By Ben Fulton

The Salt Lake Tribune

First Published Mar 14 2012 03:04 pm • Last Updated Mar 14 2012 03:04 pm

Similar to Emile Zola’s Germinal, John Sayles’ "Matewan" and Elia Kazan’s "On the Waterfront," "The Cradle Will Rock" is a classic of working-class drama and literature. A classic, except for the fact that some people still know nothing about it.

Marc Blitzstein’s 1937 story of Larry Foreman’s attempts to unionize workers in "Steeltown, USA" in opposition to Mr. Mister sounds almost cartoonish in its outline, but impressed Orson Welles so much that he directed it as part of the Federal Theatre Project’s series of works that began as a program of the Works Progress Administration to employ unemployed artists, actors and theater writers during the Depression. The WPA, in turn, was so alarmed by unabashed political message behind Blitzstein’s drama that they tried to shut it down. Weber State University’s department of performing arts has selected "The Cradle Will Rock" both for its superlative qualities that stand alone, matched with its current relevance to the Occupy movement.

Trent Cox, director of this production, stated in press materials that the hand of German dramatist Bertolt Brecht guided his hand. "Ninety percent of the show is either sung or has musical underscoring—a great challenge," Cox notes.

‘The Cradle Will Rock’
When » March 23-31, 7:30 p.m. with 2 p.m. matinee March 31.
Where » Eccles Theater at Val A. Browning Center for the Arts, Weber State University, 3848 Harrison Blvd, Ogden
Tickets » $8-$11. Call 1-800-WSU-TIKS or visit www.weberstatetickets.com for more information. 

Original Article can be found here.

OGDEN, Utah – Weber State University music professor Yu-Jane Yang has been named the 2012 John S. Hinckley Fellow, while WSU’s International Economics program is the 2012 Exemplary Collaboration Award winner.

Yang, an accomplished pianist who has performed in concert on three continents, joined the WSU music faculty in 1992. Known for her ability to train award-winning performers, she not only has grown WSU’s Piano Program, she has elevated its renown on the national and international stage.

That heightened awareness has helped Yang successfully recruit piano students from around the world to Weber State, in some cases eschewing famed conservatories like Julliard and Oberlin in favor of WSU. Under her tutelage, these young pianists have gone on to win prestigious competitions at the national and international level.

Yang is the author of numerous articles on piano teaching published in leading piano pedagogy journals. She is a sought-after teacher of both piano workshops and master classes as well as a judge of national and international piano competitions.

Yang was one of three national winners of the 1991 distinguished D.H. Baldwin Fellowship for Teaching Excellence in Piano. She received WSU’s Lowe Innovative Teaching Award in 2000 and was honored by the Utah Symphony Ballet Association with the Women in the Arts Award in 2008.

In addition, Yang was chosen to receive the Utah Music Teachers Association’s highest honor in 2010, the UMTA Legacy Award, and in 2011, the Music Teachers National Association named her a Foundation Fellow.

Yang, who is the 2010-12 Endowed Scholar/Artist in the Telitha E. Lindquist College of Arts & Humanities, spearheaded the Steinway Project at WSU. She worked to attain the prestigious “Steinway School” designation, which the university received in 2011. She was also named a WSU Presidential Distinguished Professor in 2011.

“Professor Yang’s superior teaching skills have been acknowledged through a stellar record of student evaluations, and her reputation as a teacher able to combine high – indeed, world class – expectations with a comfortable yet rigorous classroom atmosphere,” wrote a colleague in nominating her for the Hinckley Award. “Her achievements have gained WSU a truly international reputation and made her a tireless advocate for our institution.”

Since 1991, the Hinckley Award has been bestowed upon a member of the WSU faculty who has excelled in teaching, scholarship and service. The award is named in honor of Ogden businessman and WSU supporter John S. Hinckley, who died in 1990.

The university’s International Economics (IE) program received the 2012 Exemplary Collaboration Award, in recognition of the teamwork demonstrated during the implementation and later expansion of the program.

Building on an existing international faculty exchange program, the John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics organized a partnership with Shanghai Normal University (SNU) in 2008, making it easier for Chinese students to travel to Ogden and earn a bachelor's degree in international economics.

WSU’s Department of Economics worked with SNU to develop a “two plus two curriculum,” where students take courses in Shanghai during their freshman and sophomore years and in Ogden during their junior and senior years. They complete the same courses at WSU required of any other international economics major. The program recently expanded to include students from Korea’s Woongji Accounting and Tax College.

As of fall 2011, 83 Chinese and Korean students were taking classes through the International Economics program at WSU. Twenty-one students from SNU have graduated from the program, and the first student from Woongji will graduate this spring.

 “Creating this program would have been impossible without the support and dedication of a wide variety of WSU personnel,” said Jeff Steagall, dean of the Goddard School.

Those involved in the program include the faculty and staff of the Goddard School, especially economics professor and associate dean Cliff Nowell, economics chair Doris Geide-Stevenson, and the economics department. Also taking part were professors from the Telitha E. Lindquist College of Arts & Humanities, the College of Applied Science & Technology, and the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences, as well as staff from Continuing Education, the International Student Center, and the Admissions Office.

