ARTICLE
WHO: Monthly Show, Rifts In Time, Enters its Next Evolution in May Storytelling will take center stage on May 22 at the next interactive adventure theater pilot program show known as RIFTS IN TIME that performs the fourth Sunday of each month in Roseville, CA. RIFTS IN TIME shares strange but true history with audiences and invites them to participate in this storytelling adventure alongside professional performers who are just as in the dark as the audience is regarding what will happen next. The evening’s host is T.S. Forsyth, who uses her storytelling skills, professional playwrighting background, and game master experience to engage the room in a spellbinding tale. “We have been so fortunate to have incredibly engaged audiences who not only participate in a variety of ways but have stayed after the show to provide invaluable feedback to help us continue to develop this pilot program,” said T.S. Forsyth. Recently, the audiences’ questions and comments helped Placer Rep to recognize a core misperception that RIFTS IN TIME is an improv show. Not the case, according to Forsyth. “This show is storytelling, and I create a storybook using PowerPoint. RIFTS IN TIME then uses a smattering of role-playing game mechanics adapted from the role-playing game Tales of the Arabian Nights to keep the story dynamic, and a pinch of improv here and there to bring key moments to life,” said Forsyth. “Our wonderful audiences provided the necessary feedback for us to continue development of this pilot program, to tweak and adapt our processes and presentation of this monthly show, to better communicate our intentions and support our storytelling,” said Kevin Foster, Outreach Director for Placer Rep. May audiences are going to find several small but very important changes to this program to continue its development from a pilot program to a polished and seasoned monthly show. According to Placer Rep, the goal is to develop this program and grow its participation so that it merits the use of a theatrical space and theatrical lighting to further enhance its magic. Core actors with RIFTS IN TIME include Anne Merino, professional performer, novelist, and faculty at William Jessup University, professional performer and educator Kevin Foster, and professional performer Matt Heyer, all of whom are known to Placer Rep audiences for their performances in the award-winning 2021 season, including An Evening with Sherlock Holmes and The Jane Austen Soiree. Audiences are also key performers at RIFTS IN TIME. From simply raising their hand to vote for what should happen, to suggesting an idea, to jumping up to perform one of the non-player characters in the storyline, audiences are involved as little or as much as they want to be. “Audiences are collaborators at RIFTS IN TIME. Each month their suggestions change the storyline or the fate of a character,” said performer Matt Heyer. To allow for dynamic flexibility in RIFTS IN TIME from audience participation and actor improvisation to role-playing game elements, T.S. Forsyth develops a dynamic digital storybook. “If a character dies, I can delete that character from the slides. If the performers go off the beaten track, I have extra slides for the variety of directions they might choose to go, plus various generic background slides that fit each month’s show. There is always a slide I can turn to and storytelling and role-playing game elements I can employ to concoct unplanned moments based upon the dynamic twists served up to me, as storyteller, by my collaborators -- namely the audience and the performers,” said Forsyth. RIFTS IN TIME next performs on Sunday, May 22, 2022 at 7 PM. Currently, performances are located at 401B Vernon Street, Holistic Lighthouse meeting room, Roseville, on the backside of First Bank. Reservations are recommended, as seating is limited. For more information, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/242594234887 Placer Repertory Theater (https://PlacerRep.org) is a regional award-winning professional theater company that servers Placer County and the greater Sacramento metro area. A 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, Placer Rep’s mission is to offer educational and quality-of-life enriching professional performing arts and cultural programs relevant to the people of Placer County, while supporting local organizations and acting as an economic engine for the area. Follow Placer Repertory Theater on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @PlacerRep, and subscribe to our YouTube Channel to access our digital recordings. Publishers: Contact Kevin Foster, Outreach Director at Outreach@PlacerRep.org. TERESA STIRLING FORSYTH – Producing Artistic Director Playwright/Storyteller/Game Master MFA Dramatic Arts, MS Business Management & Leadership, this critically acclaimed professional director/playwright plays the role of Producing Artistic Director for Placer Repertory