Biography
Navaris Darson is a Sunday Company alum and senior-level improv instructor who has been teaching at The Groundlings Theatre & School in LA since 2013. Outside of The Groundlings, Navaris has also taught improv at USC and UCLA as well as Verve Studios in Arizona. Additionally, he’s served as a featured instructor and performer at ITS Comedy Festival 2024 (Sydney), SAVI FEST 2025 (Arizona), and Camp Improv Utopia West 2025 (California). In 2026, he taught at several festivals including Happy Valley XL, Twin Cities Improv Festival, and Improv Fest Ireland plus various campuses, theatres, and improv schools all around the world.
As an instructor, Navaris stresses connection, specificity, and the importance of making joyous choices. Style-wise, he’s fun and (appropriately) sassy. He keeps the bar high while also creating an encouraging learning environment where improvisers feel safe to fail, grow, and blossom into the best play-pretenders and make-em-uppers they can be.
Navaris’s Workshops
The Magic of Yes-And (3 Hours)
Yes-and is the most magical element in improv, but how well do you really know it? What’s the first thing you should yes-and? Do you really always have to say “yes?” And are you truly yes-anding or are you sometimes yes-anyways-ing? In this workshop, we’ll clarify the concept of yes-and, providing improvisers with a deeper understanding of what yes-and is (and isn't!), how to yes-and in various ways (beyond dialogue), and why it’s the most magical element in improv. For all levels.
Joyous Choices (3 Hours)
If you’re having fun, the audience is having fun! This workshop delves into the five ways of adding information in improv, encouraging improvisers to explore how tapping into their personal sense of play makes their improv unique and engaging. For all levels.
Mining Relationships for Comedy Gold (3 Hours)
Every scene is a relationship scene! In this workshop, improvisers will explore the fun of inhabiting unique characters who affect each other. Also, we’ll delve into how players can connect with their scene partners to organically unearth the humor and narrative currency inherent within character-driven relationship dynamics. For intermediate improvisers with a firm grasp of improv fundamentals.
Character Crash Course (6 hours)
Everything you need to know about Groundlings-style character! This comprehensive overview of character-based improv focuses on defining and creating funny yet believable Groundlings-style improv characters, fueling character comedy within scenes, and exploring relationships.
Directed Improv Scenario Showcase (6 hours + Show)
During this workshop, participants will delve into the different elements that create a compelling narrative within directed improv formats. In addition to honing necessary skills, improvisers will learn and practice a variety of formats — such as Spork River — and possibly invent their own! This workshop culminates in an optional performance wherein the participants will showcase one or two of the formats rehearsed during the workshop. For advanced improvisers who already possess an understanding of improv fundamentals and a comfortability with playing characters.
