About Us
Who’s Behind This
The Improv Academy is led by DesignConvo, a human-centered consulting and leadership practice based in Phoenix, Arizona.
Our work centers on helping leaders and teams navigate complexity, collaboration, and change—especially when the path forward isn’t clear. We design experiences that help people move from insight to action in real, human systems.
We came to improv the same way many leaders do: curious, a little skeptical, and looking for something that traditional leadership development wasn’t providing. What we found surprised us. Over time, improv became one of the most effective tools we’ve used to help people practice presence, adaptability, and confidence in unscripted moments.
Improv has been part of our facilitation and leadership work for years. The Improv Academy is where we bring that practice forward—intentionally and accessibly—for professionals who want to get better at responding when things don’t go as planned.
Meet the Facilitators
Anca Castillo
Anca Castillo is a human-centered designer, facilitator, and leadership practitioner who helps leaders and teams navigate complexity, collaboration, and change. She has completed all levels of improv training at The Bridge Improv Theater in Mesa, Arizona, and has performed with the Snarky Sunday 6. Anca brings applied improv into leadership development work with students at ASU and executive leaders alike, and is co-author of The Collaboration Illusion, a #1 new release in Business Conflict & Mediation, where improv is explored as a powerful tool for collaboration.
Cary Lopez
Cary Lopez, PhD, is an organizational communication scholar and leadership researcher focused on how people collaborate, make decisions, and navigate conflict in complex systems. She brings applied improv into her work as a way to move leaders from insight to real behavioral change, particularly in moments of uncertainty and power dynamics. Cary is co-author of The Collaboration Illusion, a #1 new release in Business Conflict & Mediation, which examines the role of improv in strengthening collaboration and trust at work.
Raluca Mihalcescu
Raluca Mihalcescu is a facilitator and applied improv practitioner who brings deep performance experience into professional and leadership learning spaces. She is a mainstage performer at The Bridge Improv Theater and a master improver known for creating environments where people can experiment, fail safely, and build confidence in real time. Raluca pairs her improv expertise with a background in innovation, sustainability, and facilitation to help professionals strengthen collaboration, adaptability, and presence.