The university will formerly recognize the recipients of both awards at a luncheon on March 20.

Visit weber.edu/wsutoday for more news about Weber State University.

By Briana Drandakis,
the Signpost 

The story of a two-faced hustler took center stage in the Browning Center’s Allred Theater last Friday as Weber State University’s theater department debuted its spring show, Tartuffe.

“Tartuffe is the name of the main character, and for a long time it was actually synonymous with a con man,” said Jennifer A. Kokai, the director of the show.

Kokai, a new theater professor at WSU this year, was given the play to direct unexpectedly from another professor. She took the show, a classic French comedy written by Moliere, and gave it a southern twist by turning it into a post-Civil War medicine show.

“What you would have is people would pull into town in a wagon, and they’d do all kinds of different entertainment and singing and dancing,” Kokai said. “They would do a free show and try to sell people patent medicines.”

The idea sprung from a joke about setting the Tartuffe show in a wagon. When the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival went on several weeks ago on campus, it had crossed into the cast’s rehearsal schedule, making them unable to have a large set. After Kokai had aligned the theme of a medicine show with the Tartuffe characters, a southern dialect was adapted into the original plot line, and the show was created.

They also added live music and dancing from the period in-between and passed out popcorn and their own medicine brand, named Draught of Dionysus, to the audience before and after the shows.

“That’s kind of what we’re playing with,” Kokai said. “We’re imagining that the actors are coming to town with the goal of selling you medicine, and they’re doing Tartuffe as a way of bringing you in to sell them to you.”

When rich gentleman Orgon takes in Tartuffe, a slick swindler wearing the mask of a pious beggar, he’s blinded by the man’s charms while his entire family is shaken by Tartuffe’s scheming ways. Orgon promises to wed his daughter Marianne to Tartuffe, even after she’s already been promised to the youth Valere, in order for divine blessings to fall on his household. Quite the opposite happens as Tartuffe makes advances toward Orgon’s wife behind his back and plans to blackmail him out of his house.

“It’s about getting swindled and false appearances I guess, and that’s something we’ve all dealt with in our lives,” said B.J. Whimpey, a WSU theater major senior who played the lead of Tartuffe. “Someone acts one way to your face, but behind your back, they’re completely different, and that’s basically what Tartuffe is.”

Whimpey enjoyed working with Kokai and her new vision for Tartuffe. He said that she let the cast create its own humorous details naturally as it coincided with her overall vision.

“Every single person brings something different to this show, and every single person is dedicated,” Whimpey said. “Every time everyone’s on stage, I’m just wowed by the talent in our department and how people change and grow and become better. I’m proud of every single person that’s cast, and I’d love to work with them one hundred times again.”

The show also featured student talent behind the scenes, including another WSU senior, Sean Bishop, who starred in last semester’s big show, Xanadu, but acted this semester as the Tartuffe’s main costume designer.

“I was going to graduate last year, and doing Tartuffe was one of the things that kept me here,” Bishop said.

Bishop stayed for an extra fifth year after being offered to costume the show. He said he believes it was challenging keeping to the director’s vision and also finding a way of incorporating himself and everyone else into the collaborative process.

“It’s been good for me to do this and stay because it’s given me confidence to know that I can do this,” Bishop said.

Bishop said that this was the first show with a specific period he has attempted to costume.

“I’ve been looking at some opportunities, and I feel a year ago I probably wouldn’t have been ready to do that,” Bishop said, “but I look at some shows that are coming up in the next year that will be out in the community, and I feel confident enough to apply for those jobs.”

Audience members enjoyed the southern adaptation to the classic French humor.

“I’ve read (the play), so I thought it was a really cool interpretation since it’s (originally) in French,” said Maria Leon, a WSU student who attended the show opening. “It’s kind of relate-able to see people who are deceived pretty easily, and it opens people’s eyes to con artists and televangelists and what not.”

The show will be running March 2, 3, 6-10, at 7:30 p.m. with also a 2:00 p.m. matinee on March 10. Tickets are $11, or $8 for WSU students at all shows. They are available in advance at Dee Events Center Tickets, 1-800-WSU-TIKS, weberstatetickets.com or at the door beginning one hour before the performance.

“Right now we’re in an election period where people are talking about who they are and what they stand for, but we are very cynical about our politicians,” Kokai said. “So the idea that there are people out there like Tartuffe who promise us great things, but they might be trying to fool us — that’s something we’re concerned about and can relate to.”

The original article can be found here.

When Tyler Hess and Robbie Speelman started the Drumline Club at Weber State University six years ago, they never dreamed that by 2012 the group that began as the local “whipping boy” would be ranked No. 1 in the nation.

However, that’s exactly what happened at the WGI Regional Championship in Corona, Calif., last Saturday, where the indoor percussion group swept first place with a score of 88.8 out of 100, currently the highest score in the nation.

