What Happened...?
by Daniel Brown, Founder and Owner, Reflex Improv
Original Creator and Founder, Resonance Improv Alliance (originally registered as Reflex Improv Foundation)
2025 was a very tough year. There has been a lot of harmful drama going on regarding Resonance Improv Alliance, the non-profit that I founded and originally paid for, and the emergence of a direct competitor, Next Level Improv, which came from people who I once considered good friends, and trusted to lead and teach for Reflex.
Except for a few confidants, I’ve remained silent about exactly what happened, hoping it would fade away all on its own and I could continue to just do what I love without bringing any more attention to it. Several alarming encounters and misrepresentations have led me to realize that this is not going to go away on its own. It’s past time that I set the record straight in a blunt and personal way about what my experiences were, and why I made the decisions I made.
Let’s set one thing straight: this is not because of competition. I believe competition is good and healthy. Reflex has had plenty of competition over the years with no issues whatsoever. This is about how this particular competition emerged, and is conducting itself in a dishonorable way. These new groups have taken unfair advantage through poaching students from Reflex and by taking credit for others’ hard work and perseverance.
The biggest piece of this was when one shocking discovery was made in late September that tied everything together and made the motives crystal clear. This discovery led me to the decision to no longer engage or associate with Resonance or its current leadership in any way. I will spell all of this out below.
Even though this is about improv, this is not a fun story to tell. It involves people that I once liked, respected and trusted a great deal. This has hurt badly and has made it hard to know who to trust.
The following is my truth as I have experienced it. I encourage anyone reading this who is curious to listen and respect all perspectives, ask questions, and draw your own conclusions from the testimony and evidence.
I will make my case in the timeline below.
January 2025 (and prior...)
Origins for Reflex Improv Foundation, and Financial Commitment
The idea for creating a non-profit to work alongside Reflex Improv started in 2019. Classes were steadily growing at that point, and there was a desire for more show opportunities. The original idea was titled “Improv League” and I set up a couple of Facebook pages for Annapolis Improv League and Northern Virginia Improv League, respectively. The idea was to create more opportunities and accessibility for shows, as well as receive grant money for a permanent space one day. The pandemic hit and that idea got put on the back burner.
In 2023, I gathered people I trusted and the idea was revived and was explored, researched and worked on for well over a year. The name “Improv League” wasn’t loved by everyone, so I set out to find a new name. A consultation with one of our Annapolis improvisers who had himself started a few non-profits and is a renowned financial expert, had him suggest keeping the same brand name. He said that much like Salesforce can have an LLC and also a non-profit foundation, so could we. Reflex Improv Foundation became the name at that point. He said that as long as the for-profit wasn’t gaining unfair advantage from the non-profit (everything had to be at fair-market value) it would be legal to give it the same name, and he advised it would be a smart move to share the branding.
With a small team, we worked for over a year on the bylaws and mission. The end goal was to enhance what Reflex Improv was already doing. Once running, the non-profit would handle the show side of things to make shows more accessible, more frequent, and more affordable for everyone, as well as empower improvisers to create their own improv-based projects (work with elderly, schools, etc.) – I was particularly excited about the possibilities we were picking up from our meetings with Toastmasters leaders and learning from their unique model. Reflex Improv would continue to run classes for profit, and the non-profit and community would run the shows.
The non-profit on-boarding fee of $500 and some change was paid, in full, by myself on January 14, 2025 and Reflex Improv Foundation would be a part of a larger non-profit, the CORE Foundation, located in Reston. In March, I would also donate an additional $1000 to the non-profit. I was very serious about this vision and was all in financially.
February 2025
The Name Change Switcheroo...
A few weeks after the non-profit was officially running, the board president dropped a bombshell – we needed to change the name, and do so urgently, because a friend of theirs, and another improviser, was worried that the acronym for Reflex Improv Foundation, which is “R.I.F.”, would be too traumatic for government employees fearful of losing their jobs due to Elon Musk and DOGE.
