If you’ve been part of the network for a while, you know it’s no secret that Nick Armstrong is one of my very dear friends and partners on the site. I’ve known him since our iO Level 1 class over ten years ago and I was fortunate enough to have had a very tiny hand in the first Improv Utopia in 2011. Since then, Camp has grown into a very active and supportive community year round, not just during those few days near the Pacific Ocean together. This year, Nick is taking Improv Utopia to the east for the first time. I hope the many new campers join the great Improv Utopia community this fall. I got a chance to ask Nick a few questions about the camp.

Before we talk about East Camp, some of our readers aren’t familiar with Camp Improv Utopia. How is it different than other improv camps? Why did you decide to start one?

Well it all started about six years ago as an idea. We had heard of improv camps before, there was Camprov in the East that we (John Abbott, Jessica Young, Brian O’Connell and myself) wanted to go to badly but never got a chance to attend before it closed. So we wanted to start a place out West that was a summer camp for adult improvisors first and secondly a place to unite improvisors from all over the country. We saw the improv community growing nationwide, so we wanted to create a place to help it along the way. A place to share knowledge, make life long friendships and build the improv community like never before.

We also wanted Improv Utopia to be intimate. We’ve always believed in quality over quantity. We want every camper to get a chance to really know each other by the end of the weekend and we also want our campers to get focused training from our instructors. One thing we really believe in is free-time. We want improvisors to have a chance to unwind, throw axes, shoot archery, canoe and just hang out together.

Four years in, why did you decide to expand to the East Coast? And why Pennsylvania?

We expanded out East to further our mission to unite the improv community. We felt what we created out West was such a positive “yes and” environment that we wanted to offer it out East. So we felt it was the right time to do that.

I take picking camps very seriously and after a long search, Camp Netimus in Pennsylvania was the one that caught my attention and had everything we wanted in a camp. It’s 400 acres of pure awesomeness and suitable for adults!

East coast improvisors have very different challenges than west coast improvisors. You definitely have some folks who cross the country, but how are you going to customize East Camp to the challenges of the east coast performers?

We will be doing an Improv Summit at camp and having East Coast and West Coast improv experts on our panel to discuss the challenges we face in improv. I feel that by sharing knowledge with each other we can all come together and face those challenges, answer questions and start a discussion.

We are also bringing master instructors from the West that East Coast improvisors usually don’t get the chance to take like Craig Cackowski (Dasariski/iO), Jill Bernard (HUGE/ComedySportz) and Paul Vaillancourt (iO/Beer Shark Mice).

The instructor list is available on your website, but what went into the choice of instructors this year?

We always choose instructors that we love and respect and think have added something to the improv community beyond just teaching. They are master instructors and are respected by our staff and the improv community at large. We also pick instructors who want to be there and be a camper too. Our instructors hang out, jam and perform with the campers.

One of the frequently mentioned advantages of the West Camp has been the balance of class time with free time to explore improv on a performer’s own. Talk about that and how it will work in the east?

We want Improv Utopia to be an experience. Improv workshops are a part of IU East for sure, but we also wanted camp to be a place where an improvisor can relax, do camp activities and hang out with other improvisors. Sure it’s nice to take a workshop with Jill Bernard, but wouldn’t it be just as fun to canoe with her too? Or play a round of basketball with Craig Cackowski?

For those who have been to West Camp, what new opportunities will be available at East Camp?

It’s a different camp! I know that sounds obvious but it’s more of a traditional summer camp then out West. We have a lake, horses, canoes and more. We don’t have that out West. Also we are inviting some East Coast master instructors like Will Luera (ImprovBoston) and Rick Andrews (Magnet Theater) that the West folks may have not had the opportunity to take before.

What are your long term goals with Improv Utopia?

Improv Utopia is a 501(c)3 Non-profit and our profits go back to the improv community. We hope to keep raising money to support festivals, theaters and provide scholarships to communities. We’ve done a lot already, but our long-term goal is to help raise more money to give back and also unite the improv community from the East Coast to the West Coast. We have always believed that together we are all better. A nationwide improv ensemble.

There are still a few spots left for camp this year.