Interview: Riley Cole on Directing THE HARVEST Immersive Production for Last Call Theatre

During the Hollywood Fringe Festival this past June, I twice attended the immersive production The Collective by Last Call Theatre, since I really appreciate the skill it takes to stage a show that will be completely different each time it runs. I also marvel at actors who are kept on their toes having to react to whatever may happen when they are among audience members whose reactions will guide the story each time. And I do admit to loving playing a part in the show as an audience member every time I get the chance!

The Collective was the first Last Call Theatre immersive production directed by Riley Cole (pictured), who is also directing the group’s upcoming immersive production called The Harvest, opening this December in downtown Los Angeles. I decided to speak with them about the show as well as how its creation compares to the other.

Hi Riley. Thanks for taking the time to speak with me. Tell me how you first got involved with immersive theatre.

I’m happy to get the chance to talk about the work. I first got involved with immersive theater in 2019 during my student training in acting. There was a production of an immersive show called Ascend: When Myths Fall, Heroes Rise, that was being put up by a student group at USC that created themed, interactive experiences like escape rooms. The show was based around mythology, and because of my skill with Tarot and other divination, I was cast as one of the Three Fates (and later just The Oracle). Ascend was an early version of what Last Call does with the sandbox quest style format. My personal interactions in character with the audience enamored me to Immersive and Experimental styles of theater which I had only been passively interested in before.

Last Call Theatre has staged 5 productions. How were you involved with the first three before directing the next two?

I met Jacob Zorehkey and Ashley Busenlener (the company directors of Last Call) through Ascend, and so when they started working on Last Call Theatre’s first show at the 2022 Hollywood Fringe Festival, I was eager to be involved. I continued as an actor, but also started helping with the writing for that show, Signals. I also had other theater skills from university, so I helped in whatever capacity was most needed; I stage managed Abandoned, I acted and wrote for The Showroom, and I wrote for and directed The Collective.

I really enjoyed your direction of Last Call Theatre’s Fringe 2023 production, The Collective, about the inside workings of a mob family. What is the central theme of The Harvest? And is there a family at the center of the story?

Thank you so much! I’m really glad you enjoyed it (you were one of our favorite audience members!). The theme of our 2023 season is [Villainous] Found Family. While The Collective danced around the themes of family, ambition, and loss, The Harvest centers around a different kind of family. The town of Windsor Grove, haunted by its past, desperately tries to find a future in the new potential residents of the audience. But the past won’t so easily be forgotten. The Harvest confronts isolation, fear, and the sins of our predecessors through a tight-knit, small community’s attempt to put the past to rest.

How many audience members will be admitted for each show? And what part(s) will they play?

The audience size is about 50 seats (with 10 potential VIP tickets). While VIPs will have specialized background and interactions, the standard ticket will see you admitted as one of the first Visitors to Windsor Grove after 100 years of solitude and isolation. At first, the townsfolk are hoping that you’ll consider moving there. But as events unfold, the townsfolk stop trusting each other, making the outsiders the only trustworthy people who can help them face the town’s ancient demons.

Director Riley Cole going over quests with some of The Harvest cast members. 

Compare and contrast directing both shows. How is the experience similar and/or different for you?

I’d say I’ve done enough directing where I have my rehearsal plan down to a rhythm. Working on both of these shows has been very joyful, and I’m at the point now (in early November) where the world has come to life, the characters are engaging, the stories are touching. They’re different in that the story of The Harvest is a much more serious drama in which I have to devote a lot more time to understanding the stories to make sure they’re being told in a sensitive and specific way.

This show has been slightly challenging, as I’ve also been helping out Ashley and Jacob on the production side as an Associate Producer for this show, in addition to the directing work. I have to do a lot of code switching between the two roles!

How do you go about casting the actors? Are all company members?

For this show, we worked with a casting director, assistant, and assistant director throughout the casting process. We try to cast about half with people we know and half with people we’ve never met. We’re a growing company and community, so it’s very exciting to know I’ll always be working with new people.

Riley Cole reheases with Kale Hinthorn as Martha & Rena Bobbs as Abigail for Last Call Theatre's THE HARVEST.

