January February 2021 College News

“Brian Regan: On The Rocks” for Netflix featuring lighting design by Matt Ford, Lori Merkle, and their crew Alumna Betsey Phillip s in her recurring role on Magnum PI Lamar Sanchez, Performance and Production almnus, Fashion Artist, Motivational Speaker, and Influencer 20 | January & February | College News 4 5 6 Musical Theatre students Nick Eibler , Emma Hearn , Juliette Redden , Rachel Webb , Kyra Belle Johnson , Bella Coppola , Preston Perez , Adriana Scalice , Lexi Ganong , and Payton Bioletto performed in “JOY! A holiday Cabaret benefitting the Georgia Stand Up for the Georgia Senate Runoff” over the winter holiday. The cabaret was produced by B.F.A. Acting alumni Kaycee Swierce and B.F.A. Musical Theatre student Jeremiah Porter . Matt Ford ’92 and Lori Merkle ’94 are grateful that their entertainment lighting company has continued to be involved with television, video and live special event production during these very trying times. In 2020, along with their ongoing projects “Penn&Teller: Fool Us” for the CW, “The Wonderful World of Disney Magical Holiday Celebration” for ABC and “Disney Parks Magical Christmas Celebration" for ABC, they and their crew were the lighting design teams on “Brian Regan: On The Rocks” for Netflix [ 1 ] , “Jeff Dunham's Last-Minute Pandemic Holiday Special” for Comedy Central, “London Hughes - To Catch a D*ck” for Netflix and a Nate Bargatze comedy special for Netflix. Matt, Lori and their team look forward to new projects on the horizon in 2021. Musical Theatre alumni Tim Heller led a Voiceover masterclass with current bobcats on February 12th. Emma Lenderman, Musical Theatre alumni, was featured in the New York Times alongside the rest of her cast of The Wolves at the Philadelphia Theatre Company. The article was a part of the esteemed Critic’s Notebook Review. Susannah Joy Mikulin is now the Executive Director for the Fayette Community Foundation. Betsey Phillips has a recurring role on Magnum PI . [ 2 ] Musical Theatre alumni Anna Rose is hosting a podcast which streams on apple podcasts, Spotify, and all major streaming services called “I’m F*cking Hot.” The podcast is a conversational podcast about dismantling diet culture and celebrating body inclusivity. Musical Theatre alumni Grayson Samuels released his first single, a cover of Modern English’s “I melt with you.” The song is a teaser for his EP Come Around releasing on February 5th on Spotify, Apple Music, and all other major streaming services. Joel Britt (B.F.A. Lighting, 2014) earned his M.F.A. degree in Theatre Design from UCSD in 2018. He assisted Tony Award-winner Howell Binkley on the Donna Summer Musical (pictured) for its regional premiere, on Broadway, and on the National tour. He also assisted Howell on national tours of Come From Away , Hamilton , and is currently putting together the 1st national tour of Ain’t Too Proud . Joel also assisted on the national tour of The Band's Visi t. At the regional level he has worked at La Jolla Playhouse , The Old Globe , and the L.A. Opera . While theatres are closed, he’s been working on small films. #ALUMNISPOTLIGHT College of Fine Arts and Communication | 21 Lamar Sanchez (Performance and Production 2016) a.k.a. Legend Already Made is a Fashion Artist, Motivational Speaker, and Influencer. [ 3] He recently shot a video for the E3 Alliance, and he will be featured on a show called Who Wore What on BET. Musical Theatre Alumni Anna Uzele was in “Elegies for Angels, Punks, and Raging Queens” on World Aids Day, Tuesday, December 1st. The virtual production featured Anna and a star-studded cast of 51 performers, including Broadway and TV veterans Titus Burgess, Andrew Barth Feldman, Adam Lambert. The proceeds went to benefiting Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights AIDS. M.F.A. Dramatic Writing alumni Audrey Webb’s one hour TV Drama Pilot “Dead Name” was named a quarterfinalist in the 2021 CineStory TV Retreat & Fellowship Competition. M.F.A. Dramatic Writing alumni TJ Young’s play No. 6 started rehearsal at Indiana Repertory Theatre February 6th. TJ was also featured in “Where is Your Art Heart?” a conversation with, and by, and for Pittsburgh Theatre artists. TJ’s play The Inseparables went up via zoom as part of the Pittsburgh Public Theatre’s PPTPlayTime in late January. DEPARTMENT ACCOLADES Texas State’s APO chapter hosted their Rogues and Renegades 24 hour play fest February 5th and 6th led by APO President Kathleen Dobrott. Four teams participated with four shows crafted over-night. The B.F.A. Acting Program congratulates current senior Lila Perlman for making it to the NYU M.F.A. Film program's callback phase. We also commend alum Nick Ortiz for making final callbacks for the M.F.A. Acting program at The University of California at San Diego (one of the top three graduate acting programs in the country) and alum Emily Absher for making the final callbacks for The University of Southern California M.F.A. Acting program (top 10 M.F.A. programs in the country). We work diligently with current and former students to identify the best M.F.A. programs for them. We then assist in material choice and rehearsal. We are proud of our graduates who have been accepted to top M.F.A. acting programs like Yale, UCSD, and Penn State, with full-ride scholarships.