For some people, getting onstage and telling a personal story -- then having a troupe of actors play it out in front of them -- might sound like something out of a nightmare, akin to showing up at work without any clothes on.

And for others, it's a way to get in touch with the soul of a community.

Playback Memphis, a new theater company staging one of its improvisational performances tonight and Saturday, is part town hall meeting, part group therapy, and part entertainment.

"There's a lot of ritual to it," says executive director Virginia Murphy. "We use language and ritual to create a safe, contained environment where people can share personal stories. A lot of thought has been done in setting up the structure of an evening."

The company is a local offshoot of The Playback Theatre, started in the 1970s in upstate New York.

Founder Jonathan Fox had been in the Peace Corps and traveled to Tibet, where he noticed that theater was still a participatory, communal experience. In the West, firm boundaries still exist between the stage and the audience. He wanted to find a way to make the audience feel like they were part of the storytelling process.

The Playback Theatre concept became successful in a number of different settings, from schools to businesses. After Hurricane Katrina, one troupe went to New Orleans to give a forum to those who had been unable to express their anger, disappointment and loss. There are now more than 60 Playback troupes around the world, and the group even has a school, the Centre for Playback Theatre, in New York.

Murphy, a native Memphian, first encountered Playback theater in San Francisco. She found herself onstage relating a very personal story to a roomful of strangers.

"I was incredibly impacted by how good it felt, the insight it gave me into my life," she said. "I've seen how it can transform people. Basically, it's inviting people to speak their truths."

A typical performance begins with a "conductor" asking people to volunteer observations or experiences. The group of actors then try to capture the emotional gist of the experience.

Recently, an audience member mentioned that his wife had been mugged, and now he sees the mugger -- newly released from jail -- riding his bicycle through his neighborhood. The actors' short impressions of the event ranged from dismay to anger.

After a series of shorter pieces, willing audience members are invited to come onstage and tell longer anecdotes, which the actors then perform using various techniques.

"We use a lot of metaphor, a lot of embodied expression," Murphy said. "There's nothing more boring than a literal playback. We try to distill a story down to its essence. Is it a story about loss? Transformation? Bigger stories tend to emerge when you put them all together."

Murphy sees this type of theater as a way for Memphis to exorcise some of its old demons, from race to poverty to politics. The series of shows is called "Memphis Matters" and Murphy wants to focus on issues people are having with this community.

"Basically, you feel like you're in somebody's living room," she said. "It allows people who might be having a crisis or a hardship in their lives to be heard."

Playback Memphis' 'Memphis Matters'

Performances 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday at TheatreSouth, 1000 S. Cooper. Tickets are $15 general and $12 students and seniors. Call 264-0841.