Describe the rehearsal process since it must be difficult without audience members to play their part to determine the way the plot turns out.

The rehearsal process for one of these impressive shows (at least how I run it) is split into four phases. The first two are character work and staging, just like you’d expect from a traditional proscenium show. Since we will have 50+ quests and multiple endings, we have to rehearse and stage all of those, which is a lot of work! Throughout the first part of rehearsals, we also train new actors in interactive techniques since they are unfamiliar with our style of immersive heater. Then, to facilitate anything else that might happen as well as the sandbox format that makes up a majority of the show, we do a lot of long-form improv work. But you’re right - it’s almost impossible to rehearse the show fully without live play-testers that haven’t seen it before - which is why we make sure to source play-testers! To do that, we invite the cast and crew contacts to come for live playtests the last few weeks of rehearsals, offering a discounted ticket price for the fully-produced show in exchange for their willingness to work with us beforehand. It’s very important since the show just wouldn’t happen in the same way without a proper dress rehearsal.

Did you have an interest in witchcraft prior to directing The Harvest?

You got me! It is more-or-less the reason I agreed to direct the show. I’m a spiritual pagan, and so it’s very personal and exciting for me to see my faith depicted in some form. The backdrop of a witch hunt is a bit of a tense subject for a witch, but I also relate to the feeling of being afraid to confess your spiritual beliefs. Western witchcraft is largely a solitary practice for good reason. There may be a trendiness associated with some modern witchcraft, but people start to get uncomfortable when you dig holes in your yard or collect old teeth.

No doubt! Why did you decide to stage this production at the Count’s Den (pictured) in downtown Los Angeles?

The venue is beautiful! It’s a multiroom two-level building with an outdoor space, allowing us to have a larger cast and a variety of different playing spaces. The Immersive Arts Collective, who manage the Count’s Den, also have a non-profit liquor license, allowing liquor to be sold at our two 21+ Friday night shows.

Honestly, the most attractive part is making that connection with the Immersive Arts Collective and the Count’s Den in general. They’ve been very helpful and pleasant to work with on all levels.

How does the space differ from Three Clubs where The Collective was staged?

Three Clubs only has the two rooms for playing space and the bar is reserved for drink service. The Count’s Den has 5 rooms, an external space, and the small bar, which will be active for a couple of our shows and is right in the middle of the main space. Similar to Three Clubs, it has the lighting and sound setup that a normal performance venue has, but the tech booth is hidden out-of-sight much better at The Count’s Den.

What do you hope audience members will be talking about after experiencing The Harvest?
We have quite a bit of real magical practices in the show from different traditions, so I hope that audiences at least leave feeling they’ve learned something about a cultural heritage unfamiliar to them. More than anything, I deeply wish the audience leaves feeling that they made a deep connection with one or two new friends. Though the fate of the town and its residents might seem uncertain, the audience ideally feels like there is hope in the world, or at least that fear and isolation is never the answer to despair.

Cast members of Last Call Theatre's award-winning HFF23 immersvie production of THE COLLECTIVE. At the far right is Elena Scaringe-Peene, creative lead for THE HARVEST.

Tell me about the show’s creative lead, Elena Scaringe-Peene. What is her role in staging The Harvest and was she similarly involved with The Collective?

Elena is delightful and she’s a musician like I am. This is her first time as a creative lead and head writer for a show like this, and she’s been doing really good work. She pitched the show for the associate show slot in our season and asked me to direct it after understudying in Abandoned and playing Maria Costello in The Collective. After the casting sessions, she stepped into her role in the cast as Robin Corey, one of the townsfolk of Windsor Grove, and their characterization is really exciting. They’re such a creepy little guy! But since that point, she has been focusing on the demanding task of acting, the staging and production coordination of the show, which has been the focus of the production team and myself.

Tell me about your technical team for The Harvest, from the writers to the producers and designers. Have they all been involved with you since initially putting the show together?