This is the first year that the WSU’s 31-member ensemble has qualified to compete in the Championship. The club joined 23 other groups competing before a panel of judges for the chance to go to the World Championships next year.

The group performed its six and a half minute show several times throughout the competition. At the end of the night, the ensemble was stunned to see that its final score was five points higher than the second-place score and four points higher than last year’s champion.

“When we first got here, I felt like maybe we’ll do okay,” Speelman said. “I was pretty nervous because I’d never been to a show like this. It was the biggest show I’d ever seen, and I’ve been doing this for a long time. We saw some of the other drum lines, and they seemed to be doing really well. After our final performance, I felt like it wasn’t as good as we could’ve made it, and then I heard the score, and I was really, really taken aback. I had no idea we were going to do that well especially for our first time ever being in a regional.”

The victory on Saturday has been a long time coming, Hess said, and is the result of dedicated staff and performers and a rigorous training regimen.  All 31 members of the team are required to do at least 30 minutes of cardio exercise every day in addition to regular rehearsals for five hours every Friday and all day every Saturday.

“It takes a lot of endurance,” Hess said, “and getting 31 people to push themselves to the limits in order to win, that was a challenge.  But it was absolutely worth it.”

The group’s show “Slow Me Down” portrayed how fast-paced life is and the need to slow down. It was a perfect fit for the ensemble, Hess said.

“We’ve been kinda pushing the ensemble for 3-4 years to get better every year and things were just getting so serious that when we saw this show about taking a minute to look around and breathe it seemed to fit our group perfectly.  That was an attitude that we decided we wanted to embrace and give to our performers.  So in our show you’ll see us perform and do visual and musical things that portray the ensemble slowing down.  Giving the impression of stopping to look around at life and take things in.”

It was this somewhat unconventional show, focused on conveying that theme of slowing down with quality and precision, that gave the WSU Drumline the edge it needed on Saturday, according to Hess.

Hess also expressed gratitude for the support of the faculty and student body. He hopes to increase awareness of the club among students.

“The faculty support is completely off the charts,” Hess said. “I’ve never seen so much support for the arts as I have at Weber State University.  From the students, we get support when students know about us, but the group is so new that I don’t think students know we’re there or what we’re doing, but we do get quite a lot of support when people know about it.”

Students will have the chance to see the drumline performing “Slow Me Down” on April 14 when WSU will host the Intermountain Percussion Championships. The club will compete in the World Championships in Dayton, Ohio, next year.

More information can be found on the club’s website at www.weberstatedrumline.org

Original story found here

By Kathy Adams

Special to The Tribune

First published Feb 28 2012 10:08PM
Updated 1 hour ago Updated Feb 29, 2012 11:51AM

Wim Wenders’ film “Pina” appears to have caught the attention of more than just dance fans. The movie’s Oscar nomination for best feature-length documentary came at a time when artists have been talking about creating and viewing dance for screens of various types. “Pina” seems to be part of a movement to make dance more accessible, while changing perceptions about the art form.

Certainly the 3-D technological wizardry of “Pina” is part of the intrigue. On the film’s website and in various interviews, Wenders has stated that using 3-D was the only reason he and Pina Bausch, the choreographer and subject, agreed to begin filming after 20 years of discussing the project.

Yet beyond technology, it’s Wenders’ judicious editing of an esoteric art form that might be the shot in the arm needed to attract new audiences to dance — without compromising artistic integrity. Wenders’ expertise as a cinematographer infuses visual richness into the work through context, point of view, and locations. The film works to capture the texture and emotion of the perishable art of choreography, but Wenders chose not to provide biographical depth or background on Bausch’s work. Instead, filmgoers are required to search out the choreographer and company backstory on their own.

“Pina” has sparked conversations about seminal dance films created for the big screen, such as “West Side Story,” released last year in a 50th-anniversary edition, but in contemporary culture those films represent just the tip of the iceberg. One example is the variety of amateur dance videos posted on YouTube, which range from fun to bizarre, yet don’t seem to account for taste or quality.

Digital distribution » That has led to the launch of websites such as TenduTV, which take the idea of distributing dance films seriously. The site offers profiles and interviews with world-renown dancers and choreographers, a blog, and informed descriptions of work, all intended to guide visitors to online rental or sales of its dance films through iTunes, Amazon and Hulu.

“We want to give people an experience where they can enjoy dance from all over the world that is worth their money,” said TenduTV founder and general manager Marc Kirschner in a phone interview. “We want to deliver it in beautiful high definition video with 5.1 surround audio.”

Kirschner praised the artistic work of Ellen Bromberg, a University of Utah dance and technology professor, as well as what he termed the “phenomenal program she has developed.” Bromberg’s compelling documentary on dancer/choreographer Molissa Fenley, “The re-staging of ‘State of Darkness’?” can be found on Hulu, via TenduTV. And Bromberg’s newest documentary on Judson Church dance artist Deborah Hay, “Deborah Hay, not as Deborah Hay” can be accessed through dance-tech.tv.

