Storytellers Family Theater at Parkview Event Room, Johnson-Springview Park

With an MFA in Dramatic Arts and an MS in Business Management & Leadership, this former Silicon Valley high-tech VP and critically acclaimed professional director/playwright also plays the role of Producing Artistic Director for Placer Repertory Theater. Previously, the artistic director for two professional theater companies in San Francisco, and founder/board president of an economic & workforce development nonprofit organization for Santa Cruz County, Forsyth’s performing arts background includes international tours as an actor/singer/dancer and director/playwright for national and international touring productions with world renowned performing artists, including Brenda Wong Aoki, and equity theater companies like the Dell’Arte Players. She instructed and directed at numerous educational institutions, including UC Davis, University of San Francisco and University of Minnesota. Projects on which Forsyth worked performed at regional and world-renowned venues such as the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, Dallas Theatre Center, San Diego Repertory Theater and famous venues in Europe, Asia, and South America, and received numerous awards, including Dramalogue Awards and Critics Circle Awards. While with Placer Rep, her projects won Broadway World Awards, the Gloria Burt Fellowship and Gold Country Media awards. Prior works on which she collaborated won numerous grants from the NEA, CAC and corporations. She is a member of the professional organizations: The Dramatists Guild, SDC Stage Directors & Choreographers, and The Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE).

Currently a Placer Repertory Theater Advisory Committee Member, Anne Merino was a Founding Board Member for Placer Repertory Theater who served from March 2020 through January 2023 as Board Secretary. Anne began her career dancing for notable companies such as American Ballet Theatre and the London Festival 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 Jim Belushi and later trained under Alan Rickman at the British American Drama Academy. As an actor, and former member of AEA, SAG/AFTRA, Ms. Merino performed with The Groundlings and Tim Robbins’ The Actors’ Gang. Currently, she is a member of the theatre department faculty at William Jessup University, where she teaches Dance. She also teaches Dance at a few studios in Placer County. As a writer, she recently won film festival awards for her screenplay, “Season for Wolves,” and received critical acclaim for her recently released novel, Hawkesmoor. Placer Repertory Theater is honored to include Anne Merino. AWARDS - The Vanguard Award for Choreography - 2021 American Screenwriters Conference – Official Selection - 2021 Sacramento Film Festival – Official Selection - 2021 Los Angeles Motion Picture Festival – Grand Jury Prize Platinum – Best Horror Screenplay “Spider Hall” - 2020 Los Angeles Motion Picture Festival – Grand Jury Prize Platinum – Best Drama Screenplay “A Season for Wolves” - 2020 Kids First! Film Festival – Official Selection for “Firebird” - 2020 Madras Independent Film Festival – Critics’ Choice Award “A Season for Wolves” - 2020 Paris Film Festival – Second Place “A Season for Wolves”