April & May 2018 College News

THEATRE Acting, Musical Theatre, Per formance and Production, Teacher Certif ication in Theatre, Technical Production, & Theatre FACULTY ACCOLADES Cassie Abate is choreographing and directing La Cage Aux Folles at Red House Arts Center in Syracuse, NY. Claire Canavan (Theatre), Amanda McCorkle (Dance), Holly Veselka (Art) and Gordon Jones (Music) co-produced Art in the Park, a one day multi- disciplinary event in Sewell Park featuring new works from students and faculty in the College of Fine Arts and Communication. Kate Glasheen was awarded the 2017 VSR (Voice & Speech Review) Rocco Dal Vera Graduate Research Award by the Voice & Speech Trainers Association (VASTA) for her article “Negotiating the Contrary Craft of the Triple-Threat.” This award is the highest honor for graduate research among the voice and speech community. Kate was also contracted as dialect coach for The Bridges of Madison County at The Public Theater San Antonio and Cry It Out by Theatre en Bloc in Austin. Eugene Lee played a pivotal part in August Wilson’s Two Trains Running at the Arena Stage in Washington, DC, through April 29. [1] The production is receiving rave reviews. Ramona Harper, reviewer for DC Metro Theater Arts, writes, “The entire cast of Two Trains Running is a top-flight ensemble of strong, seasoned actors who give dynamite performances of the first order.” She calls Eugene Lee’s portrayal of Memphis Lee “absolutely marvelous.” Sarah EC Maines displayed her lighting design for ZACHTheatre’s production of Tribes in a United States Institute for Theatre Technology’s Design Expo, a national juried exhibit of lighting, scenic, and costume designs. She also presented the workshop “Design South: Lighting” at Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) in Mobile, Alabama in collaboration with lighting designer Christian DeAngelis of Virginia Commonwealth University. Carlton Byrd and Eugene Lee in August Wilson’s Two Trains Running Photo by Nate Watters Austin Shakespeare’s Merry Wives of Windsor Chuck Ney’s Directing Shakespeare in America: Current Practices 18 | April & May | College News 1 2 3 Toby Minor , Babs George , Nick Lawson , and Linda Nenno opened Austin Shakespeare’s Merry Wives of Windsor on May 3, as part of Austin Shakespeare’s thirty- year tradition of Free Shakespeare in the Park. [2] Chuck Ney has received glowing reviews for his Directing Shakespeare in America: Current Practices . [3] Most recently, Voice and Speech Review described the study as “a valuable resource for anyone interested in how these well-known directors actually communicate their ideas with the other artists … to bring this wide-ranging theatrical practice into focus.” STUDENT ACCOLADES Noah Allen (BFA, Technical Production) is the United States Institute of Theatre Technology, Texas State, vice president. This year USITT TXST took 25 students to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to the annual USITT conference. Blane Barton (BFA Performance and Production 2017) is in his fourth month as a company management intern with Dodgers/New York working full-time with the company during Tony season. Trevor Berger (BFA – Musical Theatre) will be joining the company of Mamma Mia at the Maple Repertory Theatre in Macon, Missouri. Corey Bogue (BFA – Technical Production) will work with the Utah Shakespeare Festival this summer. Miriah D. Borden (MFA, Lighting Design) has been hired as one of the lighting designers for StageDoor Manor’s summer season. Madison Cagle (MFA, Costume Design) will be the hair and makeup intern at the Pittsburgh Festival Opera in Pittsburgh, PA. Annalise Caudle (MFA, Lighting Designer) will be assistant lighting designer and projection designer for Maine State Music Theatre’s summer season. Carly Conklin (MFA Directing 2018) recently accepted a visiting professor position at Oklahoma State University. Brian Corkum (BFA – Musical Theatre) has booked the Lexington Theatre Company’s season of Music Man and A Chorus Line . Neil Patrick Stewart directed Tales of the Lost Formicans , which played to sold-out audiences in the Mainstage Theatre in April. The scenic design was by faculty member Cheri Prough DeVol . The production featured work by graduate designers, Madison Cagle (MFA – Costume Design) and Andrew McIntyre (MFA – Lighting Design), as well as sound design by Nick Hart (BFA – Technical Production) and production stage management by Connor Feagin (BFA – Technical Production.) Choreography for the show was by Lynzy Lab , adjunct lecturer for the department. Undergraduate actors in the show were Kailey Hyman , Trevor Person , Jack Dunham , Kelsey Buckley , Matt Welborn , Will Wilkerson , Andres Coronado , Tito Yeverino , Stephen Steele , Daniel Aguilar , Rosa Armendariz , Emily Edwards , Lila Perlman , and Casey Glaude . TALES OF THE LOST FORMICANS College of Fine Arts and Communication | 19