UnScripted Productions, Bucks County’s only improv studio, has a new home in Washington Crossing.
The studio, started by husband and wife team and Newtown residents, Will and Danielle Dennis, formerly operated out of the Trading Post Center in Newtown/Wrightstown before the pandemic hit.
“It ultimately got to the point where we had to let go of our studio space. The longer the pandemic went, the more evident it became that we’d be paying rent for a storage space and not much else. Our number one concern during that time was survival. We wanted to make sure that when the pandemic came to an end, there was still a company to reinstate,” said owner/operator Will, who also teaches at Villa Joseph Marie High School in Holland.
For the past year, UnScripted has been renting space at the American Legion building so that it could restart improv classes. At the time the Dennis’ began renting there, the American Legion only had Tuesday evenings available, so UnScripted became a Tuesday-only business. “We loved using the American Legion. It worked incredibly well for what we needed at the time, but it was a struggle to be limited to a few hours one night per week. We are at a place now where we are ready to scale and grow, and we simply couldn’t do that without finding a space of our own.”
UnScripted has landed at 1075 River Road in Washington Crossing in the space adjacent to the U.S. Post Office. Will noted that they wanted to stay as close as possible: “We have a tremendously loyal customer base which continues to grow in Newtown. The last thing we wanted to do was put them in a position to have to travel and risk losing them. They are the heartbeat and life blood of our company.”
A first round of classes started at the new space in February, but a more official reopening is likely later in spring. Will said, “We want to take time to get to know the area and our neighbors. Collaboration is what improv is all about and that goes for our business, as well. It’s important to us to establish strong relationships with the community and other local businesses so that we can find ways to support one another.”
In addition to improv classes for all ages, UnScripted Productions also does a significant amount of work with corporations, organizations and teams of all sizes bringing improv into the workplace. Will said, “Most of our corporate work tends to be off-site, but occasionally a smaller company might want to come to us. This space makes that a possibility that didn’t exist for us before.”
For more information about classes, team building workshops and events, visit unscriptedproductions.com, call 215-352-3643 or email [email protected]. Follow on Facebook (@unscriptedprod) or Instagram (@unscriptedproductions).
