There It Is Podcast

This week we have improviser and author of "Pirate Robot Ninja: An Improv Fable," Billy Merritt! Aside from discussing the theory behind his book; Billy talks to Jason about a slew of improv topics. After sharing a story involving an alleged cult, Billy talks about how he started out in improv, his exposure to long form improv, moving to NYC, the benefit of knowing how to do short form, the early...

Today's guests are the creators of the web series Woe Is She, Chelsea B. Lockie, Stephanie Fagan, and Kathleen Simmonds! Jason got to sit down with these talented women to talk about the web series and how they developed it. They also chat about where they're from, how they met, Kathleen's trip to this year's Oscars ceremony, film festivals, and there's mention of crustaceans. They give a lot of i...

Actor and improv legend Dave Pasquesi joins Jason from Chicago! Dave talks with Jason about starting comedy after quitting his day job, doing stand-up, studying under improv guru Del Close, his early years in improv, his approach to improv, who and what inspires him, his acting career, Chicago, Tim Meadows, and, of course, TJ & Dave. It's a great discussion for the comedy nerds and for people who...

In this episode we welcome cartoonist, Emily Flake! Emily's work has been seen in The New Yorker, MAD magazine, and more! Jason and Emily talk about how she got into illustrating, how comedy started playing a role in her life, moving to New York, how she got her big gigs, her writing process, the process of crafting jokes, and more! Stay 'til the end to hear a fun announcement for the podcast! Emi...

Today's guest is comedian and cofounder of She Makes Me Laugh in NYC, Laura Zabolotsky! Laura tells Jason about her love of comedy, what drove her into comedy, studying improv, the ups and downs of running a show/festival, websites that are terrible and more! It's a fun convo! If you're looking for the inside scoop on the problems you can run into when running a festival then it's a great listen!...

Today's episode welcomes back Brother of the Show, Trey! Jason and Trey talk all that pop (culture) about Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, late night talk show ratings "wars," and now that they've seen the CW's crossover event discussed in the last Pop Talk episode they share their thoughts on Crisis on Infinite Earths. So buckle up nerds, and check this episode out! Subscribe to our c...

Today's guest is NYC comedian and writer, Audrey Stanfield! Audrey is a force! She has been working hard in this business for years and has the talent to prove it. Audrey talks with Jason about her journey from acting to comedy, dealing with professional rejections early in her career, powering through, working with your friends, developing shows, her solo show "For Everyone's Eyes Only," and more...

In the first episode of the 2020s (recorded in the 2010s) is improviser and finance bro, Andy Roberts! Don't let his face fool you, Andy is a complete jackass. Andy is a good friend of the podcast and is on a team with Jason and TWO teams with girlfriend of the show, Justina! Jason and Andy talk about how Andy got interested in performing, Ohio, superlatives, studying at two improv theaters at the...

It's a Christmas miracle! We have a brand new episode for you and it's with Girlfriend of the Show, Justina! Yay!! Jason and Justina talk about the podcast episodes they loved this year, reflect on what they've experienced in comedy since last Christmas, what they're hoping comedy brings them in 2020. It was a great year even with the ups and downs. We hope this year you learned a lot, too! Happy...

Our guest is Actor, Improviser, and Dancer, Anna Neu! Jason became familiar with Anna at the Magnet Theater and was struck by the stage presence and calming vibe she brought to her comedy. Jason talks with Anna about New Hampshire, previous guest and Anna's BFF, Liz, and how not getting donuts is all her fault, Anna's start in the arts, studying acting, getting into improv, her approach to improv,...

Today's guest is NYC comedian, actor, singer, writer, Seann Cantatore! Jason met Seann at the Magnet Theater and knew he had to have her on the podcast because she's multi-talented. She is a delightful human and life is better knowing she's in it. She brings her delight to the podcast to talk to Jason about how she got into music and then comedy, her accent and doing silly voices, singing in her r...

Today's episode welcomes back Brother of the Show, Trey, to nerd out big time on The CW DC series' crossover event. We had to get another pop talk ep in before the end of the year and the boys got to record in person while back home in South Carolina! Jason and Trey are talkin' all that pop about the Arrowverse's epic "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, what we...

Today's guest is NYC singer/songwriter and musician, Julian Velard! You may have heard his music on Howard Stern or when he's subbed in on NPR's Ask Me Another. Julian talks with Jason about what it's like growing up in NYC, how he didn't originally start in music, how he ended up in music, his appreciation for thoughtful writing, narratives we create with the content we consume, and his process i...

