This week I'm joined by Malik Whitfield, a staple of the Atlanta improv and comedy community, and one of my favorite people to watch grow on stage. Malik moved to Atlanta chasing stand-up and ended up falling headfirst into improv along the way — and I loved getting to trace that whole journey with him.

We talk about what pulled him toward the collaboration of improv over the loneliness of writing stand-up, and how the community welcomed him in a way that made him want to stay. He gets honest about the drives home in silence, the moment he realized he was actually good at this, and how much a few kind words from mentors like Madeline meant early on. We dig into setting goals, that magic Black Star set at IO Fest in Chicago, the real value of conservatory reps, and the grind of producing shows when everyone's already stretched thin.

We also get into something I think about a lot: how you give and receive feedback in a subjective art form, why every team should just get a coach, and what a healthier coaching culture could look like here in Atlanta. And Malik closes out the Hot Seat with some genuinely great advice for new improvisers about thinking past the joke.

It's a warm, funny, wide-ranging conversation with someone I deeply admire. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

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Host: Joel Camargo - Insta - @joelc1225
Audio Editor: Matt Issacs - Insta - @mattisaacs20

In this episode, I sit down with Drew Turner, one of Atlanta's most prolific independent improv producers. Drew's journey to improv starts in an unexpected place — he wanted to be a video game designer, took a drama class as an easy elective, and got bitten by the theater bug surrounded by peers who are now working off-Broadway and on major TV shows.

Drew takes us through his six years with the Knitwits at Noonan Theater Company, where he was doing two-act Who's Line-style shows every month and eventually pushed for long form narrative. He shares how the Improv Experiment format became his first taste of improvised storytelling, and how a solo monologue about rehearsing a breakup in front of a mirror became one of his favorite things he's ever performed.

We get deep into the business and philosophy of producing indie improv shows in Atlanta. Drew breaks down how he became the city's go-to freelance producer, why he fronts rental costs for other people's shows, and how he produced 96 shows in a single year while tracking it all in a custom analytics dashboard. He drops his hottest take — that Atlanta institutions have largely abdicated their responsibility to cultivate and platform local talent — and we talk about why $5 tickets can actually hurt your show, why the show starts when the doors open, and why if you're asking someone for five hours of their Friday night, you owe them something exceptional.

Drew also shares the three notes that leveled him up as a performer. You don't want to miss this episode with so many production goodies and gems!

Send us a message, question, or topic!

Support the show

Follow us on Instagram - @thejoyofimprovpod

Support the podcast with a small tip - https://ko-fi.com/thejoyofimprov

Email any questions or ideas to joel@thejoyofimprov.com

Host: Joel Camargo - Insta - @joelc1225
Audio Editor: Matt Issacs - Insta - @mattisaacs20

In part two, Cole and I pick up right where we left off and go even deeper into the craft, the personal, and the philosophical sides of improv. Cole opens up about Two Worms, the duo format he does with Meg that he calls his favorite thing to perform in the entire world. He shares the story of a quarter falling out of his pocket during their very first set and how it became one of the most beautiful moments of his improv life, because both he and Meg chose to let the real world bleed into the story.

This episode also takes an emotional turn when Cole talks about Rengar, his dog who passed away from kidney disease after a year-long fight to keep him alive. Cole shares what it was like to lose the thing that defined him, how it pulled him off stage for a long time, and what it looks like to slowly rebuild your creative fire after grief. He talks about being more specific now about what he wants to perform and why he's drawn to projects that let his uninhibited creativity fly.

We get into the hot seat questions past midnight, and Cole gives deeply thoughtful answers about his favorite characters to play, including monkeys that are always smarter than the humans, tiny things, Satan, and kaijus. He breaks down his approach to space work, why he believes improvisers should complete their object work instead of dropping it, and why when someone endows you with a different object than you think you're holding, you should never change your physicality.

Cole closes with one of the most beautiful pieces of advice I've heard on this podcast: all he's doing is making stuff up and immediately believing it. We also have a passionate conversation about what grounded really means, why it has nothing to do with realism, and why a clown who wants to be a cop but can't take off his nose is one of the most grounded scenes you could ever do.

Send us a message, question, or topic!

Support the show

Follow us on Instagram - @thejoyofimprovpod

Support the podcast with a small tip - https://ko-fi.com/thejoyofimprov

Email any questions or ideas to joel@thejoyofimprov.com

Host: Joel Camargo - Insta - @joelc1225
Audio Editor: Matt Issacs - Insta - @mattisaacs20