Meet Your Instructors/directors
Tony Rielage
Tony is Theatre Momentum's Artistic Director and Head Instructor. He has been performing, directing, and producing improv theatre since 1992, with the past 15 years focused entirely on dramatic/grounded improv. He has trained at iO Theater, the Annoyance Theatre, and the Playground Theater, and founded TM’s predecessor workshop, Workshop-in-Progress. His training style centers around an outside-in approach focused on neurology and psychology, leading to improv about vulnerable human beings acting naturally, bravely, and honestly.
Jackie Sestak
Jackie Sestak is excited to be sharing the Theatre Momentum style; a form of improv where players can take their time and create a world based in reality. She’s performed in several Theatre Momentum shows including Elements, Porch Play, Lies, Damned Lies, & Statistics, Circle Place, and the Golden Age. Jackie began studying with the Neo-Futurists, then dove into performance art which led to studying improv at The Second City, Annoyance Theatre, and ComedySportz. Jackie was a teaching artist for Room2Improv, where she worked with veterans and students emphasizing the value of "Yes, and". Jackie is looking forward to working with you!
Micky Govern
Micky Govern is an actor, writer, and director. He studied the Meisner Technique in programs both in New York and Los Angeles. He wrote and directed the award-winning short film “With Nora” which screened at several film festivals, including the Festival of Cinema NYC, The Woman's Comedy Festival Chicago, the Newark Short Film Awards, and the Boden International Film Festival in Sweden. He’s appeared in many Theatre Momentum shows, including “Porch Play”, “Scarred for Life”, and “Mixtape” and “Significant Moment in the Life of…”. His improv directing credits include “Status” for TM and “One Thousand Words” for The Bridge Theater-Improv. He’s appeared in independent films and on stage in New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago, and worked as a puppeteer in Los Angeles.
Joe Sergio
Joe Sergio has been with Theatre Momentum since 2017. Chicago Credits; Romeo & Juliet-Shakespeare All-Stars, El Stories: Holiday Train-Waltzing Mechanics, Twelfth Night, Hamlet-Midsommer Flight. Regional Credits; HAIR, Sweeney Todd, A Funny Thing…Forum-Venice Theatre, As You Like It, Henry IV, Part 1-Long Island Shakespeare Festival.