Kevin McKernan has been involved with improvisation for over a decade. A St. Louis native, he went to Indiana University to get his degree in education. During his four years at IU, he served as both actor and director of the improv and sketch troupe 'The Original Full Frontal Comedy' and spent a summer interning at The Second City. After school, he moved to Chicago where he studied with some of the art form's best teachers, including Tim O'Malley (The Second City), TJ Jagodowski, Susan Messing, Al Samuels (iO), Dan Izzo, and Mick Napier (The Annoyance). He co-founded the independent team 'The Bryan Room' and started a high school improv program. McKernan has taught improvisation to students of all ages at The St. Louis Actors' Studio, Washington University, Stages St. Louis, St. Louis University, the Bloomington Area Arts Council and ComedySportz-Indianapolis.

• "Remember how much fun it was to play-act as a kid? Imagination readily took flight, either alone or with friends, with or without the help of simple costuming or props. Characters were created, often on the spur of the moment — pirate or princess or basketball player or astronaut or whatever one wished to be. Kevin McKernan remembers. And [he] wants to help other adults recreate the enjoyment of it within the context of 'long-[form] improvisation' comedy."
  -- Andy Graham, Bloomington Herald-Times
• "After every activity...he gave an immediate analysis of what the individual students had done during their improv -- invaluable feedback not only for the performers but for the entire class. The students were so caught up in what they were doing that they declined their second break. The class as a group is very talented, highly intuitive, and very imaginative. By the end of the class, they more resembled a veteran troupe than a group of strangers who had met only a few short hours before. Needless to say, I recommend this class without reservation to all other students."
  -- Ren R. (Parent of a high school student)
• "As a life-long student of improv, I enjoyed Kevin's rich knowledge of the skills required to improvise effectively. After 8 years of improv with multiple companies, it wasn't until Kevin's long-form class that I understood 'the game.' Kevin taught us the big picture, and I reap the benefits at every performance."
  -- Kristin K. (Former student)
• "Kevin was a real inspiration to work with. I stress the term 'work with' because he doesn't direct you as much as help you find it honestly. He works both as a director and a muse. I've never learned more about finding the 'truth of the character' than I did when I worked with Kevin. I've been acting since I was 10, have had lots of acting seminars/classes but never have any of them given me the perspective and character fundamentals that this one has."
  -- James G. (Former student)

Andy Sloey holds a BFA in performance from the Conservatory of Theatre Arts at Webster University and is a graduate of both the iO Training Center (formerly Improv Olympic) and Second City Conservatory in Chicago. While in Chicago, he performed at iO with the Harold teams 'Quincy' and 'The Strangers,' produced and performed shows with his independent team 'Let Them Ho’s Fight' and made frequent appearances at The Playground Theater and The Second City’s Donny’s Skybox with various other teams and shows. He has also performed at the Chicago, Seattle, St. Louis and Los Angeles Improv Festivals, as well as the Del Close Marathon at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York City. Before moving to Chicago, he was an ensemble member and Artistic Director of long form at CITY Improv in St. Louis’ Union Station. Andy is currently an adjunct professor at Webster University where he teaches improv.

• "Andy Sloey is one of the most committed and focused improvisers I've ever worked with. He has mastered the skill of being in the moment and reacting to it honestly, no matter how ridiculous the premise of the scene. Having performed many shows with Andy, I cannot recommend him enough."
  -- Ryan McClelland (iO Chicago)
• "Andy Sloey is a treat to both watch and perform with. He has an outstanding knowledge of the art of improvisation, group dynamics, and the positive focus needed to attain not only incredible scene work, but a superior comedic piece. He's also just plain fun. I would not be the player I am today if it weren't for Andy and others like him. If there could only be 3 people to listen to about comedy, it would be Bill Murray, Andy Sloey, and RoboCop."
  -- Nathan Jansen (Ensemble Member: iO Chicago, Baby Wants Candy, Comedy Sportz)
• "I've learned tons being on teams with Andy and watching him play. He cares about improv tremendously and that's apparent whether he's performing or teaching. He's absorbed the lessons of being involved in a wonderful improv community for a long time and is able to impart them to students in precise, practical ways. He can make you better, the way all good teachers do.
  
  And I toured with David Cross for a month so I know stuff about comedy!"
  -- Mort "The Nastiest Freak In Da' Biz" Burke (iO Chicago, iO West)
• "Working with Andy Sloey is as rewarding as improv can get. He is as generous offstage as he is on."
  -- Emily Candini

John Langen is a former improviser and Harold Team Coach for the world famous iO Theater in Chicago. While in the Windy City, he wrote the play "The Avarice Burton Snively" and co-wrote the plays "The Foot Clan Diaries" and "Wii-venge of the Nerds" for the Annoyance Theater's "Triple Feature" show. John has appeared as a monologist for "The Armando Diaz Experience", co-produced the improvised sitcom "Guy Friends", and was a mainstage ensemble member for Comedy Sportz Chicago. In 2009 he traveled to Bar Harbor, Maine to perform at Improv Acadia.