“What Mark [Kirschner] is doing by making dance and dance film more accessible globally is really important and it comes at a really good time,” Bromberg said. “The success of ‘Pina,’ casts new focus on dance and dance on film.”

Filming dance, in Salt Lake City » That brings us to the local choreographers and filmmakers who are a part of a national Dances Made to Order project, which Bromberg describes as part of an effort to “create a frame around dance and dance filmmaking and tie the country together.”

Dances Made to Order, launched in April 2011 by Los Angeles choreographer Kingsley Irons and filmmaker Bryan Koch, is a monthly, curated online series featuring 5-minute videos of dances created in just two weeks from ideas suggested by subscribers. The founders have extended the effort to 11 cities around the country. Ashley Anderson, a local dance advocate and founder of the loveDANCEmore website, was invited to curate the Salt Lake City edition. Anderson picked the artists, but subscribers will vote on their inspirations. (Themes will be posted March 7, and films will be created from March 16-April 1. .)

To Anderson, an important element of the effort is that artists are paid a percentage of subscription fees, in contrast to film festivals where artists pay a fee to submit work. “Since the U. has such a great screen dance program, I was able to pair and coordinate choreographers with filmmakers,” Anderson said. “The project is also a response to the uncurated dance videos that are all over the Internet. DMTO gives people an opportunity to see what experimental choreographers all over the country are thinking about and doing.”

How it works » The filmmakers give Irons a list of inspirational creative topics, and subscribers to dancesmadetoorder.com vote for their favorites. The top three themes must be used in each dance, no matter how wacky a combination. For example, three subjects for a recent series of Los Angeles films were: 1. Sugary/salty; 2. A film within a film; 3. Would you be better off if you hadn’t...?

Kirschner said the need for DMTO “extends out of the fact that in other countries the opportunities for dance film artists is much greater than in the U.S. because television networks have budgets which include commissioning dance.”

Instead, for American dancers, new media has created a virtual town hall for artists around the globe.

“When I came here 11 years ago, most students didn’t have email,” Bromberg said. “Now there are so many opportunities for students to think about the field and get their work out. They can create and put their own dance films up online.”

 Josie Patterson-Halford » Earned a bachelor’s degree in dance from Weber State University. Her work has been featured at the American College Dance Festival, and in 2010 she served as a regional coordinator. She has performed with inFluxdance Company, and her solo choreography has been featured throughout the state of Utah.

Scott C. Halford » Weber State University graduate with a degree in integrated studies. While attending school, he founded the multimedia production company Foursite Studios, and later organized the Foursite Film Festival. Halford has made more than 60 short films. 

By Nancy Van Valkenburg

OGDEN -- If faces on the streets of downtown Ogden seem a little more tragic or comedic this week, blame it on the temporary influx of theater people.

About 900 students and faculty members from 40 universities have gathered at Weber State University for the performances, workshops, auditions and presentations of the Region 8 Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. Groups are here from colleges in Utah, Southern California, Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii, and will stay through the closing ceremonies on Saturday.

"I know we've made Ogden's hotels happy," said John Binkley, Region 8 chairman. "We have 200 rooms at the Marriott and 50 at the Hampton Inn, and the rest had to find space at other hotels."

Binkley said schools that have been invited to perform in competition can pay as much as $25,000 to truck in scenery and costumes, and to finance housing for cast and support crew.

Tracy Callahan, Weber State performing arts teacher, said WSU theater student registration is higher than ever, because local students don't have to pay extra for room and board. And WSU's "Xanadu," one of the regional contenders for national honors, didn't require shipping because it's in its home theater.

Callahan said as far as she knows, it's WSU's first time hosting the festival.

"It was our turn," she said. "It's also a great way to show off our facility and our program. We can show everyone what Weber State has to offer."

WSU student Chris Shenefelt, who won a national playwriting competition at a previous festival, said more than 60 WSU theater students are volunteering to keep the festival on track.

Display areas to show the work of makeup, costume, set- and lighting-design students are in the Shepherd Union ballrooms and are open for public viewing. Registration is required to audition for awards or to attend the many workshops on directing, acting and design.

Members of the public can buy a $35 day pass, good for all activities and performances, but anyone who registers and hopes to attend shows should get to the theaters very early, because seating is limited and hundreds of visiting students also will be lining up.

All remaining performances are in the Browning Center. For more information, visit www.kcactf.org, or stop by the registration table in the Browning Center.

Weber State is at 3848 Harrison Blvd.

Original Article and pictures found here

Story by J. Michael Call, Standard-Examiner staff 

Weber State University is about to embark on a mammoth journey as it prepares to host the weeklong Region 8 presentation of the 44th annual Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.

“It’s like eating an elephant,” quipped Jim Christian, director of musical theater studies at WSU. “But it’s a really great opportunity for us.”

The festival, beginning Tuesday on the Ogden campus, is a massive undertaking involving several universities and colleges in Utah, Southern California, southern Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii. The event serves as a springboard for universities going on to compete at the national festival in April at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

Gregg Henry, KCACTF artistic director, is grateful to WSU’s faculty and staff for its willingness to take on such a gargantuan event.

