🗣 Locals who need to know: meet the founders of the interactive theater company RealTime Interventions

Thanks for talking to The Incline! Tell our readers a little bit about real-time interventions.

Thanks for the question! We are a performance company that creates original theatrical impressions and public events about real people and real places. Much of our work is done by the community, which means we create plays for different communities in Pittsburgh and beyond. We created theatrical impressions Afghan refugee women, Childcare providers in Pittsburgh working during COVID, residents of Braddock, Pennsylvania and residents of Beirut, Lebanon. For each project we collaborate with a wide range of arts and community organizations, with City of Asylum office For GoodPGH to refugee resettlement agencies in district organizations. With each show we gather people from different walks of life to tell stories that are important to them. Our goal is to create compelling, sophisticated theater, helping viewers feel more connected to each other and to people or groups that they may have felt differently than in the past. That is why our slogan is “Real people. Real stories. Real time. “

What are your roles in the organization?

Rusty and I are the founders and co-artistic leaders. We do everything from researching and writing shows to directing and producing. “Production” in our case can mean anything from finding children for Afghan refugees, to finding the best female rock drummer in Pittsburgh, to delivering boxes of art objects created by Pittsburgh producers in Beirut, Lebanon during humanitarian crisis … it’s always an adventure!

What are your future shows and events?

Our new series “People of Pittsburgh” will open on April 7th City TheaterHamburg studio! The People of Pittsburgh is a series of theatrical portraits of extraordinary, ordinary Pittsburgh residents. These are not “famous in Pittsburgh” people; these are ordinary people we’ve met and find exciting here at ‘Burgh, and in 2023 we’ll open nominations for‘ People of Pittsburgh ’to the public! The shows are created in collaboration with artists working in a variety of environments. Our first transfer in the series »The People of Pittsburgh: The Alchemist of Sharpsburg”About Kandra, a practicing Hindu who has listened to black metal throughout his life, a gamer and philosopher with roots of several generations in Sharpsburg. Grow Thelin and Ceramist Emanuel “Manu” Wambach created this one, and like Candra, they’re gamers for life. So the show is also a game that viewers can play to unlock stories from Kandra’s life – and get one of Manu’s handmade gameplay details to take home.

Other than your work with RealTime Interventions, what are you busy with?

Moths: I love reading about everything under the sun; now i am reading a farmer’s almanac and the story of witches in pennsylvania. I also love to cook (I’m one of those people who rarely use recipes with alternating triumphant and sad results).

Rusty: I’m a full game nerd, so I often play games or read the rules of the game and dream of running this perfect gaming session. The rest of the time I study any topic that could be the topic of our next show!

Where can we find you and where in ‘Burg’?

The game at the Pittsburgh restaurant is very relevant, so we often visit the new diner in an area where we have not been. We also love to enjoy the beautiful parks and greenery of Pittsburgh, so when the weather is good, you can see us wandering through Frick Park, deeply discussing any new brilliant idea we are now obsessed with.

How can our readers support the intervention in real time?

We have been named the best theater troupe in the city that no one has heard of, so we look forward to new faces in our audience! Now that we get back to the live performances on April 7, come and see what the noise is about. We also count on donations and volunteer partners to do what we do – support us on our website (realtimeinterventions.org) or becoming a patron on Patreon!

Are you interested in being represented and want to share your own class project in ‘Burgh? Send an email to [email protected] with the topic “Locals who need to know 2022” and you can see yourself in a future newsletter.