About Us
The Granite State's premier improvisational comedy troupe
Established in the spring of 2004, Stranger Than Fiction strives to provide audiences with shows that rival improv clubs around the world. Our cast is a diverse collection of talented actors and comedians, united by the shared passion to make the world a funnier place.
The Current Cast
STF is made up of both long-time members and new faces, each bringing their own style to the stage. As our members' lives change, so does our troupe, but we always remember our long history of laughs, creativity, and good times.
Mike McCarron
Co Producer/Education Chair
Cast member since 2019
Mike has been an improviser for 19 years and has played with many troupes and in many styles along the way. He trained at iO and The Annoyance in Chicago and feels just jazzed about dramatic improv and impro en español. He's taken the stage at The Lowell Comedy Festival, Columbus is Funny Festival, Columbus ComFest, The Chicago Improv Festival, and The Dramatic Improv Festival. Also, he'll teach you Spanish if you need that.
David Chevalier
Finance Chair
Cast member since 2009
David is a veteran of Stranger Than Fiction since 2009, and has suffered from a lifelong love of improv. In addition to his work with STF, he is a writer of science fiction and fantasy and an indie computer game designer.
Jon Wellington
Co-Cast Deputy
Jon has been performing for over 15 years including college and afterwards with many different troupes all around New England. He is a fan of peanut butter and magnetism.
Evan Willis
Cast Member since 2019
Evan's been a fan of improv for years, and began taking classes in 2016 with Stranger Than Fiction. He is so excited to be a member of the cast! He loves all forms of improv and is thrilled to be able to practice being playful and spontaneous on a regular basis.
Tim Englert
Artistic Director
Cast Member since 2018
Tim has been goofing around on stage since taking a class at Lin-Wood High School. He spent four years at the University of Maine at Farmington performing short-form with the Lawn Chair Pirates and later went to train in Chicago at the esteemed Second City. Tim happily joined STF in 2018. In his free time he is juggling many hobbies like brewing beer, designing board games, and shooting cowboy guns.
Kara McSweeney
Cast Member since 2019
Kara fell in love with the world of improv and the community that comes with it in 2018 after starting classes with Stranger Than Fiction. If she’s not doing improv, she is most likely found working with children, outside in the woods somewhere, writing poems, or pretending to be a wacky inflatable tube man. She’s beyond excited to be cast as a member of Stranger Than Fiction.
Dan Schiffmacher
Co Producer/Board Chair/Co Promotions Chair -
Cast member since 2022
Dan Schiffmacher has been improvising for 15 years. He's trained at iO Chicago, performed at Second City, as well as dozens of other stages around the Chicagoland Area. His passions outside of Improv include producing podcasts (Improv Nerd, Talkin' Wild with Dan) video production, and making homemade pretzels.
Alex Azzi
Cast Member since 2023
Alex was an improv fan for years before she was brave enough to take her first class. She eventually signed up for improv 101 at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theater in New York and was quickly hooked. She thought she was leaving improv behind when she moved away from New York in early 2023 — and was thus delighted to discover Stranger than Fiction!
Charlie Adler
Co-Cast Deputy
Cast Member since 2023
Charlie Adler has been performing improv comedy for over 9 years. In college, he was the producer of UNH's improv comedy troupe, Improv Anonymous. Charlie trained under Matthew Russel and frequently appeared in shows at Comedy Sportz Maine. Charlie is also a founding member of Portland's long form improv troupe, Yes & Co. Charlie is a registered nurse and says his improv training and skills help him have more meaningful and authentic conversations with his patients.
Jen Keefe
Co-Promotions Chair
Cast Member since 2023
Jen has always loved being on stage and bringing an element of humor and bad dad jokes to people's lives. After discovering the world of improv as a four-year member of Theatresports at UNH, Jen continued participating in improv comedy and has also dabbled in stand-up (emphasis on "dabbled"). Very much not improvised is Jen's fierce passion for running, the great outdoors, karaoke, and making food into different fun shapes.
Jessica Conover
Cast Member since 2023
Jessie has been swigging from the chalice of improv since 2015, when she trained at Curious Comedy Theater in Portland, Oregon. She's been a part of house teams at Curious and at Big Blue Door in Charlottesville, Virginia, as well as independent teams. Her longform trio Double Pretty performed at San Diego's IMPRIDE Festival in 2017. When she is not improvising she is either gardening, dreaming about breakfast tacos, or attempting to dismantle the legal system from the inside.
John Herman
Cast Member since 2004
John Herman is a multi-disciplinary artist, writer, and performer. He is a founding member of Stranger than Fiction and has been doing improv since the last millenium.
Amanda Ludeking
Cast Member since 2025
Amanda has been making it up as she goes along for her whole life now. Pre-Covid, she was on a cast member on "The Wild" for Improv Boston's Harold Night, as well as several indie teams (RIP "Fumble Bees"), and two stints on Improv Asylum's House Teams. While she is fortunate enough to be able to practice improv at her day job (as a healthcare clown at Boston Children's Hospital!), she is thrilled to be able to play, practice, and perform with STF Improv! She is trying (and failing) to find a smooth and natural way to include that she has been with Theater in the Open in some capacity (camper, teacher, performer) for over twenty years. In her spare time, you can find her making music or doodles revering her pets (the cats, Buster and Dusty, and the dog, Brody).
Nathan Cherry
Cast Member since 2025
Nathan has always been silly, joking, being a goof, and trying to bring laugher into the mundane. He enjoys lightening peoples day, and improv is a superpower that he can tell will be using to save people from the clutched of boredom for the test of his life!
Phil Dreher
Cast Member since 2025
A theater kid in the long-long-ago, Phil made his way back to the stage after a friend gently nudged him to start classes with STF in 2024. He is honored to join the cast! Aside from being a fan of improv and all things silly, Phil loves games, international travel, birding, organized labor, and reminding people that he’s a pescatarian.
