Nelson Velazquez

The Setup

Why a comedian
trains your team.

My name is Nelson Velazquez. I'm an applied improvisation facilitator, keynote speaker, corporate trainer, IT professional, musician, comedian, and producer — operating at the intersection of art, technology, and human behavior. These aren't separate identities. They're the same person.

I've been performing improv for 20+ years and teaching it for 15. I've been in tech since 1996. I've worked as a DevOps engineer, an AI consultant, and a recruiter. I play trumpet in an improvised mariachi band. None of this is accidental.

What I do for people is understand where they are coming from first, then help them get to where they're going — with a fun but informative attitude. I create the conditions for people to surprise themselves.

Improv isn't about being funny. It's a framework for human performance under pressure.

What You Get

Three ways to work together.

Keynote

Unscripted: What Improv Teaches Us About Leading, Listening, and Taking Risks

A 45-minute mainstage talk for corporate and nonprofit professionals who work in teams, lead others, or navigate organizational complexity daily. The through-line: every professional in every room is already improvising — just without the training.

$2,500 + travel & accommodation

Corporate Training

Half-Day Workshops for Teams Who Want More Than a Lecture

Sessions built around active listening, collaboration, risk-taking, and communication — using applied improv exercises, not slideshows. Teams of 25–40. Designed around your specific challenge, not delivered off a shelf.

$1,500–$3,000 · half-day

Brand Ambassador

Authentic Partnerships for Brands That Fit

I'm a genuine advocate for products I actually use and believe in. Latino heritage, Chicago improv, IT professional, musician, educator — a multi-dimensional brand for the right partner. I don't do performative endorsements.

Emerging — authentic fit only

The Proof

The interactive nature of this course made it one of the most enjoyable CLEs I have attended in 28 years.

— ISBA Young Lawyers Division attendee, December 2023

4.83

Speaker rating / 5.00

Attendees · ISBA 2023

20+

Years performing

Years teaching & facilitating

Second City Training Center — Faculty Second City Works — Facilitator The Radical Agreement Project — Facilitator Improductions, LLC — Owner & Director Salsation Theater Company — Former Artistic Director Los Improviachis — 15 years

Topics

What we can build together.

How Improv Changes Lives

Signature keynote

Think Fast: Communication Skills Through Improv

Beyond Objection: Theater Techniques for Effective Counsel

Legal & professional audiences

Improv for Teambuilding

Improv for Ideation

Improv for Social Media

How to Write Scripted Material Using Improv

How to Apply Agile/Scrum in Your Daily Life

AI for Creatives

Design Thinking for Beginners

How to Be an Effective Speaker

Even when you're winging it

A Story

The 70-year-old
who came alive.

I had a woman in her 70s in one of my improv classes. She had never done anything like it. She was clearly the most seasoned person in the room and felt out of place. She also had memory and mobility issues. I treated her exactly like everyone else, accommodating the pace at which she could respond.

After eight weeks, the class performed a show at a theater. Something shifted for her on that stage. She was articulate. More mobile than anyone had seen in years. Most importantly — she was funny.

After the show, her family came up to me in tears. They said they hadn't seen her like that in years. They credited improv with unlocking something in her.

For me, it was watching a brain rewire itself in real time — unlocking the potential of someone who had been written off by their own age.

Why a comediantrains your team.