Other name options were given and Resonance Improv Alliance (RIA) was selected on February 15, 2025. I’m embarrassed that it took me weeks to realize that Resonance starts with ‘R’, the same letter as Reflex, so, in retrospect, the reasons given for removing Reflex from the name are questionable.
Then I learned that one of the board members, who I had hired and trained as a teacher for Reflex, was covertly running a rival set of classes along with another former teacher who had caused a distressing amount of toxicity for us in 2024. When confronted, this board member insisted “It’s just a practice group” and nothing more. Reflex students told me they had been contacted unsolicited from Reflex’s email list, which caused a lot of confusion. At least one person thought these were Reflex classes when they were not.
I let the two individuals know clearly and directly that I was not happy about this development and relayed a story from when I started Reflex: The very first thing I did was to contact Washington Improv Theater , who I was teaching with. I let their leadership know that my plans were to teach improv in the DC suburbs, but that I desired to maintain a good relationship with them. The guidelines they gave were that I couldn’t poach students from them, and that I not do classes within Washington DC city limits. I agreed and even continued to teach with them on the side for several years while building up Reflex. We even sent each other corporate clients – if it was too big for me, I’d send it to WIT, and they sent me a couple of workshops that were too small for them. We’ve maintained a friendly relationship over the years even as we compete.
I’m extremely disappointed that I didn’t receive the similar transparency and honesty from the Next Level co-owner and board member at Resonance.
March 2025
"Yes And...?" More Like "No But..."
I found Reflex as a whole, and myself personally, being increasingly sidelined by the non-profit, including denying a very talented Reflex Improv group the chance to perform during the fundraising show in April – the bullshit reason given was because they were a class and not a troupe. I quickly get fed up. This is going in the opposite yes-and direction from the non-profit’s original mission and goals.
April 11, 2025
Worst Birthday Ever...
At the fundraising show, Reflex was not mentioned from the stage at any time during the thank you’s (I think we had a slide up for being a paid sponsor). I am not an ego-centric person and I don’t require constant pats on the back or praise, but none of this exists without Reflex starting it. I believe this was an intentional omission and snub.
That night, during the show, I had my first major anxiety attack in several years. I left the show half an hour early. I also decided that night to leave the non-profit and its board because it was making me miserable and affecting my mental health in negative ways. I decided to wait a few weeks before making that decision public.
Mid April
Questioning Decisions
The board president from RIA let me know that the improv teacher I employed, who was also the board member who was doing ‘practice groups’, was officially starting something called Next Level Improv. The president also informed me that Resonance Improv Alliance would be promoting Next Level classes. I responded that I wished I had heard it directly from the source. I then request that Reflex classes get equal time for these promotions as well. Neither organization was promoted at that time.
During the next board meeting over Zoom, plans were made to rent out NextStop Theater in Reston over the summer for a show, and to submit an application for spots at Capital One’s blackbox theater in Tyson’s in the future – both of which are very costly commitments which will require selling expensive tickets and putting the best improvisers in front of the audience. It’s an elitist approach to improv shows.
I had a lot of questions and argued vehemently against these plans because it is very much against the non-profit’s mission. I also argued that we should have partnered with NextStop instead of renting from them. They could have sold the tickets and splitting box office revenue. That was an option, and it would have avoided taking a huge financial risk up front by paying rent for the theater.
Late April
Hasta La Vista, Baby
At the end of April I let the board know I was leaving. I bailed on any further activities involving Resonance. At this point I’m completely fed up and don’t want to deal with them anymore.
Summer
I've (Still) Got A Bad Feeling About This...
In late summer, I requested a mediation with the board member who co-started Next Level as they continued to solicit Reflex students for their classes. A tentative agreement was made but something still felt very very off about all of this. I learned several weeks later why my ‘Spider-sense’ was going off and I’m feeling uneasy about the truce.
