Our team
The people behind the PROGRAMS.
The teaching artists, youth advisors, directors, and founders who keep DCP running.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Kelly Rossi
Program Director
The Improv Project brings joy and self expression to youth and adults, and I’m thankful every day to witness that. I am thrilled to be a part of such an important program that teaches the art of Improvisation, and creative and social skills to youth, our future leaders.
Kelly is program director for The Improv Project. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Wayne State University in Theatre, with a concentration in Acting. She has been Executive Director of BoxFest Detroit, an annual theatre festival that showcases and supports local female-identifying directors since 2005. Kelly is an active actor, playwright, and volunteer in metro Detroit’s theatre community, and she appeared in “Call Me Cass” at The Berman Theatre in 2018. Kelly is committed to training educators, youth, and adults in the power of improvisation.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Lauren
Program Lead
There is so much to love about The Improv Project! If I had to pick one thing right now it would be that it is always growing and striving to do better to better serve our students and the community.
Lauren is the program lead for The Improv Project programs. She has been instrumental in developing The Improv Project's applied improv programs for English Language Arts. Lauren has been active in the Detroit improv scene since 2001. During her tenure at Second City, Lauren was an active understudy, performed in various alternative shows, and taught adults in the Second City training center. She has written, performed, and directed several original sketch comedies over the years. Lauren can be seen onstage at Planet Ant with The Home Team.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Tayler
Program Lead
All children deserve to awaken their inner creative and be celebrated for it.
Tayler is the youth advisory program lead, and she coaches The Improv Nerds, the DCP's resident youth troupe. She is a professional actor, director, and teaching artist. She has taught drama and improv to youth and adults for over six years. Tayler is also the founder of Beauty of Detroit Box, a small business dedicated to encouraging self-care. She earned her Master of Fine Arts in Applied Drama and Theatre for the Young from Eastern Michigan University with a focus on the connections between drama and play. As a teaching artist with Matrix Theatre Company she helped develop lesson plans, improv workshops, and youth driven productions. Tayler also leads intergenerational storytelling and improv workshops for youth and seniors as an Associate Artist with Limelight Theatre Company. She completed her acting training at Wayne State University and the Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia in 2016. She has also performed in numerous Michigan theater companies, including Shakespeare in Detroit, Detroit Repertory Theatre, Theatre Nova, Black & Brown Theatre, and the Hilberry Theatre. Tayler is a graduate of Cass Technical High School, where she was a student improviser in The Improv Project.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Aaron
Teaching Team
I believe we are all storytellers, and that “Story” is the best vehicle we have to convey important information. I love being able to nurture other creative voices so that our creative community will continue to flourish.
Aaron has more than a decade of performance experience as an actor and improviser. He also has extensive experience working as an illustrator, animator, and multimedia marketer. He has created and produced animated short films, digital comics, and dipped his toes into critical media analysis for an online publication. Aaron earned his BA in Cinema Arts and Sciences with a focus in Traditional Animation from Columbia College Chicago.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Andy
Teaching Team
Improv has a wonderful way of pulling out the best in people, showing that if you jump on the present moment, you can make magic happen.
Andy is a writer, comedian, improviser, actor, and journalist. He has taught improv to youth and adults for over four years. Andy is the Managing Director for Planet Ant Theatre. He performs at Planet Ant, Go Comedy!, Pointless Brewery & Theatre and is co-host of the Simpsons-centric podcast Homerphilia.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Anna
Teaching Team
I love working with some of the most talented people I've ever met, and being able to collaborate and share that with the students.
Anna is an actor and improviser. She has been teaching improv to youth and adults for six years. In addition to her work with The Improv Project, Anna teaches in the training center program at Go Comedy! Improv Theater where she is also a member of their Resident Cast. Anna can be seen onstage at Go Comedy!, Planet Ant Theatre, and performing with the Dinner Detective. When she is not performing or teaching improv, she works as a teaching assistant and standardized patient in Wayne State University's medical school.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Dave
Teaching Team
I love being able to share the concepts of basic improv with students who have no idea what to expect.
