Theatre Staff & Board
Our Staff
Naomi McDougall Jones
EXECUTIVE / Artistic Director
Naomi McDougall Jones previously served as the Artistic Director for Theater Masters - a New York City and Aspen, Colorado-based company dedicated to nurturing, developing, and producing the work of the next generation of American playwrights.
Among other things, she oversaw the growth of The National MFA Playwrights Festival, each year producing the work of the top 10 playwrights out of the top national MFA programs, jumpstarting the early careers of writers who have gone on to win Obie’s, Tony’s, Emmy’s, and a Pulitzer.
She has written, acted in, and produced two award-winning feature films. The first, Imagine I’m Beautiful (2014), collected 12 awards on the film festival circuit before receiving a theatrical and digital distribution deal and is now available on AmazonPrime. Her second feature, Bite Me (2019), was released via a paradigm-shifting 3 month, 51 screening, 40 city Joyful Vampire Tour of America that took the country by storm, and is now available on iTunes, GooglePlay, and Amazon. She is currently at work on her next two feature films: Hammond Castle, an adult fairytale for which she received the honor of being the first artist in residence at the final home of Ernest Hemingway in Sun Valley, Idaho, and The Control Room, a psycho-sexual thriller co-written with Christian Coulson.
Naomi is an advocate and thought leader for bringing gender parity to cinema. Her writing on this has appeared in The Atlantic, Ms. Magazine, and Salon.com, and she gave a virally sensational TEDTalk, What it’s Like to Be a Woman in Hollywood, which has now been viewed over 1 million times and can be seen on TED.com. Naomi’s first book, The Wrong Kind of Women: Inside Our Revolution to Dismantle the Gods of Hollywood, debuted as a #1 Amazon bestseller and received an electric critical response, with The Christian Science Monitor calling it, “...an outpouring of passion that will change the ways in which movies are seen,” and is now available wherever books are sold. Naomi is currently at work on her second book, Vivisection of a White Woman (by the Ghost of Ernest Hemingway and a Whole Host of Ancestors).
She is a Founder of The 51 Fund, dedicated to financing films by women. Their films Cusp and Shayda both premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and won a Special Jury Prize and the Audience Award respectively.
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.
Our Board of directors
president
Claudia McCain
Claudia has been a resident of the Wood River Valley since 1979. Throughout her life, she has advocated for the arts. She co-owned and operated River Run Gallery from 1985 -1997. Claudia administrates her personal business investments, as well owning and managing her own, in addition to her family’s properties. She served on the board of the Sun Valley Gallery Association helping to create their bylaws. From 1991 – 1994 she served on the board of the Sun Valley/Ketchum Chamber of Commerce and was President from 1993-1994. In 1991 she aided in establishing The Wood River Arts Alliance (the arts council for the WRV), acting as a board member, and frequently as President, for 21 years, and along with Hilarie Neely, continues to organize meetings for the entire arts community. In 1997 she was voted Arts Advocate of the Year by the Sun Valley/Ketchum Chamber. She was a board member of The New Theatre Company and the Sun Valley Repertory Company. Claudia was a founder and board President of the Ketchum Arts Commission from 2008-2015 and continues to serve as a board member today. From 2017 – 2019 she served on the Vestry of St. Thomas Episcopal Church. Presently she serves on the Friedman Airport Arts Committee. Claudia is a proud member of Actors Equity Association; for over 40 years, she has been well known to local audiences for her acting and directing.
vice 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
Gwynn August
Gwynn has supported theatre during the thirty years she has lived part time in the Wood River Valley. After earning a BFA in theatre at Va. Commonwealth University, she went to graduate school at the University of Colorado, took classes at ACT in San Francisco and became an educator by profession, having taught speech and drama at Piedmont High School for fifteen years, directing and presenting numerous plays each year. A former supporter of Company of Fools, she is honored to serve as a board member to help develop TLTC and ensure quality live theatre in our community.
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
Jackie Cole
Jackie joined the TLTC Board in the spring of 2021. She is currently the Branch Service Manager at Zions Bank’s Ketchum Branch.
While Jackie’s BA is in Creative Writing, most of her practical experience has been in business and management. She was successful as a manager at an early age at The Sawtooth Hotel & Restaurant in Stanley (owned by her family at the time). Then eventually, she moved to Alaska Airlines where she quickly worked into a position as a corporate trainer in their reservation centers. But mountains were calling, and she made it a priority to move back to this area, and found an opportunity in finance, starting as a teller, but quickly moving on to private banking and lending, then into management. While this career path has given her experience in client service, underwriting, lending, compliance, and management, for Jackie, the most fulfilling aspect of her 17 years in banking has been to leverage her acumen as a financial liaison for a number of non-profit organizations in the Wood River Valley. Her current position offers her the opportunity to utilize all of these skills, and she looks forward to a long career at Zions Bank. In addition to her varied work experience, she has found time over the years to work as a technical artist with Company of Fools, she serves on two non-profit boards (including TLTC) and has volunteered many hours with the Ketchum Arts Commission, the Sun Valley Jazz Festival, Sun Valley Museum of Art, and the Sun Valley Music Festival.
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.
Member
Sheila Summers
Sheila is an Associate Real Estate Broker with over 30 years of service in Blaine County. Along with real estate Sheila has a long history in Property Management in Idaho and out of state.
Sheila is one of three founders of Animal Hospice Compassionate Crossings which is a non-profit organization with an online presence since opening in 2003. She was also an original Company of Fools Board member and served on their board for 15 years.
Sheila earned an Associate in Arts degree and is continually inspired by art in any form.