Today's guest is actor, comedian, and filmmaker, Fray Forde! Fray was a part of the 2019 CBS Showcase, has appeared in commercials, and has been seen on Hulu, Netflix, FX, CW, and IFC. After reminiscing about their old days in SC, Jason and Fray talk about starting out in comedy, Fray's short films and commercials like Natural Light and NFL's Fantasy Football, developing work, experiencing nervous...

Today's guest is NYC improviser and yoga instructor, Liz Migliaccio! Like many guests, Jason met Liz at the Magnet Theater. The pair have a fun chat about improv, working in production at the Colbert Report, leaving TV behind before diving into yoga, her twin sister, astrology, positivity, and donuts (obvi). It's a delectable chat with a lot of insight on how people tend to treat others. Subscribe...

Today's episode is a special Halloween-themed Pop Talk episode with Best Friend of the Show, Rob! Jason and Rob get into some heavy nerding out about horror comedy movies, the new HBO series The Watchmen, great musical side projects, and they break down how they would do the Horror Comedy Movies Bracket that we put out last week! If you haven't put your bracket together check it out on ThereItIsPo...

Justina, Girlfriend of the Show, is back!! Today Jason and Justina have a silly good time while talking about the new season at their improv theater, fun shows they've seen like Dumb People Town, friends who are in awesome commercials, and the Horror Comedy Movie Bracket! It's a delicious episode and not just because popcorn is involved! Subscribe to our newsletter for comedians and like us on soc...

Today's episode has NYC Dialect Coach, Jordan Yanco. Jordan works with actors, improvisers, stand-ups, and more on getting accents down. After chatting a bit about barbecue, Jason and Jordan have a lively talk about all things accents: some great accents (and not so great ones) in TV and film, the approach to getting an accent down, accent myths like if you lose your accent when you sing, some tri...

Today we have on stand-up comedian, Carlos Valencia! Jason met Carlos ages ago back in the Carolinas in Jason's early days of doing comedy. They talk about when Carlos started out in Charlotte, opening for Doug Stanhope, approach to performing, comedy at large, and they talk about the very complicated topic of offensiveness in comedy. Hot bed issue! Will they emerge unscathed by the internet? Shou...

Actor, comedian, and improv instructor, Will Hines, joins us for a great talk! Will Hines is a UCB great who has appeared in a ton of stuff like Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Arrested Development, Broad City, and the new film Between Two Ferns: The Movie. Will talks with Jason about Scott Aukerman's impeccable memory, performing on Comedy Bang Bang and Improv for Humans, his years at UCB, how improv has evo...

Today's guest is LA-based improviser and writer, Molly Kiernan! Molly is a writer, performer, producer, and director. She wrote and produced for MTV News' Need To Know and was a script coordinator for Broad City. Jason met Molly when she lived in NYC and performed at the Magnet Theater. She is a delightful person. Molly talks with Jason about how she found improv and her people, the struggles she...

We welcome back to the show the ever popular improviser and coach, Brian James O'Connell! BOC and Jason talk the benefits of being exposed to various styles of improv, having the right attitude about different theaters, sitting unnoticed in the audience of shows, being the best teacher and coach he can be, how to grow with the direction comedy is going, stepping back as AD at The Pack, and they ge...

Bro of the Show, Trey, is back to talk a little pop culture with Jason. Today they talk about new music that just dropped, the greatness that is Red Letter Media, the new TV season as well as what they are looking forward to the most, Leslie Jones and SNL, and the Arrowverse crossover! Last week's guest, Cody Lindquist, has her show "Two Beers In" tomorrow night at UCB Hell's Kitchen. Buy tickets...

Today's guest is NYC actress and comedian of Our Cartoon President, Alternatino, and much more awesomeness, Cody Lindquist! Cody is super talented and so awesome! Cody has done a lot and she tells Jason about a ton of it. She shares her dream as a child to have every job, studying acting, her involvement with politics, going to New York, studying at UCB, her current (and only) husband, Improv Ever...

Today's guest is NYC improviser and instructor, Eleanor Lewis! Jason knows Eleanor through the Magnet. You've heard the team Eleanor is on (Sexy Baby) mentioned on a previous episode! The two talk about Eleanor's wide variety in activities, wrestling in high school and the benefits comedians could find in a discipline like sports, the adorable story of how she got into improv, her approach to impr...