Theatre Staff & Board
Our Staff
Emily Meister
EXECUTIVE / Artistic Director
Emily Meister is an interdisciplinary artist, director, choreographer, performer, producer, educator, and healing arts practitioner whose work lives at the intersection of performance, creative collaboration, and embodied storytelling. With over two decades of experience creating and devising theatrical, immersive, site-specific, and multimedia works - both intimate and large-scale, her practice moves fluidly across disciplines, mediums, and roles.
Meister brings 14 years of experience from AMDA College of the Performing Arts in Los Angeles, where she served as Director of The Artists’ Lab and the BFA Performing Arts Content Creation Program. A cross between education and production processes, her tenure at AMDA has been marked by innovation and excellence, most notably through the creation and leadership of the groundbreaking Content Creation BFA - a first-of-its-kind initiative that reimagined how performing artists are trained for the evolving demands of contemporary performance and media. Through this work, she has mentored hundreds of students in creating work for stage and screen and in developing their own voices as multi-hyphenate artists, and as writers, directors, choreographers, performers, filmmakers, producers, and collaborators.
Emily founded Wonder House, an experiential arts collective dedicated to creating immersive, cross-disciplinary work in both urban and natural settings. Her artistic collaborations span a wide range of nationally and internationally recognized companies and artists, including Meredith Monk, Fire Trial Films, The Private Theatre (NYC), Annie Saunders/Wilderness, Pussy Riot, Galiana + Nikolchev’s The Useless Room, HomeLA, The Wild We, Roya Carreras, Santa Barbara Summer Dance, Jay Carlon, and Motion Theater Dance Company, among others. Her performance and creative work spans experimental and feature films, devised theatre, music videos, dance theatre, and international festivals.
In addition to her work in performance and education, Emily brings a strong background in public relations, event production, and creative strategy. As the former owner and publicist of Embodi Creative Solutions, she specialized in eco-conscious brand development, marketing, and media relations for sustainability-focused clients in the beauty, wellness, and fashion industries.
As a certified Reiki Master, herbalist, and sound/breathwork facilitator, Emily integrates healing modalities into both her creative and pedagogical frameworks. Trained in the Wise Woman Tradition, she regularly facilitates workshops, performances, and ritual-based activations focused on restoration, presence, and holistic creativity.
She holds a BA in Dance Theatre Performance & Choreography from Connecticut College, where foundational training in composition and movement sparked a lifelong multidisciplinary journey that continues to evolve across body, story, camera, and space.
Emily is deeply honored to be the ED/AD of The Liberty Theatre Company and to be a part of the vibrant, generous, and creative community of the Wood River Valley. She believes theatre is a vital space for connection, reflection, and shared imagination and is inspired to build upon the incredible work already generated while continuing to explore new forms of storytelling that are bold, inclusive, and alive with possibility and magic.
Tess Makena
Production & Operations Manager
Tess Makena is a professional actor, stage manager, stage electrician, musician, and consumer of all things food and beverage.
She's a proud member of Actor's Equity Association and is now over-the-moon to be the Company/Office Manager and Artist Council member for The Liberty Theatre Company. Her professional endeavors onstage, offstage, and backstage have given her opportunities to explore the ever-inspiring world of theatre-making throughout Idaho and New York. Many of these great opportunities were given to her by Company of Fools, Boise Contemporary Theatre, Idaho Shakespeare Festival, The Brooklyn Academy of Music, The O'Neill Theatre Center, and Playwrights Horizons.
Tess received her BA in Theatre Performance from Boise State University, though she only attended one game on the glorious blue turf. When she's not pursuing her love for storytelling, Tess can be seen binge-watching films and television, playing board games, spending too much money at local restaurants and pubs, and playing one of the many instruments she somehow knows how to play.
Chris Carwithen
Director of Marketing & Community Engagement
Chris Carwithen has been performing professionally in the valley since 2012 - acting, singing, and dancing the hair right out of his head on the John C. Glenn stage at the Liberty.
A graduate of Southern Oregon University, Chris has had the privilege of performing with a number of professional theaters in his career, including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, 5th Avenue in Seattle, Oregon Cabaret Theatre, Arts West, The Shedd Institute, and of course the beloved Company of Fools.
Raised on a healthy diet of gaming, live performance, and The Lord of the Rings, Chris is no stranger to dabbling in the world of make-believe, and considers himself lucky to be living his ultimate fantasy - working as an artist and as the Director of Marketing & Community Engagement for The Liberty Theatre Company.
Naomi McDougall Jones
EXECUTIVE / Artistic Advisor
Naomi McDougall Jones is a 15-time award-winning storyteller, changemaker, and future-weaver whose work spans books, film, television, and the healing arts. She challenges entrenched narratives to expand what’s possible. An acclaimed advocate for gender parity in cinema, she has published in The Atlantic, Ms. Magazine, and Salon.com, and her TEDTalk, What It’s Like to Be a Woman in Hollywood, has been viewed over 1.2 million times.
