Transforming audiences from spectators into storytellers

Immersive, playable theatre experiences invite audiences to shape the narrative. By blending interactive storytelling, game-inspired mechanics, and embodied participation, I create experiences that linger in the heart and mind long after they end.

About

I’m Amber, an immersive experience designer specializing in playable and immersive theatre.
I craft audience-centered, experience-focused journeys designed to spark emotional shifts, inspire new mindsets, and motivate meaningful reflection. Whether creating theatrical-style escape rooms, tabletop RPGs, or live-action role-playing experiences, my goal is to build transformational adventures that linger long after they end.In addition to my creative work, I’m a Clinical Assistant Professor of Design in the Department of Theatre and affiliated faculty with the Game Studies & Design program at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. I teach courses on escape room design, tabletop role-playing game design, immersive storytelling, and experience design - helping students master audience-centered principles to shape their own memorable experiences.
Collaboration is at the heart of everything I do. I partner with creative teams to develop interactive and playable elements within existing or in-progress productions. Whether consulting on playable theatre layers or designing full-fledged immersive experiences, I help creators build emotionally resonant worlds where participants feel agency, connection, and personal meaning.When I’m not designing or teaching, I’m immersing myself in new projects and ideas, constantly seeking inspiration and learning to stay on the cutting edge of experience design.I hold a BFA in Design and Production from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and an MFA in Experience Design from Miami University,

Design Philosophy

Where interaction becomes transformation.

I specialize in designing immersive, playable theatre experiences where audiences shape the narrative and become active participants in the story. Whether creating theatrical puzzle rooms, tabletop role-playing games, or immersive whodunits, my goal is always to craft emotionally resonant, flow-state-inducing experiences that linger long after they end.Experience Design: The Foundation of Playable Theatre
At the heart of my work is experience design (XD)—the practice of intentionally shaping human interactions to evoke specific emotional, psychological, and behavioral responses. More than just usability or satisfaction, XD focuses on emotion, memory, meaning, and connection, transforming audiences from passive observers into active co-creators.* Sometimes, it’s about designing awe and wonder.* Other times, it’s about creating comfort, care, or catharsis.* Always, it’s about crafting moments that matter.

Designing for Impact
My work is guided by evidence-based experience design methods that consider:* Flow-state immersion: Creating challenges and participation models that keep audiences engaged and emotionally invested.* Emotional and behavioral outcomes: Designing with intention to elicit specific responses, from awe and joy to tension and empathy.* Audience-centered design: Prioritizing the participant’s journey - how they feel, what they remember, and what they take away.To support this work, I’ve developed frameworks and tools to support the design and evaluation audience participation in interactive and immersive performance.

Projects & Portfolio:

Portfolio of Interactive and
Playable Designs

Escape Rooms, Games, and Interactive Theatre

I Wish: A Theatrical Puzzle Room

A 90-minute interactive theatre/escape room experience inspired by Sondheim's Into the Woods that ran in April and May 2024 to sold-out audiences. This creative project was produced by Illinois Theatre in partnership with CU Adventures in Time and Space and UIUC's Fab Lab. It is devised, designed, and performed by UIUC BFA and MFA students, staff, and faculty.My role: Experience Designer
and Game Director

Project
"I Wish" is an innovative 90-minute interactive theatre and escape room experience inspired by Sondheim’s Into the Woods. Produced in collaboration with CU Adventures in Time and Space, Illinois Theatre, and UIUC's Fab Lab, this production brought together BFA and MFA students, faculty, and staff from across the campus and community. The primary objective was to create a collaborative, immersive experience that invited the audience to step into a world of fables, where they could interact with characters from beloved stories, solve puzzles, and work together to navigate a web of consequences, all within a time-sensitive quest.Development Process
The development of I Wish involved a unique integration of traditional theatre design with the game design process. From the initial stages, we explored how to blend these two approaches, starting with paper prototypes during the design phase. This evolved into higher-fidelity playtesting during rehearsals, and ultimately, full-scale playtesting within the performance space. While the process was iterative and faced its challenges, it provided valuable insights into creating interactive and immersive experiences. The collaboration across departments and the lessons learned from testing have paved the way for future works in this hybrid space.Storyline
Inspired by Into the Woods, I Wish casts the audience as storytellers, partnering with a Narrator to embark on a quest to retrieve magical beans from a whimsical fairy tale forest. Along the way, they encounter iconic characters such as Rapunzel's Prince, Cinderella, Milky White the Cow, a Giant, and a Witch. Each character offers their own challenges and alliances, and the audience must collaborate with them to achieve their ultimate goal, navigating twists and turns in this enchanted world of fables.Performances
I Wish ran from April 5-14, 2024, at CU Adventures in Time and Space, Urbana. The production was met with enthusiastic responses from participants, with many praising the innovative combination of immersive theatre and escape room elements. Some of the feedback included:“OH MY GOSH THAT WAS SO GOOD. Please tell everyone involved that they're amazing!”
“I loved that. That was hands down the most wonderful thing I've done this year, and quite possibly since I moved here!”One player celebrated the team's efforts:
“I’d like to add my own celebratory congratulations to this entire team! The work was stunningly connected and such a fun, interactive way to bring what we do to new experiences. So much to be proud of and to hold as a model for what artists can do in this world!”Others highlighted the unique experience:
“This is a very interesting experience. It is definitely a mixture of an escape room and a play, which is pretty fun. The set design is fantastic, the actors were great, and the story was a fun play on the musical Into the Woods.”
“What a magical experience! I drove 4 hours round trip to play this limited-time room and have no regrets! The set was beautiful and immersive, and the puzzles all fit in with the story/theme with lots of tech and no padlocks whatsoever.”Though some constructive feedback was shared:
“The puzzles and puzzle flow could have used a little work. Many of the puzzles were either too simple or too complicated with unclear objectives. That being said, it was definitely an enjoyable experience.”“The room has similar vibes to the wonderful Storykeeper at Locurio, but with a different story, more theatrics, and actor interaction the entire time.”

