On a small, dark stage a girl pretends to blow a whistle, hoping to portray a lifeguard.

“Oh no! A bumblebee!” shouts an audience member.

“Yep. I’m your neighborhood bumblebee, here to make sure your kids don’t put themselves in any danger,” the performer said without skipping a beat, knowing the importance of always saying yes.

Dallas Comedy House in Deep Ellum provides what you would expect from a comedy theater. Improvisation or stand-up shows four nights a week generate big laughs from the community.

But improv performers say there is something more to the art form than being funny and quick on their feet. They claim that improv has taught them skills that carry over into different aspects of their lives.

“I’m a better person because of improv, for sure,” said Nick Scott, an improvisation class teacher and performer at Dallas Comedy House.

Scott has been involved at Dallas Comedy House since its humble beginnings in the back room of Ozona Bar & Grill in 2009, before the training center had the means to rent a building of its own in Deep Ellum, which officially opened in January of 2010.

Dallas Comedy House offers five levels of improvisation classes, along with electives such as stand up, sketch comedy writing and on camera auditioning and acting.

“Yes, and,” a concept improvisers live and breathe by, is a technique used that requires accepting the information given by a scene partner, taking the information as truth, and then building on the information.

Improvisers will tell you this is the most important aspect of making a successful scene, but many of them also see it as a way of life.

Before improv, Scott says that he had more of a “no, but,” rather than a “yes, and” personality. He’s more likely to take chances now, and has lost cynicism that previously held him back.

Dallas Comedy House owner Amanda Austin opened the center five years ago because she knew Dallas needed greater opportunities in the comedy world. She traveled to other cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago to see how successful theaters trained students.

“The really successful [theaters] base everything around their students,” Austin said. “So I wanted to find a place where once you started training you could actually perform, too.”

Austin adopted this concept for Dallas Comedy House, having students of all levels perform in a showcase at the end of each 6-week session.

Austin also attests to the power of improv in real life.

“I’ve had people tell me, ‘my boyfriend loves me more because I’m a better listener,’ or a husband says ‘I don’t ever forget to pick stuff up anymore because I’m listening better,’” Austin said.

Students and employees at Dallas Comedy House also love the community that the theater provides. Many students admit that they signed up to meet people in a fun environment, and have now found their niche.

Maggie Rieth, a teaching assistant and regular performer, says that her favorite memory in her two years at Dallas Comedy House was her first interaction with her current boyfriend. She was at her first jam session, a show where anyone can hop on stage and perform. As a level one student, she had never been on stage but decided to “yes, and” the situation and go for it.

“Kyle was clearly way better and he came out in a scene and I was like ‘oh my gosh, I’m going to go out and be in this scene.’ And I didn’t know what I was doing but it was such a great moment!” Rieth said.

A current level three student claims that his business has boomed since joining improv. Alan Smith, owner of Alan Smith Realtors, believes that the listening skills he has acquired in improv has helped him better communicate with clients.

“I want to be the funniest real estate broker in Dallas,” Smith said.

To improvisers, these classes provide more than a creative outlet. Austin said she could talk all day about the benefits of improv.

“I think anybody in the world can take a level 1 improv class. Just like everybody should wait tables once just so they know, I think everybody should take an improv class. You’re going to get something out of it. It will make you a better person.”