On Air is Big Blue Door’s brand-new improv show that creates an entirely improvised radio show or podcast from an audience suggestion, and then deconstructs that podcast to create an entire world.
On Air is also the veteran cast of Big Blue Door’s brand-new improv show On Air. Learn about them out below! Then come to their world premiere! They’ll be hosting our First Friday Improv shows in our McGuffey studio and appearing in our October & November shows at Vinegar Hill too!
Alena Mackay-Smith. Alena works in higher education by day, saving the world one FAFSA at a time. By night, she’s writing, doing standup, or spinning across the dance floor to a salsa beat. She’s always excited to be on stage with people who also think “yes and” is a valid life philosophy.
Adrienne Wood. Adrienne is a professor in the Psychology Department at the University of Virginia, where she studies social behavior. She lives with her husband, two hounds, a cat, and a new baby. She’s performed with many Big Blue Door teams.
Otter Moutenot. Otter is a carnivorous aquatic mammal who was raised in 1980s/90s suburban captivity on a diet centered around the Kids in the Hall, Kurt Vonnegut, and Mr. Bungle. He made lots of joyfully collaborative improvisational films and music in his youth, and then life got really serious and heavy like allofasudden. So now a psychotherapist by day and improviser by night, Otter gets to dive to the depths and play in the light. He’s been studying and performing with Big Blue Door since 2018.
Mel Belardi. Mel lives in Charlottesville doing learning design by day for a tech company. Her improv and sketch comedy background includes training and performing in New York and San Francisco. She went to UVA many moons ago, moved back a few years ago with her husband, and now has a 1 year old son and the best dog ever, Bixby.
Jim Hughes. Jim is a mathematician-turned-software engineer. Outside of work, Jim is an avid swing dancer and trail runner – both involving shuffling for long periods of time.
Ellie Black. Ellie is the somewhat dry baked good you get from mixing up sarcasm, wild curiosity, a pinch of anxiety, a dash of depression, and a healthy dose of enthusiasm for the human condition. Speaking of confections, where do you get a good donut around here? Ellie is married to the most amazing muffin, Janet, and they have two buttery little croissants, Jonah and Camille. She’s been performing with Big Blue Door since the summer of 2024.
Jordan Breeding. Jordan is a comedy writer and video producer best known for his work rebooting the Cracked YouTube channel before starting his own channel “Dr. Jordan Breeding.” He currently lives in Charlottesville with his wife and three kids. He’s been performing with Big Blue Door since the summer of 2023.
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