Dave has been an actor and improviser for over 25 years, and is an adjunct professor in Wayne State University's theatre department. Dave has written and directed numerous shows at Planet Ant Theatre where he is a member of the Home Team. Dave has designed and led improv workshops for all ages, ranging from first graders to seniors. He has also performed at theaters across metropolitan Detroit, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Dave is a member of SAG-AFTRA and can be seen on screen, most recently in the Comedy Central series Detroiters.nnDave serves on The Detroit Creativity Project's artistic advisory group. He has been instrumental in developing our applied improv syllabus that focuses on building skills for academic and career success. Prior to his performing arts career, Dave was a product engineering designer at Ford Motor Company and copy writer at Real Integrated.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Jeff
Teaching Team
I love to see people discover something new!
Jeff has been teaching acting and improv to children and adults for 20 years. In addition to teaching in The Improv Project, he is the director of talent development and a main stage cast member at ComedySportz Detroit. Jeff also leads acting and improv classes at the Michigan Actors Studio. His acting career spans 20 years, starting at The Second City Detroit. He has been a member, director, and writer for The Second City Detroit and Chicago touring companies, and a cast member on The Second City Detroit main stage. Jeff can also be seen in film and on television.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Justin
Teaching Team
I love co-teaching with a brilliant team of improv artists and going to different schools across Detroit meeting inspiring students.
Justin earned his BFA from Western Michigan University with a focus on Theatre Performance and Spanish. His work experience includes youth social services, youth development, and arts organizations. In Kalamazoo Public Schools with KRESA/Education For The Arts, Justin served as a Theatre teaching artist. In Detroit he has worked with the Heidelberg Arts Leadership Academy. Justin is a proud teacher, director, and actor and appeared most recently in the Michigan Shakespeare Festival in 2019. Justin is an alumnus of the Detroit Public Schools Community District. He recently returned to teach drama at the Duke Ellington Conservatory.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Quintin
Teaching Team
I love watching some of the quieter kids break out of their shells. From Week 1 to Week 10, it's amazing to see the person within start to bloom.
Quintin has been an actor and improviser for more than 20 years. After training at The Second City Detroit, he went on to become a member of the TourCo cast and later joined the main stage cast at Second City Novi. In addition to teaching youth in Detroit schools, Quintin has taught college preparatory classes for middle and high school students at St. Clair Community College and has worked with at-risk youth and children in shelter care at Oakland County Children's Village. He has also taught improv to adults at The Second City, Go Comedy!, and Planet Ant training centers.nnQuintin has appeared in numerous stage plays and can also be seen onscreen. He is known locally for his Wilde award-winning Fish Dinner trilogy and has appeared in the Comedy Central series Detroiters.
The Improv Project · Teaching Team
Rico
Teaching Team
I've watched them discover and learn to value their unique voices. I love that.
Rico is a professional actor and improviser. He has a long association with The Second City Detroit as a writer, performer, director, and producer. He has taught improv to youth for over 15 years. His experience also includes working with young men in adjudicated youth facilities and coaching business school students at Wayne State University. Rico is a member of The Detroit Creativity Project's artistic advisory group and has been instrumental in developing our applied and online improv syllabuses.nnRico can be seen onstage and in film and television roles. His recent stage work includes University of Tennessee's production of Master Harold, Ixion Theatre's production of TopDog/Underdog, and the CAP production of Fences. He is also featured in several independent films, including Lost Heart, Sincerely Brenda, and Buzzard.
Youth Advisor
Faith
Youth Advisor
Youth Advisor
Jewel
Youth Advisor
Youth Advisor
Kennedi
Youth Advisor
Youth Advisor
Rimpa
Youth Advisor
Youth Advisor
Sariah
Youth Advisor
Board of Directors
Beth Hagenlocker
Interim Executive Director · Secretary
Beth Hagenlocker serves as the DCP's Interim Executive Director and Secretary. She is a veterinarian and facilitates applied improv workshops that improve communication and collaboration among veterinary teams and their clients. Prior to her veterinary career, Dr. Hagenlocker worked as a planner in various aspects of economic and community development in Detroit, rural Arizona, and Seattle. Originally from the Detroit metropolitan area, she now lives in Los Angeles CA.