When the show was just a pitch, I was one of the first few attached to the project along with the writers and costume designer. Elena used a similar structure that previous Last Call shows have used to write their shows, simulating a TV writer’s room. At that point I was also hired by Last Call as an associate producer for whichever show they picked for the associative show slot. That was the initial team until the show was officially picked by the Last Call company directors/executive producers Ashley Busenlener and Jacob Zorehkey. Then, the producers hired the Stage Managers, EDIA Coordinator, Scenic and Sound Designers, and finally I hired the Combat and Intimacy Coordinators. It was a bit of a process since there are so many roles to be filled.

Have you worked with all of them before?

I haven’t worked with all of them, but have with many of them as actors before. Our stage manager, Audra Magness, was a swing in The Collective and acted in The Showroom as well, for example. We’ve hired different designers for each project, with the exception of our award- winning company costume designer Kale Hinthorn who has worked on every Last Call show.

What’s your personal goal for working with Last Call?

Part of my personal goal in working with Last Call is to popularize Immersive and Interactive theater, especially since it’s harder and harder to find the time for movies and traditional theater when you can see everything at home. Immersive theater is something that isn’t the same watching from home and is a ton of fun by nature of your direct engagement with it. Because of this, I love casting people who haven’t experienced our style of immersive theater, and my goal, I’d like to think, is that the cast and audience members will leave with a new love of the art form.

How do you acquire new company members? Are auditions or Improv sessions held for those wanting to join?

We have a 2-3 day audition process for each show which can include scenes, improv, and basic audience interaction techniques. There isn’t a standing company or ensemble associated with Last Call, but we do have a virtual community where we stay connected with the people we’ve worked with before.  For all auditions we post to casting websites such as Backstage and advertise on our socials and mailing list for people to submit. Our team then reviews self-tape submissions before inviting people to our in-person auditions. For designers or other production roles, or just during our off seasons, interested people should reach out to us through socials, even if just to say hi! We love meeting new people!

Last Call Theatre's cast and production team members of THE HARVEST.

Does Last Call Theatre have a regular fan base who attend each production along with those just finding out about you?

Having been involved with all 5 shows, I’ve met fans who have seen all of our shows. A lot of those people are just immersive theater super fans that found Last Call through No Proscenium. There have been others that I met at the Fringe Festival who have continued to follow the company’s work, and that’s super exciting to me! I hope they are happy with the fantasy direction of The Harvest and The Collective in comparison to the more sci-fi shows we’ve worked on in the past.

Where do you see yourself and the company in five years?

I hope that I’m working with my friends to make bigger and more permanent immersive installations in L.A. and other locations. There’s a big overlap between the interactive sandbox shows we do with themed entertainment. I’d love if Last Call were looking at a physical location within five years so that the run of shows could be longer, perhaps featuring continuous stories from night to night. I’d also like to be teaching immersive acting for people interested in learning the art form. We’ve already started testing a classroom series this year, and I’m excited to be part of teaching them.

Anything else you would like to add?

I’ll be in person at most of The Harvest shows and I’d love to meet any new or old fans of immersive theater. The social aspect of the theater community is arguably the most appealing part of it, so wave at me if you see me sneaking around!

I’ll be sure to do that! 

Brit Baltazar rehearsing as Isaac awaits your participation in Last Call Theatre's immersive production of THE HARVEST.

The Harvest previews Saturday, December 2, 2023 at 8pm and runs Thursdays-Saturdays from December 7-16 at the Count’s Den at 1039 S Olive St, Los Angeles, CA 90015. Preview tickets are $40 with regular tickets starting at $50 and VIP tickets at $80. VIP tickets receive a specialized character background that directly links them to the town of Windsor Grove along with a unique character interaction and scene prior to show start. Tickets and more information on the show can be found at https://lastcalltheatre.ticketleap.com/the-harvest/

There will be two 21+ Adults Only performances on Fridays, December 8 and 15 where alcohol will be available for purchase. All proceeds from the bar will support the Immersive Art Collective, whose mission is to provide a safe space for expression, encourage healing, supply skills to foster careers in the arts industry, and provide FREE arts education to underserved communities & youth. Find them on Instagram and TikTok @lastcalltheatre and learn more at www.lastcalltheatre.com

All photos courtesy of Last Call Theatre

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