A theater professional, certified educator, and consultant with over 25 years of experience in education, mental health, and professional development, Mary is the creator of One Rule Improv—a research-based, trauma-informed, and radically accessible approach to learning and applying improvisation.
Her work in mental health led to groundbreaking research, including co-authoring the first neurobiological study of its kind to explore how improv enhances brain connectivity in adolescents with complex trauma. The peer-reviewed article, “Short-Form Comedy Improv Affects the Functional Connectivity in the Brain of Adolescents with Complex Developmental Trauma as Measured by qEEG,” was published in NeuroRegulation.
Mary’s work has been featured in Forbes, Psychology Today, and the documentary Act Social, starring Colin Mochrie of Whose Line Is It Anyway?
A TEDx speaker, Mary holds a Master of Social Science from Syracuse University and has advanced training in instructional design, adolescent trauma, and cognitive behavioral psychology. She is also the author of multiple books, blogs, and published research, available at OneRuleImprov.com.
