Happy Valley Improv Alumni

Becca Slotkin

Becca has been involved in the theatre world since she was a wee 10-year-old. Her forays into comedy began her freshman year of college, when she joined one of Vassar College's sketch comedy troupes. When she moved to State College for graduate school, Becca decided to try her hand at improv. She started attending HVI's Improv Practice Group in 2022 and has been fortunate to continue to take classes and perform with groups ever since!

Lori Bedell

Deciding to try something new, Lori took the Level 1 class with HVI and never looked back. She is endlessly grateful to be a part of such a joyful, welcoming community. During the day, Lori teaches in the Communication Arts and Sciences Department at Penn State. She's the mom of two amazing young women and appreciates being able to show them learning and growing and trying new things is always possible.

Miguel Fernandez

Company Ambassador
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In the midst of the deep valley that is getting a physics PhD, Miguel ventured into a side quest in search for glory, gold and a third thing. He found himself in the fabled halls of the Penn State Faculty Senate room, where he found a free lunch, provided he listened to some people talk about improv and pedagogy. Charmed by the secret knowledge provided therein, he leveled up his improv skills until he could teach it himself.

​Today, he can be found brainstorming ways to bring a “yes, and” mindset to physics education, as well as occasionally streaming cooperative storytelling/improv on the internet.
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Sam Tanner

Founding Member

Dr. Samuel Jaye Tanner is an associate professor of English Education at The University of Iowa. Before that, he was a high school English and Drama teacher for 15 years in the Twin Cities before accepting a position as a professor at Penn State. Sam’s research concerns issues of anti-racism and improvisation. He has been studying and practicing improv theatre for 20 years. Sam was a founding member and artistic director of Happy Valley Improv before moving to Iowa City. Sam is both an academic and creative writer and has written extensively about improv (see: www.samjtanner.com).