Currently, John teaches level 3 at the Improv Shop and plays on the House Team, "Ted Dangerous" and on the team "Murder Suicide" with his comedy partner Katie Nunn.

John also writes a longform improv blog called "Magical Garden of Unicorns" at www.johnlangen.wordpress.com.

• "John is amazing. He totally gets it. He's really good at reminding you that no matter how much you know, you could always know more, or at the very least, you could know what you already know BETTER."
  -- Student
• "Level 3, The Harold Level, was incredibly helpful to me as an improviser. The group mind and continued emphasis on relationship, character, and truth in scenes just felt "right" to me. I connected with the lessened emphasis on "being funny" and more on being true...This was by far my favorite part of training to-date."
  -- Student
• "I learned a lot...It's that extra level of attention that, at the risk of sounding corny, not only helped me grow as an improviser but also as a person."
  -- Student
• "I wanted learn the Harold for a while and the way John deconstructed it and taught it was very helpful and incredibly easy to follow."
  -- Student
• "Get ready, because this is where you see and understand what you are paying for. This level is gonna get you super hyped to be onstage."
  -- Student

Eric Christensen began performing improv comedy in the small town of Murray, Kentucky. While he had no idea what it was or how to do it, he and his friend ended up winning a state title in improvisational duo. It would be the only state title he would ever win, despite playing several sports. At college Eric joined the improv group Community Floss (named after a towel passed around a men's locker room) and would also create the So ILL Comedy Festival that would go on to run for 5 years. In 2007 Eric moved to Chicago where he performed and studied at iO Theater, Second City, CIC Theater and Comedysportz. In Chicago he performed with iO teams, Michael Pizza, Owl Farm and The Late 90s, the CIC team Rainbow Deli and the children's show Hogwash. Michael Pizza was named "Best New Improv Ensemble" by Chicago magazine, profiled by The Onion, reviewed by The Chicago Tribune and even created a pilot for Dennis Leary's production company, Apostle. In addition to performing, Eric cut his teeth as an improv coach with the independent team, Wolodarski.

Currently Eric is in St. Louis performing with Ted Dangerous at The Improv Shop as well as coaching the teams, Meowsers, Slow Death Cheer and Perfectly Wrong.

Piero Procaccini (Piero taught at The Improv Shop in March 2012) has been studying and performing improv and sketch comedy in Chicago for 10 years. He has taught classes at iO and Second City and offered workshops at theatres around the country. He was Assistant to the Director for “From Fear to Eternity” in the Second City ETC Theatre and has directed many improvisors who have gone on to perform in the touring company and on resident stages in Chicago. While in Chicago, he spent several years performing with Johnny Roast Beef and American Dream and coaching Otis and Carl and the Passions. Most recently, he has been cruising the high seas performing for Second City aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Bill Arnett (Bill taught at The Improv Shop in February 2012) is the former Director of the Training Center for the iO Theater in Chicago. He has traveled around the U.S. and internationally teaching workshops in improvisation. Bill also writes and performs with the award-winning sketch group Maximum Party Zone. He can be seen in Chicago where he performs with Armando Diaz and with the critically acclaimed 3033. Bill is from Florida and got his start with Theatre Strike Force at the University of Florida. You can follow his improv blog at billarnett.com/wordpress.

Jacob Schneider (Jacob taught at The Improv Shop in November 2011) Since moving to Chicago in 2000 from Florissant Missouri, Jacob Schneider has improvised with Improvised Shakespeare Company, iO Theater's Armando Diaz, the Del Tones, the Comedy Sportz Chicago Ensemble, Second City Theatricals, and a surplus of jams. Every Tuesday 10:30 PM, he joins his friends The Reckoning at iO. Jacob studied at at The Second City, Annoyance, and iO-Chicago after earning a BFA in Theater from Webster University in St. Louis. He likes golfing, Cardinal Baseball, and writing screenplays in Chicago.

David Koechner (David taught at The Improv Shop in October 2011) David is an American comedian, musician, and character actor. Koechner began studying improvisational comedy in Chicago at the ImprovOlympic, under the teachings of Del Close, before joining the Second City Northwest. After one-year stints of doing sketch comedy on Saturday Night Live and Late Night with Conan O'Brien, he began taking small parts in films such as Man on the Moon and Wag the Dog. While filming the country mockumentary Dill Scallion, Koechner befriended Dave 'Gruber' Allen, forming The Naked Trucker & T-Bones Show. The act became a hit at Hollywood clubs such as Largo, and the duo were invited to open for Tenacious D. Koechner appeared frequently with larger supporting roles in many high profile comedic films including Anchorman, Talladega Nights, The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, and Extract. On January 17, 2007, Koechner's Naked Trucker & T-Bones Show premiered on Comedy Central, giving him a starring role and full creative control. His first leading role, as Coach Lambeau Fields in Fox Atomic's sports comedy, The Comebacks opened on October 19, 2007. Recently, Koechner has signed a talent holding deal with NBC. Under the pact, he is attached to star in Greg Daniels’ comedy project Friday Night Dinner and possibly do more episodes of The Office, where he has appeared occasionally since the second season. The deal expands Koechner’s relationship with The Office showrunner Daniels.