The Heist: A Theatrical Escape Room

A 60-minute, role-playing theatrical escape room centered on low-touch and human-interaction-based puzzles for safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. Produced by Illinois Theatre.My role: Experience Designer
and Game Director

Project
Produced as part of the UIUC Theatre Department’s 2020-2021 season, this project pushed the boundaries of blending theatre, escape rooms, and live-action role-playing (LARP). I designed the experience to focus on human interaction and communication as key obstacles and challenges, in addition to traditional “lock and key” puzzles. The four actors played dual roles—either as allies offering hints or as obstacles standing in the way of the players' goals.In response to the challenges posed by COVID-19, I eliminated the typical escape room mechanic of discovering keys and physical hints. Drawing inspiration from LARP, each player was assigned a unique character, complete with a set of tools that reflected their character’s skills and traits. To succeed, players had to determine when and how to use their tools, often requiring collaboration—combining knowledge and resources with other players to solve puzzles.Development Process
The development process was a fusion of traditional theatre design and game development. While the structure followed a theatrical design process, we integrated both virtual and in-person playtesting to refine the experience. Dress rehearsals served as playtesting sessions, followed by debriefs and time for adjustments based on feedback.Storyline
A team of expert thieves is hired by a mysterious benefactor to steal a valuable item from a secret storage facility. Initially, it seems like a simple snatch-and-grab—no challenge for these skilled professionals. But as the mission unfolds, they soon realize their new "partners" may not be what they seem.Performances
April 8-18, 2021 at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, UIUC

The 48: A Playwriting Festival Extravaganza

To create The 48, students, faculty, staff, and alumni collaborated from concept to performance of pieces of theatre over the course of two days. Produced by Illinois Theatre.My role: Artistic Director and Game Designer, developing gamified elements for participants of the playwriting process.

Posted!

A collaborative board game designed as part of the CUDO Plays 22-23 Board Game Competition. Awarded "Runner Up" in three categories: aesthetics, accessibility, and replay value.My role: Game Designer

Murder on Klein Island

A Zoom-based, role-playing
mystery game developed for 25 players to encourage socialization
and collaboration.My role: Game Designer

Thank you, Five!

A role-playing board game developed to teach stage management concepts for opera while building leadership and collaboration skills.My role: Game Designer

Crime & Coffee

A whodunit game that takes place inside of a functional crime-themed coffee house.My role: Experience Designer
& Game Designer

Student-Created Escape Room Designs in
THEA 402: "Designing Immersive Adventures: Escape Rooms" course

Lab 217 - Molecules Unlocked - 2023

A 40-minute puzzle room experience developed by students in THEA 591: "Designing Immersive Adventures" for UIUC's Molecule Maker Lab Institute. This escape room is currently on the touring the country - it's being played by educators, students, and scientists at chemistry-focused conferences.Soon, it will be permanently installed at UIUC's Siebel Center for Computer Science.

Night(mare) at the Museum - 2022

A 3-act, narrative puzzle room experience developed for families to engage with the exhibits within the Museum of the Grand Prairie in Mahomet, IL.

The Haunting of
Krannert Manor - 2021

A 45-minute puzzle room/immersive theatre experience for the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts.

