Dana Malone Heiser
(she/her)
Washington Improv TheaterDana Malone dreams of circling up everyone in her life for a big ol' game of the improv warmup, Big Booty.
Dana believes that there is much personal growth to be gained in improv, and she loves seeing new students have “aha!” moments and embrace the craft. Her teaching emphasizes taking risks, gaining confidence and honoring the gifts of one’s fellow players. In addition to WIT, Dana’s theater and improv education has included training at The Center for Movement Theatre, The Second City and The Shakespeare Theatre Company.
Dana was an original cast member and director of WIT’s The October Issue. She has also performed with WIT Harold team Breaker Breaker, Improv Actually and iMusical. She is a member Press Play, one of DC’s longest running indie teams.
Student feedback
“Dana is friendly, enthusiastic, energetic, and able to adapt.”
“Dana was excellent! She is an experienced improver with lots of practical experience and tips to share.”
“Dana was really good at creating a supportive environment and explaining what the goal of an exercise was. She also gave really good feedback about how we could change things here and there to help us get more out of an exercise.”
Photo by Darian Glover
Dana Heiser fell in love with improv when she enrolled in her first WIT class in 2011.
Dana is currently a member of longtime indie team Press Play. She was an original cast member on WIT’s special projects The October Issue and Improv Actually, and has performed with the WIT Harold Team Breaker Breaker and WIT ensemble iMusical. WaPo once said Dana has “versatile wackiness” and she strives to live up to that rep whenever she takes the stage.
A graduate of WIT’s training program, Dana has also studied at The Center for Movement Theatre, The Second City, The Shakespeare Theatre Company and The Unified Scene Theater. She is producing improvisation director at TBD Immersive and can’t say no to karaoke.
Dana is the Senior Director of Integrated Fundraising and Marketing at Washington National Cathedral, the sixth largest cathedral in the world. She is responsible for creating and executing individual fundraising strategies to support the Cathedral's strategic growth.
Dana has a wide range of experience leading development efforts for the arts, social justice and beloved cultural institutions. In her current position, Dana leads integrated and long-range strategies for individual support, including direct mail and digital outreach. Under her leadership of the annual fund, the Cathedral’s donorbase has steadily grown. In addition, Dana co-created TBD Immersive, bringing large-scale immersive theatrical experiences to our nation’s capital. She holds a BA in Culture and Communication from Ithaca College. Dana earned a life and leadership coaching certification from the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC), and she
Dana joined the WIT community in early 2011 as a student. After completing the full curriculum, she joined WIT Harold team Breaker Breaker, followed by various special projects including Improv Actually, The October Issue and most recently, And, Scene!. She has been a member of the WIT faculty, a WIT@Work facilitator and special project director. Dana can barely remember her life in DC before WIT, and she is excited to help the community she loves continue to thrive.
Photo by JDUB Photography