“It’s such a many-tentacled beast that it is sort of an act of extraordinary generosity for a school to open its doors to 1,200-plus people over the course of a week and give us a place to celebrate student achievement,” Henry said.

The regional festival includes 11 full-scale productions, as well as a number of 10-minute plays, scenes, workshops, scholarship competitions, exhibitions and a variety of other activities. The majority of activities will take place in the Browning Center and Shepherd Union Building.

The Region 8 festival is the largest in the nation in terms of the sheer numbers of productions it involves, Henry noted. It also offers up a wide spectrum of theater.

“It’s pretty thrilling,” Henry said. “It’s an enormous benefit for the students who participate to just get to see the full spectrum, whether it’s new student writing or classic musicals or a classic play reinterpreted, or whatever it may be.”

Participating productions and universities include “Xanadu” (Weber State University), “The Elephant Man” (Brigham Young University), “The Bald Soprano” (Scottsdale Community College), “Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead” (Citrus College), “The Unseen Hand” (Los Angeles City College), “Cesar and Ruben” (Santa Monica College), “Eurydice” (Utah Valley University), “Suddenly Last Summer” (California Lutheran University), “The Dramatization of 365 Days” (California State University Fullerton) and “The Cover of Life” (Concordia University).

The festival provides not only an excellent opportunity for students, but also for Top of Utah theater lovers who want to see some top-notch productions. Individuals can register for either the entire festival or a day pass.

‘For die-hards, it’s a pretty exciting chance for exposure to the range and richness of the work being done in the region,” Henry said.

That’s show biz

Behind the scenes next week, WSU technical director John Bizzell will be diligently scrambling with his crew to make sure festival participants have the most seamless experience possible. “Seamless,” it should be noted, is a relative term — as anyone who has ever been involved in theatrical production understands.

While audiences are watching one show on stage, Bizzell will be managing an entirely different production backstage. He probably won’t get to enjoy the shows from the audiences’ vantage point, but doesn’t seem to mind.

Some of the casts and crews, many of whom have never seen or used WSU’s facilities before, will have only a few hours to unload their sets, costumes and props, adjust lighting and sound, set up their scenery, get into makeup and costumes and, perhaps if they’re lucky, even run a quick rehearsal.

“And the craziest part is that people want to do it,” Bizzell said with a chuckle.

Bizzell has been coordinating the festival with the various universities involved and trying to accommodate their individual needs as much as possible.

“We have to worry about not having log jams at the loading dock and making sure that people understand that this is how the facility operates and works and what they can and can’t do,” he said.

For example, one of the shows, Utah Valley University’s production of “Eurydice,” uses water onstage. The play is a modern spin on the Greek myth.

“Water is always a problem,” Bizzell said. “Not only do we have to get the water in, but we also have to get those people’s clothing dry between shows, because they are doing two or three shows that day.”

Meanwhile, Santa Monica College wanted to be able to dig a hole onstage in its production of “Cesar and Reuben” by Ed Begley Jr.

“It took quite a few emails to try and square away what they were meaning,” Bizzell said.

Like WSU’s theater department, California State University Fullerton is also a college that “thinks big,” Bizzell said. He anticipates that its ambitious production of “365 Days,” based on the book about the real-life experiences of a Vietnam medic, will require a lot of maneuvering and well-executed logistics to get things just right.

“Our technicians are going to get a real good run for their money. While they’re going to get worn out, I think they are going to enjoy it,” Bizzell said. “It is always interesting meeting all these people and finding out how other places work. It’s going to be interesting for us, too, because we have gone to so many festivals now, we get to see the other side of it finally. I’m looking forward to that.”

On its own turf

Indeed, WSU is no stranger to the KCACTF scene, having participated in several previous festivals.

“Weber is a powerhouse in the region and they always have been,” Henry said. “I’m actually looking forward to seeing them on their home turf.”

Henry cited previous WSU productions, such as “The Musical of Musicals, The Musical,” “MacBeth” and “Sleepy Hollow” as examples of WSU’s outstanding representation at previous KCACTF competitions.

“They are blessed with a really strong faculty and, obviously, they attract some really terrific students,” Henry said.

The current crop of students includes the cast of the hugely popular production of “Xanadu,” the fun-filled musical romp through bad ’80s movies. That show is being presented tonight and Saturday in three encore performances (see our 10-Day Planner in the centerspread for details), as well as three times Wednesday during the festival itself.

In addition to his work as festival liaison and “fire chief,” as he refers to role, Christian has also been back in rehearsals this week getting his “Xanadu” cast back on it wheels. He credits the collective effort of the WSU faculty and staff for their work preparing for the festival.

“There are just so many things that go into it — the productions, the workshops, the staffing, the transportation, the hotels, the food, the facilities — it’s a massive undertaking,” Christian said. “The biggest challenge is capturing the overarching vision of the entire thing all at once and being able to subdivide it down into workable components from moment to moment.”