Theater. Previously, the artistic director for two San Francisco theater companies, her performing arts background includes international tours as an actor/singer/dancer, and director/playwright for national and international touring productions with renown performing artists, such as Brenda Wong Aoki, and companies like Dell’Arte International. As an educator, she has instructed and/or directed at UC Davis, University of San Francisco, University of Minnesota, and other educational institutions. Projects on which Forsyth worked performed at venues such as the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, Dallas Theatre Center, San Diego Repertory Theater, and many other renown venues, with the works receiving Dramalogue Awards, Critics Circle Awards, Indy Award: Best Spoken Word Album, as well as numerous grants from the NEA, NEH, CAC, ACPC and corporations. She is a member of the professional organizations: The Dramatists Guild, The Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE), TCG and NNPN/New Play Exchange. KEVIN FOSTER - Outreach Director, Actor in RIFTS IN TIME Kevin Foster is a Rocklin local and Sacramento area native, excited to work at Placer Repertory as Outreach Director and in various other capacities. He began training in acting at UC Davis while earning his B.A. in Music Performance. After graduation and his return from a professional stint in New York, he performed at Davis Musical Theater Company in Peter Pan, The King and I, Damn Yankees, and the Elly Award winning production of Chicago. His other credits include The Importance of Being Earnest at Chautauqua Playhouse and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at Sacramento Theater company, where he taught youth theater classes, and currently teaches at Rockstar Music Academy in Lincoln, CA. You may see him in Placer Rep’s World Premiere of Sherlock Holmes: The Sign of the Four October 29, 30, November 5, 6 of 2021 as Dr. Watson, or in Placer Rep’s digital series Sherlock Holmes: Domestic Mysteries on YouTube. MATTHEW HEYER – Actor in RIFTS IN TIME Matthew Heyer is a graduate of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre. He is the winner of the Irene Ryan award for his work in 2018 and for his 2019 performance as Elliot in Completeness. Among his favorite roles are Stanley in A Streetcar Named Desire, Vince Fontaine in Grease, Charles in As You Like It, and as Shakespeare in The Bard on Broadway. 2022 is Matthew’s second season with Placer Rep, having played the title character at “An Evening with Sherlock Holmes,” George and Milo in “From the Mind of Scott Charles,” and Mr. Charles Elliott in Persuasion in 2021. ANNE MERINO – Actor in RIFTS IN TIME Merino began her career dancing for notable companies such as American Ballet Theatre and the London Festival Ballet and is currently the artistic director of Placer Theatre Ballet. A prolific choreographer, she won the Vanguard Award for Choreography. Merino’s traditional theatrical training was received at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, Second City with Del Close and John Belushi and later trained under Alan Rickman at the British American Drama Academy. As an actress, and former member of AEA, SAG/AFTRA, Ms. Merino performed with The Groundlings and Tim Robbins’ The Actors’ Gang and is a member of the theatre department faculty at William Jessup University. As a writer, she recently won film festival awards for her screenplay, “The Season of the Wolf,” and received critical acclaim for her recently released novel, Hawkesmoor. THE EVENT RIFTS IN TIME: Interactive Adventure Theater Fourth Sunday of the Month at 7 PM 401B Vernon St., Roseville CA Next Performance: Sunday, May 22, 2022 DETAILS ENTITY: Placer Repertory Theater WHAT: RIFTS IN TIME: Interactive Adventure Theater. WHERE: 401B Vernon Street, Roseville CA WHEN: Fourth Sunday of each month at 7 PM Next show: Sunday, May 22 at 7 PM. TICKETS: FMI & Reservations https://www.eventbrite.com/e/242594234887 WHO: Outreach Director, performer: Kevin Foster Storyteller/Gamemaster/Playwright: T. S. Forsyth Performers: Anne Merino, Matt Heyer GRAPHICS Matt Heyer, Anne Merino and Kevin Foster help deliver a baby elephant in Southeast Africa 2 million years ago ###
WHO: Monthly Show, Rifts In Time, Enters its Next Evolution in May
Storytelling will take center stage on May 22 at the next interactive adventure theater pilot program show known as RIFTS IN TIME that performs the fourth Sunday of each month in Roseville, CA. RIFTS IN TIME shares strange but true history with audiences and invites them to participate in this storytelling adventure alongside professional performers who are just as in the dark as the audience is regarding what will happen next. The evening’s host is T.S. Forsyth, who uses her storytelling skills, professional playwrighting background, and game master experience to engage the room in a spellbinding tale.