Board of Directors
Marc Evan Jackson
Board Chair · President
Marc Evan Jackson is the DCP President. In 2011 he founded The Detroit Creativity Project with several Los Angeles-based performers whose careers began in Detroit.nnMarc is an actor, improviser, writer and comedian. He moved from the Second City Detroit to Los Angeles in 2001. He has taught improv at Second City Hollywood and in 2003 formed a long-form improv group of other Second City alumni called The 313, an homage to Detroit.nnMarc has become best known for his work on NBC's The Good Place and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and as Sparks Nevada in the live stage show The Thrilling Adventure Hour. His recent film credits include Jumanji, Kong: Skull Island, and 22 Jump Street. He is also a contributor to the after-school literacy program 826 LA.
Board of Directors
Carl Evans
Treasurer
Carl Evans is the DCP Treasurer. He brings more than 20 years of experience as a tax accountant in the private sector, and now works at Glasser & Associates in Farmington Hills. Carl received his B.S. in Accountancy from Calvin College. In addition to his accounting background, he served as a business consultant to a global restaurant chain in Beijing.nnHe is an avid supporter of the students in The Improv Project and is a regular audience member at showcases. Originally from New Jersey, Carl has lived in the Detroit metropolitan area for over 30 years.
Board of Directors
Jon Carr
Director
Jon Carr is a Director on the DCP Board. He is a seasoned improviser, performer, and playwright.Jon served as Executive Producer for The Second City in 2020-21, leading them during a transition to new ownership and a more inclusive approach to their work. He has been part of Atlanta’s creative community for more than 15 years, working with the acclaimed Alliance Theatre and as the Artistic Director of Dad's Garage Theater. He also founded United Atlanta Improv to promote collaboration among the improv theaters in the city.In addition to his leadership in the Chicago and Atlanta improv communities, Jon's Atlanta improv troupe "Dark Side of the Room" has performed across North America and worked with the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. His play Black Nerd won the 2018 Suzi Bass award for Best Original Play.Jon holds a degree in marketing and business administration from Georgia State University. He recently returned to Atlanta.
Board of Directors
Tiger Veenstra, PsyD
Director
Dr. Veenstra is a Director on the DCP Board and they are an improviser and psychologist specializing in adolescents and couples therapy. Their research has focused on the applications of improvisation in psychotherapy, and the foundation of improvisational theater principles, theory, and practice. Dr. Veenstra oversees the organization's program evaluation related to impact on teen emotional health and social skills.nnIn clinical practice Dr. Veenstra has applied improvisation with doctoral psychology students and in group therapy with federal inmates and persons with schizophrenia. Originally from the Detroit metropolitan area, they now live in Orange County CA.
Founder
Joel Veenstra
Associate Head of Stage Management, University of California, Irvine
Founder
Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Director, “Kong: Skull Island” and “The Kings of Summer”
Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Founder
Joshua Funk
Artistic Director, Second City Hollywood
Founder
Keegan-Michael Key
Performer in “Key & Peele,” Comedy Central
Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Founder
Larry Joe Campbell
Actor in “According to Jim,” ABC
Photo: Keith Cooper, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Founder
Marc Evan Jackson
Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Fox and Parks and Recreation, NBC
Founder
Marc Warzecha
Associate Artistic Director, Second City Hollywood Training Center
Founder
Maribeth Monroe
Actress in “The Brink,” HBO and “Workaholics,” Comedy Central
Founder
Nyima Funk
Performer in “Undercover Cupid,” NickMom and “Whose Line is it Anyway?”
Founder
Phredley Brown
Musical Director and Lead Guitarist for Bruno Mars