With some theater magic and a lot of hard work, Christian, Bizzell and Henry expect festival participants can anticipate some rich, exciting and rewarding experiences next week on the Ogden campus.

“It’s a celebration,” Henry said. “And in this day and age, for a group of like-minded individuals to get together and celebrate the fact that they are achieving the arts as their life, that’s an act of bravery.”

PREVIEW

• WHAT: Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival
• WHEN: Tuesday-Feb. 11
• WHERE: Browning Center and Shepherd Union Building, Weber State University, 3848 Harrison Blvd., Ogden
• TICKETS: Weeklong passes for all events and workshops, $95; single-day passes, $35
• REGISTRATION: Visit www.kcactf-8festivalinfo.org to register. A registration table will also be set up in the lobby of the Browning Center. Visit www.kcactf.org for general information about the festival.

HOW TO GO

Want to see a show at the regional competition of Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival?

First, you’ll need either a $35 day pass or a $95 festival pass. Understand that Weber State University’s Browning Center will be a flurry of activity, and that seating is first come, first served.

The three theaters in the Browning Center will be running shows from the participating universities simultaneously during the festival. On Wednesday, for example, WSU presents “Xanadu” three times in the Eccles Theater, Brigham Young University performs “The Elephant Man” twice on the Austad Auditorium stage and California Lutheran University stages “Suddenly Last Summer” twice in the Allred Theater.

Festival attendees who want to see a specific performance should arrive 30 to 45 minutes early for that particular performance. Afternoon shows will be easier to get into, said John Binkley, Region 8 KCACTF chairman, because many of the students attending the festival will be involved in workshops and other festival activities during the day.

Seating is limited, depending on the size of the theater.

“Obviously, it would be easier to see a show in the Allred than the Eccles since the Allred seats 300 and the Eccles seats about 150,” Binkley said.

Binkley also noted that the shows in the larger Austad Auditorium will actually seat only 120 for the festival since the theater is being converted into a black-box-type theater, with the audience seated on the stage and the curtain drawn.

THE SCHEDULE

Eleven full productions are presented during the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival next week in the Browning Center on the Weber State University campus, 3848 Harrison Blvd., Ogden.

There are several other events and activities for festival participants. Visit www.kcactf-8festivalinfo.org/page6.html for a complete online schedule.

• Utah Valley University’s (Orem) “Eurydice,” 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Tuesday, Allred Theater.

“Eurydice” portrays the ancient Greek story of Orpheus’ famous trek into the Underworld to bring his love, Eurydice, back from the dead. The myth is traditionally told from Orpheus’ point of view. However, this version by Sarah Ruhl is told from the viewpoint of the leading lady.

• Weber State University’s (Ogden) “Xanadu,” 11 a.m., 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Eccles Theater.

Based on the cult film, “Xanadu” tells the story of a Greek muse named Kira who comes to Earth in 1980 (disguised in roller skates, leg warmers and an Australian accent) to inspire what the gods call truly great work and discover the meaning of the universe’s greatest secret: the gift of “Xanadu.” Kira meets the artist Sonny, who needs her help in achieving his greatest dream: a fantastical roller disco.

• Brigham Young University’s (Provo) “The Elephant Man,” 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Austad Auditorium stage.

Throughout history there have been individuals who inspire others. Joseph Merrick — dubbed “The Elephant Man” — lived with a hideous and debilitating disease. Found in a freak show, subjected to cruel crowds, then admitted to a London hospital for scientific observation, Merrick lived surrounded by ugliness. This production of the Tony-winning play by Bernard Pomerance uses inventive staging, masks, movement and music.

• California Lutheran University’s (Thousand Oaks) “Suddenly Last Summer,” 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Allred Theater.

“Suddenly Last Summer” by Tennessee Williams is a one-act play that opened off-Broadway in 1958 as part of a double bill with another of his plays. Willliams wrote it after beginning a period of psychoanalytic treatment, and it may have served as a type of exorcism of his inner demons. The famed playwright explores the nature of insanity, desire, voyeurism and the inherent danger in humanity’s search for truth. The play is intended for mature audiences.

• Concordia University’s (Irvine, Calif.) “The Cover of Life,” 1 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Austad Auditorium stage.

When three young war brides in rural Louisiana move in with their mother-in-law while their husbands fight in World War II, Life magazine sends its top female reporter to do a “women’s piece” about them. What the reporter finds changes her and the women forever. Filled with charm and fun, “The Cover of Life” is a deeply affecting story about the struggle for self-worth and love.

• California State University Fullerton’s “The Dramatization of 365 Days,” 4 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Eccles Theater.

Based on the book by Ronald J. Glasser, the play follows the real-life experiences of a medic in the Vietnam War. The story focuses on the interaction between one badly burned soldier and the doctor’s conficted attempts to save his life.

• Brigham Young University and the SCERA Center for the Arts present “The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey,” 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Allred Theater.

This is a concert staging of the moving tale of Jonathan Toomey, a reclusive carpenter in a small Appalachian village. Toomey’s life is changed when he meets an eager boy and his widowed mother who are searching for a new Christmas crèche.

