A prominent businesswoman launches a consensual affair with her young male employee and experiences fireworks from her husband, lesbian daughter, and public opinion. This sexy, funny, thought-provoking new work was co-created by Glickman Award-winning playwright Lynne Kaufman (Acid Test, The Couch) and the improv actors of San Francisco's Un-Scripted Theater Company. This unusual and exciting collaboration marks the first time in its 15 years of existence that Un-Scripted has gone scripted! Directed by Erin Gilley (The Speakeasy, The Lily's Revenge), Sex Scandal brings the worlds of scripted and improvised theater together like never before.

Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8p.m.

Cast

Featured

Christian

Christian Utzman is a full time actor, teacher, and an original founding member of the Un-Scripted Theater Company. Christian spends much of his free time writing about the improvisational theory behind the work here at the Un-Scripted Theater Company. You can find out more about his writings at improvactor.com. If you have any questions about how we do what we do, or you need help choosing a drink at our concessions counter, please feel free to speak with him before or after the show. (He's also our concessions buyer.)

Derek

Derek Cochran is enjoying his twentieth year performing improvisation in the Bay Area. Throughout those years, he was inspired by and fortunate enough to work with some of the most talented improvisers in the country. He credits his love of long form improvisation to his early instructors, Diane Rachel and Carol Hazenfield, for showing him that improv can go beyond a simple funny game and create a rich tapestry of all kinds of stories. Currently he is proud to work with the Un-Scripted Theater Company ensemble, where they allow him to obey the inscrutable exultation of his soul. He gives thanks to his family, his Treasure Island Pirate dogs, and to all the improvisers who he has worked with, been taught by, and failed spectacularly with; throughout the years.

"Hell is empty and all the devils are here." ~ The Tempest

Karen

Karen got her improv start with Pan Theater, Oakland, in 2013 and has been a musician most of her life, playing drums, keys, guitar and singing with various bands from synth pop to 60’s go-go to prog rock. She’s a member of the indie troupe Jurassic Pope and coaches and facilitates corporate improv gigs throughout Bay Area. Karen is also an associate producer for both the San Francisco Improv Festival and West Coast Musical Improv Fest and can sometimes be seen performing with the stand-up/improv combo YES, stAND Up! In her free time, Karen is honing her musical chops to become an improv accompanist — super fun!

Merrill

Merrill Gruver has been performing with the Un-Scripted Theater Company since 2009, and joined the artistic staff in 2011. She studied acting at Brown University and The Neighborhood Playhouse under Sanford Meisner. Merrill is a graduate of BATS improv and performed regularly with The Sunday Players. She is a member of Shakespeare's Stepchild, which performs improvised Shakespeare in Dolores Park. Merrill teaches drama at Peninsula School.

Vanessa

Vanessa Speed is originally from New York but calls the Bay Area her forever home. She grew up participating in any musical that would have her, but didn't stray from scripted theater until 2009, when she began her improv training at Pan Theater. She originally thought that improv would lead her towards a career in stand-up comedy, before discovering her true love, theatrical improvisation, at the Un-Scripted Theater Company. She first performed with the company in 2011, and joined its ensemble in 2012. She enjoys bringing music, characters with unspoken histories, and dynamic relationships to her work. Her most recent improvisational efforts center around making up songs, games and stories for her young daughter.

Sex Scandal

Cast

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