Rick Andrews (Rick taught at The Improv Shop in August 2011) Rick Andrews is an instructor, performer, and Associate Artistic Director at The Magnet Theater in New York City, and has been studying, performing, and teaching improvisation since 1999. He began with Improv Boston, and continued with a stint in Saint Louis, MO. He has been fortunate to learn from many improv greats, including Armando Diaz, Ed Herbstman, Joe Bill, Mark Sutton, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, Will Luera, Jill Bernard, and more. He performs around the country with the Magnet Theater Touring Company, The Cascade (Official Selection, CIF 2011), and is a producer of Duofest, an annual festival in Philly, PA devoted to improv duos. Rick has taught workshops at improv festivals across the country, including the Boston Improv Festival, Baltimore Improv Festival, Black Box Atlanta, and many more. He has taught improvisation to people as old as 70 and as young as 6, and has done workshops for Fortune 500 companies, non-profits, and zoos. He enjoys running, putting words on pages, thinking about the brain, and he loves improv more than anything.

Jimmy Carrane (Jimmy taught at The Improv Shop in June 2011) Jimmy Carrane is the co-author of "Improvising Better: A Guide to the Working Improviser." He is the host of Studio 312 on Chicago Public Radio. He has taught at The Second City, IO-Chicago, The Annoyance and Victory Gardens. Jimmy was recently seen in the films "LOL" and "Public Enemies" with Johnny Depp. His other film and TV credits include "ER," "Natural Born Killers," "Early Edition," "The Untouchables," "Stash" and "Tapioca." He was an original member of The Annoyance Theater, Armando at The iO-Chicago and was a member of Carl and The Passions. He currently performs with Burning Desires. He has performed in some of Chicago most innovative and ground-breaking long-form improv shows, such as "Jazz Freddy" and "Naked" (a two-person one-hour improvised scene with MAD TV’s Stephnie Weir.) Other theater/improv credits include: "I’m 27, I Still Live at Home and Sell Office Supplies," "Godshow," "Every Old Man," "Living in Dwarf’s House" and "Summer Rental" at The Second City ETC.

Kevin Mullaney (Kevin taught at The Improv Shop in June 2010) Kevin studied at ImprovOlympic in the 1990s with Charna Halpern, Miles Stroth, Adam McKay, Matt Besser and Del Close. He performed on the iO house team Frank Booth for four years, as well as numerous other groups including Inside Vladimir and Lazlow. He founded and directed the iO Road Show, the original touring company for the ImprovOlympic. He taught for two years at iO before moving to NYC. For almost eight years, he taught for the UCB Theatre in NYC where he was also the Artistic Director and the Improv Chief. He helped write their curriculum and ran their school while also directing numerous shows and coaching many of the top groups including the Swarm, The Stepfathers, Optimist International and Neutrino. Kevin hosts the Improv Resource Center Podcast, blogs about improv at KevinMullaney.com and you can probably find a lot of things he's written about improv in the Improvisation forum on the IRC.

Rob Belushi (Rob taught at The Improv Shop in December 2009) The son of Jim Belushi and nephew of John, Rob Belushi has performed sketch and improv comedy at The Second City as an understudy for the mainstage in Chicago, as a member of the resident stage in Las Vegas (where he wrote the last revue produced) and as understudy for the National Touring Company, as well as The IO Theater, The Annoyance Theater, Atlanta Improv Festival, Chicago Improv Festival ('07-'09--A two man show with Jon Barinholtz) and the Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival ('05). His theater credits include; Of Mice and Men (The Steppenwolf Theater), The Lion in Winter (The Writer's Theatre), girl, 20 (Serendipity Theater Collective--World and West Coast Premiere), Sketchbook '06 (Collaboraction) and This is Our Youth (Pine Box Theater). Rob will also be appearing in The Gift Theater's upcoming world premiere of Summer People and opposite John Mahoney in Northlight's upcoming production of A Life. Film/ and television credits include Sorority Hill (Karz Entertainment), Valentine's Day (New Line Cinema--in production) The Christians (Splitpillow), Riff Raff (Best Supporting Actor, Tenerife Film Festival) and According to Jim (ABC). Rob received an Honors BA in Film Studies from Wesleyan University (Middletown, CT) where he also studied acting and is also a graduate of the School at Steppenwolf (Steppenwolf Theater Company), Howard Fine Acting Studio (Los Angeles) The Second City Conservatory and the improv training programs at IO Theater Chicago and The Annoyance Theater. He has coached teams around Chicago for their work at the Playground Theater, IO and Donny's SkyBox at Second City and taught improv for the Second City Conservatory in Las Vegas. He has also taught workshops at Duke University, Colgate University, Fargo/Moorehead State University, The Fairmont Hotels, Hylant Insurance Group (OH) and Kimpton Hotels.