• Los Angeles City College Theatre Academy’s “The Unseen Hand,” 12:30 p.m. (female cast), 2:30 p.m. (male cast), 5:30 p.m. (female cast) and 7:30 p.m. (male cast) Feb. 10, Austad Auditorium.

This 1969 science-fiction work by Sam Shepard is said to have influenced Richard O’Brien’s stage musical “The Rocky Horror Show.” The play takes place in a desert wasteland in Southern California. The pop-influenced piece features three broken-down cowboy desperadoes, a space alien refugee, a cheerleader and more.

• Citrus College’s (Glendora, Calif.) “Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead,” 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Feb. 10, Eccles Theater.

Wonder whatever happened to the beloved “Peanuts” gang? This parody follows the gang a decade later, addressing the dramas and angst of their adolescence. Drug use, suicide, eating disorders, teen violence, rebellion and sexual identity collide and careen toward an ending that is both haunting and hopeful.

• Santa Monica College’s (California) “Cesar and Ruben,” 12:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. Feb. 11, Allred Theater.

“Cesar and Ruben,” a musical by Ed Begley Jr., chronicles the life of the civil rights leader Cesar Chavez through music, imagery and a conversations with slain Los Angeles Times reporter Ruben Salazar, who often wrote about Chavez. The show mixes humor and drama, music and dance, history and personal struggles, with songs in both English and Spanish by Sting, Ruben Blades, Peter Gabriel, Carlos Santana and more.

• Scottsdale Community College’s (Arizona) “The Bald Soprano,” 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. Feb. 11, Eccles Theater.

“The Bald Soprano” is a romp through language and the futility of meaningful conversations. The play tells the story of the Smith family as it follows and is followed by its Englishness through “stultifying eroticism, bewildering impropriety and ghastly anti-climaxes.” The production uses emerging technologies such as voice-modulating software and other digital age gadgetry.

— Information provided by the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

WSU music majors present at St. George NAfME Convention

By Kory Wood February 4, 2012.

WSU Chamber Choirs rehearse for their presentation in St. George.

Members of Weber State University’s Performing Arts Department traveled down to St. George over the weekend to attend, perform and present at the National Association for Music Education’s Utah conference.

The NAfME conference is a chance for WSU music students to attend innovative and informative workshops with other music educators and university students from around the state. Held at the Dixie Center, the conference included workshops from both choral and instrumental presenters.

“We saw great numbers and presentations from tons of local teachers,” said Dustin Shuler, a member of the WSU choirs and prospective music teacher. “We saw the boys’ choir from Maple Mountain High School, directed by Cory Mendenhall. He puts them together at lunch time and works on tone and how to keep it going through the changing male voice. It was absolutely incredible . . . He had the tone sounding like BYU Men’s Chorus.”

Mark Henderson, director of the WSU choirs, presented a special workshop for choir directors called Choir Formations: What Works and Why? Designed to demonstrate the benefits and drawbacks of different on-stage formations for performances and rehearsals, the session included a demonstration by Henderson and a group of WSU Chamber Choir members.

“One of the main points of the presentation was simply that the act of spreading the choir out will improve the sound,” Shuler said. “We spread all across the risers and sang, then bunched together in the middle, and the difference was huge.”

Henderson then pulled several music teachers from the audience and had them perform together in different formations. Using “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need,” a popular arrangement from Mac Wilberg, director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Henderson helped demonstrate why rehearsal and performance formation affect sound.

Coulter Neal, a music education major at WSU and choir member, helped in the demonstration.

“It went really well,” Neal said. “He had about 16 different teachers go up there and did the same process with them to show the difference between the sound they’d made. A lot of choirs will just get up there and bunch together, and the sound isn’t as good.”

The Weber State Wind Ensemble was one of the featured performing groups at the convention. Under the direction of Thomas Root, the group has performed in New York’s Carnegie Hall, the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center, as well as traveling performance tours to Taiwan and Germany.

Composed primarily of woodwind instruments like clarinets, flutes and saxophones, the WSU Wind Ensemble gives students from all majors a chance to audition for a quality group.

“The Wind Ensemble did great,” Neal said. “They represented our school well.”

Donald Keipp, who directs the WSU Jazz Ensemble, performed with the WSU Wind Ensemble on the marimba.

“The audience really loved Dr. Keipp,” Neal said. “That was really neat to watch.”

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A perky Greek Muse is pulling on her leg warmers, strapping back on her roller skates and brushing up her Australian accent as "Xanadu" returns to Weber State University next week.

The musical will be presented in three encore performances prior to its entry in the 44th annual Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, which WSU is hosting for the first time this year.

"It's awesome!" said WSU senior Breanne Briggs Welch, who plays Clio/Kira in the jukebox musical based on the 1980 cult-classic movie starring Olivia Newton-John.

