Improv is such a vital skill and tool when it comes to performing. Are you looking to sharpen yours? Join us for a panel discussion covering how to improve those skills, how to apply them to auditions and performances and how to discern which classes/programs are the best fit for you. This 45-minute panel will feature actors Utkarsh Ambudkar, Lauren Ash, Senior Academic Director of UCB Johnny Meeks, main company member/teacher at The Groundlings Leonard Robinson and showrunner Eric Ledgin. It will be followed by a 20-minute audience Q&A. Moderated by Laura Linda Bradley.

BIOS:

Utkarsh Ambudkar

Currently co-leading CBS’ 'Ghosts,' named TV’s number one new comedy in 2022 (and now shooting season 4), Utkarsh also continues to perform throughout the year with Freestyle Love Supreme, the freestyle rap group with Lin Manuel Miranda and produced by Tommy Kail. In late 2023, the musical comedy 'World's Best,' a feature Utkarsh conceived, co-wrote, co-produced, wrote the music for, and starred in, was released on Disney+. Utkarsh is also known for previous films and shows ranging from Amazon's 'Brittany Runs a Marathon,' Universal's 'Pitch Perfect,' Fox film 'Free Guy' opposite Ryan Reynolds, Netflix hit show 'Never Have I Ever' and Fox comedy 'The Mindy Project.' He also made a last impression at the Oscars in 2020 with his freestyle rap performance. Recently, Utkarsh was seen in Netflix’s 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' as well as the SXSW Premiere of 'My Dead Friend Zoe' opposite Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris.

Lauren Ash

Lauren Ash is a gifted actress, comedian and podcast host hailing from Toronto, Canada. 

Ash starred for six seasons in the NBC hit comedy, 'Superstore.' She played fan favorite “Dina Fox,” the no-nonsense, often misunderstood assistant manager of Cloud 9. The critically acclaimed series celebrated their series finale after a wildly successful run on March 25, 2021. Ash received a 2021 Hollywood Critics Association Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Comedy for her work on the show.

Most recently, Lauren was seen playing ‘Lexi’, alongside her co-stars, Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin) and Hannah Simone (New Girl) in ABC’s 'Not Dead Yet.' Additional film and television credits include, 'Another Period,' 'Super Fun Night,' 'Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2,' 'Lars and the Real Girl,' the Oscar nominated film 'The Disaster Artist,' 'Scare Tactics,' 'Howie Do It,' and countless Canadian series including 'Lost Girl,' 'Cracked,' 'The Ron James Show,' 'Call Me Fitz,' 'Bomb Girls' and 'Match Game.' Lauren also voiced the character of 'Scorpia' in the Netflix original animated series 'She-Ra and the Princesses of Power' and 'Diane' in the Netflix animated series 'Chicago Party Aunt.' In 2017, Lauren was nominated for an ACTRA-Award for her performance in the film 'Dirty Singles,' and was the winner of a Canadian Screen Award for a guest-starring role on the CTV sitcom 'Spun Out.' 

Outside of acting, Ash is the host of the popular podcast 'True Crime and Cocktails.' Each week, she and her cousin Christy Oxborrow deep-dive famous true crime cases and to date, they have received a total of seven award wins including a Gold recognition in the 2021 Davey Awards, the “People’s Choice Podcast” in the 2021 Discover Pods Awards, an honorable mention in the 2022 National Gracies Awards for Best Podcast Co-Hosts and four awards in the 2021 Quill Podcast Awards including “Best Podcast Hosts!” 

In 2023, Ash also made her foray into the music industry, releasing her first single, “Now I Know” which broke the top ten for both the iTunes and Billboard charts, which was quickly followed by her second single, a pop-punk cover of Rihanna’s “Umbrella”. Find her most recent single, “Whiplash” on all streaming platforms. 

Ash is an alumnus of the Second City Toronto and Chicago main stages and is one of only four Canadians ever chosen to perform on the Chicago stage. She has earned six wins throughout the past ten years in various categories at the Canadian Comedy Awards, including two nominations for the Canadian Comedy Person of the Year. 

She currently resides in LA with her rescue dog, Bean, and her cat, Sharky.

Leonard Robinson

Lenord is widely known as a series regular on HBO’s critically acclaimed series 'Insecure.'

After graduating from Howard University, Leonard appeared in theaters nationwide including 'The Exonerated' at The Culture Project (Off-Broadway), Williamstown Theatre Festival, New York Fringe Festival, and Studio Theatre in Washington, DC.

Additionally, some of his television projects have included: original cast member of 'Wild N' Out' (MTV), recurring roles on 'Blockbuster' (Netflix) and 'Welcome to Flatch' (FOX), guest starring roles on 'The Black Lady Sketch Show' (HBO), 'Platonic' (APPLE TV), 'Kenan' (NBC), 'NCIS' (CBS), 'NCIS: LA' (CBS), 'Young Sheldon' (CBS), Alexa & Katie' (NETFLIX), voicing characters on 'Univeral Basic Guys' (FOX) and 'American Dad!' (FOX).

As a comedian, Leonard has performed at clubs and colleges across the country as well as the UK. He can be seen weekly at The Comedy and Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, The World-Famous Comedy Store on Sunset Blvd or at The Groundlings Theater & School where he performs, teaches and directs sketch and improv comedy.

Johnny Meeks

Johnny is an actor/ improviser/writer originally from St. Louis, MO. He performs regularly on the UCB house team Sentimental Lady.

You may have seen Johnny on TV on such shows as 'Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,' 'Brooklyn 99,' 'Modern Family,' 'Up All Night,' 'NTSF:SD:SUV:', 'Comedy Bang Bang' and numerous commercials. Johnny co-wrote and starred in the film 'Alleyball,' winner “Best Feature” of both the SoCal Independent Film Festival and the New York Independent Features Festival.

Meeks has been performing improvisational and sketch comedy at UCBTLA since 2005. He is an improv teacher and serves as the Academic Director at the UCB Training Center. He has appeared in many shows at UCBTLA including Asssscat, Soundtrack, Brand New Ball, ROUGH CUT: The Improvised Movie and Sketch Cram.