Her debut book, The Wrong Kind of Women: Inside Our Revolution to Dismantle the Gods of Hollywood, drew widespread critical acclaim and is taught on university syllabi. Her forthcoming memoir, American Selkie: One Woman’s Journey Back to Wildness, Ancestral Wisdom, and Inner Magic (Penguin Life, 2027), chronicles her personal healing journey.
As a filmmaker, Naomi wrote, produced, and starred in Imagine I’m Beautiful (2014) and Bite Me (2019), each of which won a wide range of film festival awards. She adapted Miranda July’s “Roy Spivey” for Amazon’s original series The New Yorker Presents.
She co-founded The 51 Fund, financing women-led films including Cusp and Shayda, both Sundance premieres; Shayda won the Audience Award, was acquired by Sony Pictures Classics, and became Australia’s 2023 Oscar entry.
Her future-weaving initiatives include co-creating The Light Ahead podcast and founding Avalon: Story, which incubates new storytelling and industry models.
As an ancestral healer and psychedelic facilitator, Naomi supports personal and collective transformation, seeing this work as an extension of her storytelling mission: to expand the narratives we live by so that more healed, sustainable futures become possible.
A graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Naomi grew up in Colorado and now lives in Ketchum, Idaho, where she first arrived as the inaugural writer-in-residence at Ernest Hemingway’s final home.
More at www.naomimcdougalljones.com.
Our Board of directors
President
Alexis Lindberg
Since moving to Idaho in 2010 after graduating from Montana State University, Alexis has built a rewarding career as a CPA at Becker, Chambers & Co in Hailey. With a deep passion for the dramatic arts, Alexis never misses a local production and values the vibrancy that arts bring to the community. She is an active community member and values the opportunity to give back. Alexis and her husband, Jeff, enjoy golfing, travel, nightlife and going to the movies.
Alexis is honored to join the Liberty Theater Company as a member of the board, supporting a cause that aligns with her values and is close to her heart.
Vice President
Jennifer card
Jennifer’s love of theatre was instilled at early age thanks to her Mom, Mary Ellen Card, a longtime Company of Fools volunteer usher. Mary Ellen loved summer stock and community theatre and, as a result, Jennifer has been to many a performance in old barns and creaky theaters throughout New England. Rest assured, the seats at the Liberty are much more comfy!
Jennifer and her husband moved to the valley in 1997 and have been attending live theatre at the Liberty ever since. They joke that their two children were raised in the Liberty Theatre. It seems to have worked out well because the kids, now young adults, still go to the theatre whenever the opportunity arises.
Being a housing donor has been an awesome experience as Jennifer loves getting to know the creative geniuses who star, direct and choreograph the amazing TLTC productions. Jennifer is excited to be a part of the Liberty Theatre Company board and looks forward to many more fantastic plays for years to come. Live theatre…..there is nothing better for bringing a community together in thoughtful and inspiring ways. Jennifer looks forward to seeing you at the next Liberty Theatre Company production!
Treasurer
Tom Harned
Tom Harned is the owner and beekeeper of Five Bee Hives, with operations in the Wood River Valley and Montana. For 13 years, he was a volunteer firefighter and officer with the Hailey Fire Department.
A California native, Tom studied earth sciences and graduated with a degree in watershed management from Humboldt State University. He continued to explore his deep enjoyment and gratitude of the outdoors as a river guide, coming to Idaho in 1991 to run the Salmon, and falling in love with the area. He moved to the Wood River Valley full time in 1999 where he began a family, started his business and raised two kids. He and his wife, Deanna, are delighted to call Hailey their home.
Tom has supported and loved live theatrical and music performances his entire life. Sharing with his wife and children the exceptional talent this valley has to offer has become a cherished tradition.
He looks forward to continuing to revel in and appreciate the thoughtful, energetic, comedic, connective performances of TLTC as a member of the audience and as a new member of the board of directors.
Former President
TIM Black
Tim moved to the valley on a full time basis in 1977 after graduating from college. In 1982 he hung out his shingle as a custom cabinet maker. He married his wife Christie, then had two children in 1990.
When Company of Fools moved into the valley Tim introduced them to the Hailey Rotary Club where he was a member. That led to his involvement in building all of their sets for a long period. It was a magical time of creativity and collaboration. He joined The Fools board during this time and served as Board President for two terms.
After the merger of The Fools to the Sun Valley Center he joined that board to bring some Fools institutional memory to that organization. Tim loves the magic of live theatre and looks forward to working with the new Liberty Theatre Company.
Secretary
Jane Rosen
Jane has lived in the Wood River Valley, along with her husband, Scott Miley for over 30 years where they raised their two children. She started her environmental consulting business, Assessment & Compliance Services in 1995. She has served as secretary of the Blaine County Historical Museum since January 2008. In 2021, she joined The Liberty Theatre Company and has served as Secretary since its incorporation. Although never involved with a theatre company in the past, Jane is an avid patron. She likes learning about what it takes to operate a successful theatre company and especially enjoys working with the tremendous talent of this organization.
