/performer in NYC, Travis was a founding member of “I Eat Pandas,” with Eliza Skinner and Glennis (McMurray) McCarthy; and, he performed on the stages of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, People’s Improv Theater and Magnet TheaterIn our conversation, Travis tells me about his lifelong love affair with music. The guy’s first word was piano; It seems predestined that he’d be performing music throughout his life. Travis tells me that when he found musical improv, he felt like he had finally f

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, listen in as I interview Stephanie Herrera, actor, writer, and entertainment insurance broker.Stephanie Herrera is an Entertainment Specialist based out of Durham, Ontario, Canada. She is a Stage/Screen Actor, a Comedian, a Singer, a Writer, a Producer, an Acting Coach, a Director, a Key Note Speaker, a Corporate Trainer, a TV Host, and a Voice Actor. She has been the host and community producer on three shows at Rogers TV (Oshawa), produced, written, and directed dozens of interactive productions, comedy shows, and plays. She writes for film and television and has been Associate Producer and Casting Director for several productions in Toronto and Durham Region.Stephanie is the founder and Artistic Director of Durham Improv Collective Inc, a not-for-profit which provides free/subsidized community programs with a focus on people with special needs and families at local abuse shelters. She has been fortunate to be a recipient of multiple grants through the Ontario Arts Council

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, we are featuring comedian and podcaster, Ivy Le. Ivy Le is a Vietnamese American comedian and writer based in Austin, Texas. Ivy has performed at Bedpost Confessions, Coldtowne Theatre, the Decatur Book Festival, Kollaboration, and more! Ivy is the host and creator of the Spotify podcast, “FOGO: Fear of Going Outside: a nature show by the most reluctant host ever”. Ivy was selected to be one of the 10 out of 18,000 applicants to go through Spotify’s first SoundUp podcast accelerator for women of color. She is also widely published as a reporter, a poet, and an advocate on immigration and civil rights issues. In our conversation, I talk to Ivy about what motivates her as an artist. She tells me she is obsessed with language and that makes so much sense. Ivy is pretty much always writing!We talk about money and how that can be a barrier to entry for creative aspirations. Not everyone can just go out and take acting classes or dance lessons. But “you don’t need to have money to

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I am delighted to present my conversation with Australian improviser, Amanda Buckley. Amanda Buckley is an actor, improviser, voice over artist and teacher.She has been performing for over 20 years for theatre, corporate and festival audiences both in Australia and overseas. Amanda most recently has appeared in a series of sketches for Channel 10’s The Project and will next appear in the upcoming miniseries Fires, for ABC TV.Amanda has trained, performed, and taught in Australia with Impro Australia, Impro Melbourne, Improv Theatre Sydney, The Big Hoo Haa Melbourne, Impromptunes and Spark! Alongside Jamie Burgess, she created the Musical Improvisation Intensive Workshop – The Musical Toolkit, which they have led across Australia and New Zealand. In our conversation, we talk about the ups and downs of being loud and delightful. We chuckle about both being loud, brash, and obsessed with theater. Amanda tells me about the draw of the theater and how she started taking serious ac

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, listen in as I chat with Improvisation facilitator, training developer and Higher Education professional, Jess Napthine-Hodgkinson. Jess Napthine-Hodgkinson is an improviser based in Glossop, England. She has been performing and teaching improv for 15 years. Jess is the co-founder of Glossop Improv alongside Sekki Tabasuares. Together, they provide a weekly online improv workshop to improvisers all over the world. Being an improviser with multiple sclerosis (MS) led Jess to set up Brain Fog Improv – a space for improvisers with unseen conditions to share, learn and connect. Brain Fog Improv is a community of improvisers with autoimmune, neurological and other conditions that have invisible symptoms. It’s a safe space to share experiences and connect as well as a forum to provide support for others.A self-professed “shy” person, Jess and I met in an online improv workshop called “Smoldering 101 with Stephanie Rae.” (Highly recommended by the way.) It was essentially staring at

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I interview artist and podcast producer, Traveus Lawson. Traveus Lawson is the Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Always Press Record, Inc. (alwayspressrecord.com) He is the lead producer on more than 30 serial podcasts, with thousands of hours of content within the APRTV vault that is broadcasted globally via 24/7 live streams and On-Demand SmartTV apps.Originally from the small town of Monessen, PA, Traveus Lawson moved to Los Angeles with his mom shortly after his father passed away. That was when he first saw a movie being made. The magic of that moment birthed a poet, playwright, painter, novelist, musician, filmmaker and now the producer known as "Tray the Producer." In our conversation, Traveus and I go deep into the topic of what is art and who can make it. We talk about finding and connecting with your audience. We muse on creating in a chaotic world that seems like it doesn’t care about artists. Traveus tells me about the evolution of his production company, Alwa