“We have been so fortunate to have incredibly engaged audiences who not only participate in a variety of ways but have stayed after the show to provide invaluable feedback to help us continue to develop this pilot program,” said T.S. Forsyth. Recently, the audiences’ questions and comments helped Placer Rep to recognize a core misperception that RIFTS IN TIME is an improv show. Not the case, according to Forsyth. “This show is storytelling, and I create a storybook using PowerPoint. RIFTS IN TIME then uses a smattering of role-playing game mechanics adapted from the role-playing game Tales of the Arabian Nights to keep the story dynamic, and a pinch of improv here and there to bring key moments to life,” said Forsyth.
“Our wonderful audiences provided the necessary feedback for us to continue development of this pilot program, to tweak and adapt our processes and presentation of this monthly show, to better communicate our intentions and support our storytelling,” said Kevin Foster, Outreach Director for Placer Rep. May audiences are going to find several small but very important changes to this program to continue its development from a pilot program to a polished and seasoned monthly show. According to Placer Rep, the goal is to develop this program and grow its participation so that it merits the use of a theatrical space and theatrical lighting to further enhance its magic.
Core actors with RIFTS IN TIME include Anne Merino, professional performer, novelist, and faculty at William Jessup University, professional performer and educator Kevin Foster, and professional performer Matt Heyer, all of whom are known to Placer Rep audiences for their performances in the award-winning 2021 season, including An Evening with Sherlock Holmes and The Jane Austen Soiree.
Audiences are also key performers at RIFTS IN TIME. From simply raising their hand to vote for what should happen, to suggesting an idea, to jumping up to perform one of the non-player characters in the storyline, audiences are involved as little or as much as they want to be. “Audiences are collaborators at RIFTS IN TIME. Each month their suggestions change the storyline or the fate of a character,” said performer Matt Heyer.
To allow for dynamic flexibility in RIFTS IN TIME from audience participation and actor improvisation to role-playing game elements, T.S. Forsyth develops a dynamic digital storybook. “If a character dies, I can delete that character from the slides. If the performers go off the beaten track, I have extra slides for the variety of directions they might choose to go, plus various generic background slides that fit each month’s show. There is always a slide I can turn to and storytelling and role-playing game elements I can employ to concoct unplanned moments based upon the dynamic twists served up to me, as storyteller, by my collaborators -- namely the audience and the performers,” said Forsyth.
RIFTS IN TIME next performs on Sunday, May 22, 2022 at 7 PM. Currently, performances are located at 401B Vernon Street, Holistic Lighthouse meeting room, Roseville, on the backside of First Bank. Reservations are recommended, as seating is limited. For more information, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/242594234887
Placer Repertory Theater (https://PlacerRep.org) is a regional award-winning professional theater company that servers Placer County and the greater Sacramento metro area. A 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, Placer Rep’s mission is to offer educational and quality-of-life enriching professional performing arts and cultural programs relevant to the people of Placer County, while supporting local organizations and acting as an economic engine for the area. Follow Placer Repertory Theater on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @PlacerRep, and subscribe to our YouTube Channel to access our digital recordings.
Publishers: Contact Kevin Foster, Outreach Director at Outreach@PlacerRep.org.