Member
Eryn Alvey
In the spring of 2023, I was preparing to audition for TLTC’s production of ‘Chicago.’ After having a 20-year hiatus from the stage, I wasn’t sure how it was all going to shake out, or if this old body was going to be able to shake anything at all. The theater gods were in my favor, and I was blessed to share the stage with a phenomenal cast guided by the creative genius of Naomi. Flashforward and I am now writing a TLTC Board of Directors bio. Grateful is an understatement.
I am honored to have a seat at the table with this passionate, inspiring Board. So much of who I am today is due to my experiences through theater. I auditioned for my first real show at the age of 9 and the minute I stepped on stage I was done for. Theater allowed me to find my voice, in more ways than one. It was through the audition process that I learned to embrace fear and countless rehearsals where I made and continue to make lifelong connections. I have been lucky enough to have shared the stage with Broadway royalty and Tony Award winners.
My life’s co-star is my daughter, Maya. She is my compass in every sense of the world. She is the one who led me to move here from the Bay area, CA. She inspires me to be better today than yesterday, and we love how the TLTC community has embraced us with open arms. I was the City of Ketchum’s Event Manager and am currently the Administrative Director for The Wood River Jewish Community. I am an avid Bay Area professional sports team fan (Go Giants, Warriors, and 49ers!) who loves to read, cook, and be surrounded by people who bring her joy.
As adults, it is easy to lose imagination and the eagerness to play – the theater welcomes it and I for one, can always use moments of getting lost in someone else’s story. As Oscar Wilde said, ‘I regard the theater as the greatest of all the art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.’
I look forward to seeing you at the next TLTC production!
Member
Tom Carter
Tom’s passion for the performing arts began in high school where he sang in the choirs and acted in musicals. He continued to explore singing and acting in three seasons of summer stock—Bigfork Summer Playhouse in Montana—and his love for theatre deepened. Eventually, Tom earned a Bachelor’s degree in Drama Education and a Master’s in Music Theatre, continuing to perform while delving deeply into the study of stage directing. At San Jose State University, for example, Tom sang with the Choraliers while directing Yours, Anne—the lyric drama treatment of The Diary of Anne Frank.
Over the years, Tom taught Drama and English in grades 7-12 in several Northern California schools, directing the extracurricular drama programs as well. In addition, he was the artistic director for the City of Los Altos Youth Theatre for ten years and had the thrill of directing the world premiere of Footloose: The Musical.
After working with many choirs to help them with their stage presence, Tom published Choral Charisma: Singing with Expression, a book that reflects Tom’s interest in Method acting, singing, and teaching. Following its publication, Tom worked with choirs across the country, empowering them to engage more completely with text, music, and audience. He continues that work to this day.
Member
Joan Davies
Joan, community activist, promotor of collaborative efforts for the betterment of all and historical preservation was raised on a farm in Southern Idaho. During 60, plus, years of residency, her life has centered around contributing significantly and enthusiastically to the cultural and civic life of the area. The involvement in many facets of the community allows a clear observation of the rhythms and trends of Wood River Valley.
She was presented with the “Persistent Planner Award” from the Hailey Planning and Zoning Commission where she served for 19 years. During this tenure the first comprehensive plan in the State of Idaho was created. Twenty years of her career was spent working and providing programing for the College of Southern Idaho. The creation of the Blaine County Community Campus which houses the Blaine Campus was a wonderful project of collaboration with the Blaine County School District and serves the betterment of our community.
Lifelong learning supported by culture experiences are elements that support solid values for a great community. Joan continues to foster and care for these developments.
Member
David Gertz
David became a part-time Wood River Valley resident in 1996. A Chicago native, he moved to LA after college and discovered his true passion in professional sound recording. After many years as a music recording engineer, he settled in as an award-winning post-production sound mixer at the Walt Disney Studios with more than 60 film and TV credits. Moving to the Valley full-time in 1999, he co-founded Integrated Electronic Solutions, a local business designing home entertainment systems. Since 2014 he has been the senior sales engineer for Access Networks, a southern California company designing computer networking systems.
David and his wife Marina Dallago, a harpist, love the outdoor life especially hiking, biking and snowshoeing. They are active in the Valley’s cultural scene and David hopes his vast technical experience and love of theater can help guide TLTC into the future.
Member
Martin Henry Kaplan
Marty first found his way here from Seattle in the sixties packed into his VW with 3 buddies for a ski trip, inspiring a life-long love affair and second home. He has been a part-time resident of Ketchum since 1992, when he built his first escape from his native Seattle roots in search of mountain recharging. He and his wife Leslie finally moved to Ketchum full time in 2022 to be closer to enjoying daily access to healthy time here skiing, cycling, and hiking, among many other adventures.
He followed his passion for architecture as a 6-year-old, becoming principal of his honored architectural firm for over four decades and has practiced countrywide from his offices in Seattle and Ketchum. Among other design projects, Marty is currently donating his time designing much needed affordable housing here with ARCH.
Among many boards and commissions that have informed his experience today is his 10-year stint as a trustee on Seattle’s Intiman Theatre board from 1990, when it was Seattle’s second largest. As a passionate and decades-long theatre audience member, he and Leslie have always found opportunities to appreciate live theatre everywhere. His overly gushing appreciation to Naomi after “Disgraced” may have inadvertently led to this coveted board seat.