Murder at Space School - 2020

A Zoom-based puzzle room experience developed for University High School's library program.

Ghoul of the Operetta - 2019

A 20-minute theatre-themed escape room developed for high school outreach by Theatre BFA students and Informatics students. Presented both at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts and the Illinois High School
Theatre Festival

Experience Design & Research

What is Experience Design (XD)?"Experience is a person’s perception of an interaction. The interaction could be internal or external, with the environment or with other people, and solo or shared. Experiences happen all of the time and often with very little intention. Experience Design is more than designing for usability and satisfaction."
— Shannon E. Thomas, The Practical Guide to Experience DesignExperience Design (XD) is the intentional creation of moments that evoke emotion, build connection, and leave a lasting impression. It goes beyond usability; it’s about designing for motivation, memory, and meaning. Whether the goal is to spark awe and wonder or offer comfort and care, XD uses psychology, interaction models, and creative design to shape how people feel and engage

How Experience Design Enhances Playable and Immersive TheatreIn playable and immersive theatre, experience design shapes how audiences engage with the story. By integrating game-inspired mechanics, embodied participation, and interactive storytelling, XD transforms audiences from passive spectators into active storytellers.I use evidence-based experience design methods to craft interactions that are:* Meaningful: Encouraging emotional connection and personal reflection.* Immersive: Drawing participants into the world with sensory-rich, believable environments.* Memorable: Leaving a lasting impact through agency and transformational experiences.

My Experience Design Research & PracticeMy research focuses on audience-centered design models for playable and immersive theatre. I developed an Audience Interaction Taxonomy for Playable Theatre, which serves as a foundation for designing and evaluating interactive performance.
By using evidence-based methods when crafting audience interactions, I aim to:* Deepen emotional impact and understanding of the story through intentional interaction design.* Equip theatre artists with tools to create transformative immersive audience experiences.* Expand the language and methodology for designing playable performance.

Design Research

My design research examines interactive experiences including games, playable performance, and immersive theatre through an experience design lens.

Current

My current research is aimed at transforming playable performance through the development of audience interaction models with the goal of enhancing psychological engagement and narrative understanding.The Illinois Theatre production for which I was the Game Director and Experience Design, "I Wish: A Theatrical Escape Room," integrated an audience interaction model based on theories and methodologies found in experience design and game design. This model successfully reduced cognitive load by strategically sequencing interactions, encouraging flow state and enhancing understanding of the story.

Other Research Projects

Speaking

XR for Learning and Instruction - UIUC's IMMERSE x College of Education Symposium
March 28, 2025
Presentation - "Structuring Interaction to Support Engagement and Understanding"Playful by Design International Conference
November 7-8, 2024
Presentation - "Developing Human-Centered Game Design Challenges for the Classroom"Reimagining the Classroom Symposium
October 9, 2024Playful by Design Symposium
November 2-3, 2023
Presentation - "Encouraging Multidisciplinary Student Collaboration with Playable Performance"UIUC Web Con 2023
April 12-14, 2023
Keynote - "Building Community Through the Power of Play"Illinois High School Theatre Festival
January 2023, 2024, 2025
Workshop - "Designing Immersive Adventures: Playable Performance"

Teaching at UIUC

I teach courses in Theatre and Game Studies & Design, while also guest lecturing in a variety of other programs. My teaching focuses on playable performance, human-centered design, stage management, and game design.

Game Design:GSD 390 - Theatrical Tabletop RPG Design
In this project-based course, students utilize immersive storytelling and transmedia play techniques to transform scenes from iconic plays and musicals into engaging, one-shot TTRPG experiences.THEA 402 - Designing Immersive Adventures: Escape Rooms
A practical course where students use theatrical techniques and approaches to create a concept, narrative, design, and script for an escape room. They then set-up, playtest, and run the realized room as a final class project.

Design Thinking:Introduction to Human-Centered Design
An introductory workshop that includes the process and mindsets related to human-centered design.Ideation Boot Camp
A practical and interactive workshop that takes learners through the ideations process, including brainstorming, gathering feedback, narrowing ideas, and planning to prototype.

Theatre:THEA 359 - Professional Stage Management
A topic-based course where I have taught about outreach projects, critical and creative thinking, Chicago theatre, and new technology in stage managementTHEA 559 - Advanced Topics in Stage Management
This topic-based course allows Stage Management MFA students to explore concepts related to their craft more deeply. Topics I have taught include new technology in stage management and work/life balance as a theatre professional.THEA 406 - Opera and Dance Stage Management
I teach the opera portion of this course, including reading music, opera appreciation, opera-related paperwork, and opera company structure.THEA 450 - Stage Management Seminar