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, listen in as I talk to Audio Describer, Bridget Melton. Bridget Melton is an Audio Describer who has recently relocated to North Texas from the Chicago area. Active in the cultural accessibility community for many years, Bridget works to create a welcoming environment for all. Around the United States, and virtually, she can be found at various theatres promoting inclusion as an audio describer, advisor, or volunteer. Audio Description is a service that makes the visual verbal. In theaters, in museums, and accompanying television, film, and video presentations, Audio Describers provide commentary and narration to guide the listener through the presentation with concise, objective descriptions of new scenes, settings, costumes, body language, and "sight gags," all slipped in between portions of dialogue or songs. Audio Description provides accessibility of the visual images of theater, television, movies, and other art forms for people who are blind, have low vision, or who a

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I interview writer and performer, Andy N. Andy N is a poet, a musician, an open mic host, and a podcaster from Manchester, England. Andy N is the author of six full length poetry collections and he also writes a regular column for Manchester’s publication, The Sunday Tribune. He composes ambient electronic music under the name of “Ocean in a Bottle” and he co-hosts the always welcoming Spoken Word Open Mic, 'Speak Easy'.Andy N is also a podcaster and he hosts 4 different podcasts: Spoken Label, an interview show much like ours which features chats with writers, artists and musicians; Reading In Bed, a podcast series he co-hosts alongside novelist Amanda Steel in which they have lively discussions about all kinds of books, comics and literature; Koll, Andy and Amanda, a short, weekly podcast discussing poetry, literature and Nature; and Wrestle Up, an AEW Wrestling Podcast he co-hosts with Dr Paul and Dray Zera. In our conversation, we talk about Andy’s lifelong journey of wri

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I talk to improviser and marketing expert, Annie Schiffman. Annie Schiffman is an award-winning improviser who is also the founder of Downstage Media, the Places Please Project, and Profitable Improv. Like many performers, Annie stopped her onstage work when getting to rehearsals, auditions, and shows became too difficult alongside raising her two children. So she put her energy into helping other performing arts entrepreneurs. She started Downstage Media, a digital marketing agency focused on providing scrappy marketing strategies to performing arts organizations. Annie also recently launched the non-profit, the Places Please Project to give housing relief to theater workers in New York City affected by the pandemic. With Profitable Improv, Annie joined forces with past guest, Jeff Rogers to help improv organizations learn the best ways to be financially viable. Their courses and events are for improv companies - schools, performing groups, teams, theaters, or troupes – to

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I talk to improviser Siddharth Venkatesh.Siddharth Venkatesh is an improv performer with Improv Comedy Bangalore. In early September 2020, he co-created the ICB’s Facebook Community Group. It has since become a central hub through which improvisers all over the world connect! Outside of Improv, Siddharth is an engineer and he loves to play Indian classical percussion. In our conversation, Siddharth tells me about the television show he was in as a kid and how that experience shaped his artistic aspirations as an adult. What a wild experience to have as a child! We gab about music, both playing it and enjoying it. We discuss the idea of finding a balance between structure and chaos in both our creativity and our lives. Siddharth expresses to me how he loves the current "globalization" of improv and how amazing it is that he gets to improvise with and learn from amazing performers from all over the world. Siddharth gushes about the great courses he has taken lately from improv

This week on Yes But Why Podcast, I talk to improviser and academic, David Escobedo.David Escobedo has been coaching and performing improv since 1995, starting his career in San Diego and Los Angeles. He has his BA and MA in Drama; and, David is currently pursuing his PhD in Drama with a focus on improv at the University of Chester in the UK. His Masters thesis paper was on how an improviser’s voice (background/experience) is the most valuable element to an improv team and show. David loves improv so much he wrote a book about it called “This Improv Book.” In our conversation, David teaches me a lot about the beginnings of improv and a few important details and people that the history of improv does not often talk about. David tells me the story of how Neva Boyd and her “theory of play” inspired Viola Spolin to create improv games as a means of building community in Chicago. We talk about how the culture of improv institutions has become more about selling a package and less about building a community. We dis