TERESA STIRLING FORSYTH – Producing Artistic Director Playwright/Storyteller/Game Master
MFA Dramatic Arts, MS Business Management & Leadership, this critically acclaimed professional director/playwright plays the role of Producing Artistic Director for Placer Repertory Theater. Previously, the artistic director for two San Francisco theater companies, her performing arts background includes international tours as an actor/singer/dancer, and director/playwright for national and international touring productions with renown performing artists, such as Brenda Wong Aoki, and companies like Dell’Arte International. As an educator, she has instructed and/or directed at UC Davis, University of San Francisco, University of Minnesota, and other educational institutions. Projects on which Forsyth worked performed at venues such as the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, Dallas Theatre Center, San Diego Repertory Theater, and many other renown venues, with the works receiving Dramalogue Awards, Critics Circle Awards, Indy Award: Best Spoken Word Album, as well as numerous grants from the NEA, NEH, CAC, ACPC and corporations. She is a member of the professional organizations: The Dramatists Guild, The Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE), TCG and NNPN/New Play Exchange.
KEVIN FOSTER - Outreach Director, Actor in RIFTS IN TIME
Kevin Foster is a Rocklin local and Sacramento area native, excited to work at Placer Repertory as Outreach Director and in various other capacities. He began training in acting at UC Davis while earning his B.A. in Music Performance. After graduation and his return from a professional stint in New York, he performed at Davis Musical Theater Company in Peter Pan, The King and I, Damn Yankees, and the Elly Award winning production of Chicago. His other credits include The Importance of Being Earnest at Chautauqua Playhouse and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at Sacramento Theater company, where he taught youth theater classes, and currently teaches at Rockstar Music Academy in Lincoln, CA. You may see him in Placer Rep’s World Premiere of Sherlock Holmes: The Sign of the Four October 29, 30, November 5, 6 of 2021 as Dr. Watson, or in Placer Rep’s digital series Sherlock Holmes: Domestic Mysteries on YouTube.
MATTHEW HEYER – Actor in RIFTS IN TIME
Matthew Heyer is a graduate of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre. He is the winner of the Irene Ryan award for his work in 2018 and for his 2019 performance as Elliot in Completeness. Among his favorite roles are Stanley in A Streetcar Named Desire, Vince Fontaine in Grease, Charles in As You Like It, and as Shakespeare in The Bard on Broadway. 2022 is Matthew’s second season with Placer Rep, having played the title character at “An Evening with Sherlock Holmes,” George and Milo in “From the Mind of Scott Charles,” and Mr. Charles Elliott in Persuasion in 2021.
ANNE MERINO – Actor in RIFTS IN TIME
Merino began her career dancing for notable companies such as American Ballet Theatre and the London Festival Ballet and is currently the artistic director of Placer Theatre Ballet. A prolific choreographer, she won the Vanguard Award for Choreography. Merino’s traditional theatrical training was received at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, Second City with Del Close and John Belushi and later trained under Alan Rickman at the British American Drama Academy. As an actress, and former member of AEA, SAG/AFTRA, Ms. Merino performed with The Groundlings and Tim Robbins’ The Actors’ Gang and is a member of the theatre department faculty at William Jessup University. As a writer, she recently won film festival awards for her screenplay, “The Season of the Wolf,” and received critical acclaim for her recently released novel, Hawkesmoor.
THE EVENT
RIFTS IN TIME: Interactive Adventure Theater
Fourth Sunday of the Month at 7 PM
401B Vernon St., Roseville CA
Next Performance: Sunday, May 22, 2022
DETAILS
ENTITY:
Placer Repertory Theater
WHAT:
RIFTS IN TIME: Interactive Adventure Theater.
WHERE:
401B Vernon Street, Roseville CA
WHEN:
Fourth Sunday of each month at 7 PM
Next show: Sunday, May 22 at 7 PM.
TICKETS:
FMI & Reservations https://www.eventbrite.com/e/242594234887
WHO:
Outreach Director, performer: Kevin Foster
Storyteller/Gamemaster/Playwright: T. S. Forsyth
Performers: Anne Merino, Matt Heyer
GRAPHICS
Matt Heyer, Anne Merino and Kevin Foster help deliver a baby elephant
in Southeast Africa 2 million years ago
###