Resonance started widely promoting Next Level classes and shows over social media. Resonance is also caught using Reflex Improv’s images and marketing materials without our knowledge or consent in some of these posts. Also in September another Resonance board member pressed the board about its unauthorized use of dozens of images harvested from multiple sources and asked about nonprofit funds being used to promote Next Level. Resonance refuses to engage and the board member filed a whistleblower complaint. Resonance retaliated and fired the board member. CORE commited to investigate and respond, then did nothing.
September 2025
I Should Have Used /s for Sarcasm
I contacted Resonance’s board and the CORE Foundation to request a refund of the significant donation I made earlier in the year, along with the on-boarding fees. I made those donations because the non-profit was supposed to enhance what Reflex was doing, not actively compete against it.
To their full credit, they did return those funds to me within a couple of weeks.
In early September, I learned that Next Level now had a website and was promoting improv classes in Reston, one of our prime areas. I learned that Reflex students are continuing to be recruited for Next Level classes even if they didn’t ask to be contacted. I had made it clear in February to both co-founders of Next Level that contacting our students unsolicited and without our permission was not okay. The practice continued anyway.
I emailed Next Level’s co-founder and let them know that their services were no longer needed for teaching Reflex classes and workshops. I told them I did not feel comfortable working with them any further. I agreed to let them continue with their specialized part in MAGFest under their own brand using the connections that Reflex had already set up on their behalf, but they would not be participating with Reflex workshops at the convention. (NOTE: The convention was this past weekend and Next Level did get to run a workshop. I did not receive a thank you note.)
During this email exchange, in which the Next Level co-founder made an ad-hominem attack, I responded quickly with an improv-snarky remark that I’m very proud of: “Let me know when you guys want your knives back. They are still kind of sticky.”
A couple of days later, I got a very concerned, and very long text from a good friend. The co-founder of Next Level told my friend and several others that they are concerned for my mental health and implied that I might be suicidal. While I appreciate my friend’s concern, which I know comes from a genuine place of care, I am angry that, rather than take responsibility, the Next Level person instead deflects this as ‘Dan is mentally unstable’ which was not the case at all. I do deal with depression and anxiety at times and I find it extremely offensive when mental health is weaponized to negate someone’s legitimate concerns and complaints. I find that type of behavior downright insidious.
Late September
The Discovery That Changed Everything...
I spent most of 2025 wondering why this was all happening. The full truth was revealed at the end of September. It makes sense, and the truth is far more devastating than I had originally thought…
Someone texted me a PDF document they obtained from the State of Virginia. It turns out that Next Level Improv, LLC was incorporated way back on February 20th, 2025. Which means the following:
- Next Level LLC was incorporated only five days after the non-profit’s rushed name change from Reflex to Resonance. There’s no way that’s a coincidence.
- The reason given for the name change was deceptive. It was done to take the name ‘Reflex’ out of the non-profit so it was no longer directly connected to Reflex Improv or myself.
- The non-profit, no longer connected by name to Reflex, could now be used to benefit the Next Level for-profit, in which at least one Resonance board member has a financial stake.
- At least two board members, and possibly the president of the board, knew about Next Level’s impending incorporation and the actual reason for the name change.
- The co-founder of Next Level continued to teach classes and workshops for Reflex for several months after February 20 without once disclosing their conflict of interest: owning a competing business. They emailed Reflex students during that time to promote Next Level classes and workshops.
- The Next Level co-founder never disclosed anything regarding the LLC during the mediation session in August.
Fall 2025
More Shenanigans...
Since that time, there have been other disturbing behaviors from Resonance Improv Alliance and people in their orbit:
- Someone who signed up for advanced classes with Reflex popped his head into my Intro classes on two occasions to promote everyone going to Red’s Table – a known hangout for Resonance’s president, who he is good friends with. I asked him to stop.
