Marcia Angel, Cofounder of Story Works, has been working in both drama and psychology for more than 3 decades. Her staple event, Playback Improv, is one of the oldest most personally impactful vehicles for immersive experience. Originating in Nepal, playback mirrors the stories of the audience through improv actors. In the midst of this performance, a truly unique social space is created. 

Marcia began hosting dramatic events with her husband and cofounder, Billy Angel, in her living room. This eventually grew into a larger room, a larger house, than a physical location. In the process, the events that would become Story Works moved from the UK, to Florida, to Grand Rapids Michigan. For the last 7 years, Marcia and Billy have worked to create a space for the sharing and celebration of creativity and personal stories. 

Make it immersive:
Lion King [18:13]

Selected links from episode:

• Story Works
• Julie Taymor
• Sound and Movement
• Bodywork
• Playback Theater
• Jonathan Fox
• Body Mirroring
• Sonic resonance
• [sp] Dalmiere Boustous (Couldn’t find this guy. Again, Playback is very hard to film and or record)

Show Notes:

Lion King, Julie Tamar, and animals as people [1:49]

Her path to immersion [4:04]

What is playback? [6:05]

No such thing as fictional stories [8:57]

Immersive theatre: history, community, and cultural context[12:04]

Make it immersive: Lion king [18:13]

Auditory/sonic mirroring [24:43]

Space, volume, and noticing cultural differences [28:06]

Playback improv with kids [36:27]

Filming Immersives experiences [37:24]

Vulnerability in a participatory audience [41:18]

Surplus Reality and (not so)rapid fire questions [43:22]

Surplus reality & Marica’s daughter [45:34]