The interactive Dungeons & Dragons-inspired stage show, The Twenty-Sided Tavern, currently captivating audiences in New York City, recently welcomed a very special guest adventurer.
Samantha Béart, the BAFTA-nominated voice behind the beloved tiefling Karlach in the smash-hit video game Baldur’s Gate 3, spent a week rolling dice and improvising alongside the show’s talented cast.
Béart, whose impressive resume also includes roles in games like Demon’s Souls and The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow, as well as audio dramas such as The Sandman and Torchwood, stepped into the unique, audience-driven world of the Tavern. We had the exciting opportunity to chat with Samantha about her time navigating this one-of-a-kind theatrical experience.
For the uninitiated, The Twenty-Sided Tavern isn’t your typical night at the theatre. Set in the iconic Forgotten Realms, the show transforms the audience into the “fourth player.” Using the browser-based Gamiotics software on their phones, attendees vote on crucial story decisions, dictating which of the 30+ characters appear, their paths, and their challenges.
With a core cast of five actors juggling this ever-shifting narrative, the show promises a unique adventure every night, filled with puzzles, combat, riddles, and plenty of laughter. As Geek Native discovered when we caught the show during its run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival back in 2022, audience participation goes beyond simple voting. Eager adventurers might even be called onstage for games of trivia, charades, or the legendary Fantasy Beer Pong.
Now, let’s hear from Samantha Béart herself about trading the digital realms of Faerûn for the live, unpredictable stage of The Twenty-Sided Tavern…
Samantha Béart as The Trickster on Twenty-Sided Tavern
Imagine you had to describe what The Twenty-Sided Tavern was to someone whose only experience of D&D was Baldur’s Gate 3. Where would you start?
The Twenty-Sided Tavern has the same sense of humour and FAFO energy as Baldur’s Gate 3. As gamers you not only get to choose our path but also interact with us via your device. Your cat-like reflexes got us out of a pickle many times via a multiclick game. It’s fun and silly and often profound, just like BG3; you’ll love it
Do you have a favourite memory from recent appearances at The Twenty-Sided Tavern?
It’s a tie between playing Tamberlaine the bard as David Bowie, and Katya the Tabaxi thief rolling a critical failure on a belly rub while trying to comfort the wizard and taking his fingers off instead.
Are show night Twenty-Sided adventures anything like your own friendly games of D&D?
Nothing like them at all, thankfully!
Are shows like Twenty-Sided Tavern and games like D&D helping to keep the “human” in “Arts & Humanities”?
I think an improvised show with live audience interaction like Twenty-Sided Tavern is one of the purest forms of collaborative storytelling around.
Looking to the future, what can your fans expect from you next?
A live UK tour of The Call of Cthulhu – with Mark Meer as DM – in May and June; lots of video games, currently under NDA…
Thank you!