- Our direct MAGFest connection called me in October to give me the heads up that the Next Level co-founder (who had worked with Reflex the year before on that project) had directly contacted the head of the MAGFest Arena program to let them know that MAGFest would not like Reflex’s plans for the Roleplay Improv workshop this year and he volunteered to take it over instead. Thankfully, this attempt backfired as MAGFest Arena leader was amused by this move and he was curious about what happened and I filled them in. (By the way…. the Reflex team knocked the Roleplay workshop out of the park! Super proud!)
- I told our MAGFest connections that Reflex would neither help nor hinder this person’s desire to lead something at MAGFest. They would have to do everything on their own from now on and not under Reflex’s brand. I did not stand in their way and I also did not assist them any further. It’s my understanding that Next Level was at MAGFest leading a workshop.
- The president of Resonance Improv Alliance has repeatedly listed themselves in public materials as being the ‘founder’ of the non-profit. This is not true. ‘Founding team member’ would be accurate, but ‘founder’ is not. I originated the idea and put it into motion.
The Bottom Line
I just want to teach improv classes. I don’t want drama. I also do not worry about competition because I believe in what we are doing and have one of the very best improv training programs in existence.
I have worked, and suffered, and sacrificed for ten years to build a business and community that I am immensely proud of. Anyone that really knows me knows that this is not an ego thing. I truly love this stuff and it brings me great joy to spread it to the rest of the world.
But I will not let my hard work be stolen from me. I will not sit idly by while I’m lied to, lied about, and gaslit. I do not want anything more to do with Resonance, Next Level, or their associates. Period. Reflex does not need them and they should not need us. Go compete fairly and stop leeching off of us. Please leave Reflex and our community alone.
To anyone who dismisses this as “Well, that’s just your perspective…” I ask you to put yourself in my shoes:
If your vehicle got carjacked by someone we both knew, liked, and trusted, and after that event clearly happens, I turn to you and say: “Hey, I still really like them, and what happened is just your point of view,” you’d be rightfully frustrated and pissed with me. Betrayal Trauma is a very real thing, very similar to PTSD, except worse because the pain comes from known and once trusted relationships. Betrayal Blindness is also a real thing, and makes the trauma worse where people who know what happened, and maybe even directly witnessed it, deny the reality in order to preserve relationships or avoid conflict. That negates and denies traumatized experiences.
I genuinely liked and trusted these people, and spent most of the last year thinking that I must have done something wrong to cause this, and somehow I am misunderstanding the situation. The more that got revealed in retrospect, the more truly messed up it was.
I didn’t deserve that.
What Happens Next...?
Reflex Improv creates community and connection through humor in a safe space where Got-Your-Back is a pledge of integrity, not a slogan. We’re going to stay on the same track we’ve been on. I’ll address these issues whenever needed (this post address will get shared and updated as needed), but if it’s not brought up, I won’t worry about it. I trust in what we are doing and in the spirit in which we are doing it. Competition is a very good thing, and that’s not why I’m upset. But competition has to be done ethically with honor, not with underhanded poaching and deceptive games.
One of the benefits of having worked on the non-profit plans for over a year is that I’ve already done most of the grunt work for starting up a non-profit, so I can easily create a new non-profit to do exactly what the other one was supposed to do before its mission was subverted. We will be launching that new non-profit sometime this Spring, focusing on performance and performance spaces for everyone – not just the same exact troupe over and over and over again! Opportunity, not ego. This time there will be many safeguards put in place so that it cannot be ‘carjacked’ (or rather, ‘non-profitjacked’) again…
This has been my lived experience. It has absolutely sucked, but I still love what I do and (most of) the people I work with every week. I’m moving forward focusing on the people in our community who have truly had my back. I really appreciate you!
If you’ve wondered what happened, now you have your answers. We are looking forward, not backwards, but, fair warning, I will call out deception and falsehoods every step of the way. It’s how my mom raised me.
I’ll encourage you to compare all of the points of view and see how it all adds up.
Thank you for taking the time to read this!