"You don't really get a chance to do this with a show unless it's competing in something," Welch said. "You don't get to let it sleep for a little bit and then see what else you've learned in the last two months, or what you would have done differently. You get a fresh take on it. I think it's going to be really fun to go back in and to see what else comes out of it."

The public also has a second chance to find out what other "Xanadu" zaniness awaits as Welch and the rest of the cast return to the stage.

"Xanadu" will be performed three times during the Feb. 7-11 festival, which serves as the regional competition for the national contest in April at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. To help pay for production costs, the cast and crew is staging the encore performances prior to the festival.

"Xanadu" tells the story of Sonny, a chalk artist living in 1980 Venice Beach, Calif. Sonny, played by WSU student Sean Bishop, is discouraged and a little suicidal until Clio and her eight Muse sisters rise out of his sidewalk chalk creation. Clio -- disguising herself as an Australian roller skater named Kira -- is trying to help Sonny find his own personal Xanadu. However, forbidden love, evil sisters and angry gods get in the way.

Jim Christian, director of musical theater studies at WSU, directed the regional premiere of "Xanadu" in November. The 2007 musical was a surprise smash on Broadway, where Christian first fell in love with the show and determined that he would bring it to WSU.

He did just that, and the result is a fun-filled romp through bad '80s fashions and a satirical -- but affectionate -- nod to the movie that is counted by some as one of the worst movies ever made.

WSU's production sold out during its November run, and Briggs and her castmates were thrilled to learn over the Christmas holiday that they would be returning to a place called "Xanadu."

They have redubbed the show "XanaTWO" and will be getting back together next week for rehearsals.

The production will be essentially the same, Welch said, except for some lighting changes to accommodate other shows that will be performed in the same theater during the festival. Welch is hoping to bring some fresh energy to her character, who spends the majority of the show on roller skates.

"I was really cautious about the skating the first time around, so I think I'm going to be a little bit more adventurous with the skating," she said. "I have been roller skating a couple times, and it's just like riding a bike. It's like, 'Oh yeah, I remember this,' and all of your old muscles come alive again."

Briggs is not only getting her skating muscles in shape, but she and her castmates are also tuning up their vocal chops to perform an infectious score that includes Newton-John and Electric Light Orchestra hits such as "Xanadu," "Magic," "All Over the World," "I'm Alive" and "Suddenly."

The musical not only spoofs "Xanadu," but also "Clash of the Titans," another '80s cheesefest, which starred Harry Hamlin as the Greek hero Perseus, who must do battle and match wits against a cast of monsters and Greek gods. The film is notable in that it starred several acclaimed actors, including Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith and Burgess Meredith.

One of the funniest moments in the musical comes when Clio has been summoned to appear before the panel of unamused gods for some non-Muse like behavior with the mortal Sonny. What follows is a hilarious rendition of the Newton-John's hit "Have You Never Been Mellow," complete with some giggle-inducing costumes as the snake-headed Medusa, a Cyclops and a centaur get in on the fun.

The encore performances and the festival itself are an opportunity for the public and festival participants to get in on the fun as well.

Briggs is looking forward to the festival and the chance to interact with university students from the nine other participating colleges.

"We have great spaces for all the shows. Our Browning Center is just filled with theaters that are ideal for the ACTF," Briggs said. "Everyone is pretty excited. It's always fun to be able to show off your work to people who are doing the same level of theater as you."

In addition to the encore performances next week, "Xanadu" will be performed three times during the festival at 11 a.m., 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 8.

The festival is a ticketed event, with weeklong passes for all events and workshops available for $95 and single-day passes for $35. However, only full conference registrants are guaranteed tickets to all of the plays, while day-pass ticket holders take their chances on seats being available.

Visit www.kcactf-8festivalinfo.org to register or visit www.kcactf.org for more information.

Film extra work doesn't always require stellar acting skills, but Weber State University acting graduate Megan Nicole Rees truly earned her pay last March when she played a crowd member for the Utah-shot "Good Luck, Charlie, It's Christmas!"

"We were supposed to be in Las Vegas, so they wouldn't let us wear coats or jackets," said Rees, 25 and a Bountiful resident. "Occasionally, we could put on our coats, but we were out there a really long time, and it got pretty cold.

"I had to concentrate all my energy on not shivering."

"Good Luck, Charlie, It's Christmas!" debuts at 9 p.m. Saturday on the Disney Channel, which most Utah cable subscribers will find on Channel 33.

Director Arlene Sanford, whose credits include episodes of "Desperate Housewives," "Grey's Anatomy," "Monk" and Utah-shot "Everwood," said she took the job because she liked the script, and she already knew she liked shooting in Utah.

"I thought it was a funny script, and when a script comes my way that is funny, sweet and smart, and it makes me laugh and cry, I do it," Sanford said. "I also like road pictures. Most of the Disney movies take place more in high school, with a lot of the scenes near lockers."

The Christmas film is based on the Disney sitcom "Good Luck, Charlie," about a Denver family, the Duncans, who try to adjust to the birth of their fourth child, Charlie. In each episode, teen Teddy creates a video diary for young Charlie, giving her toddler sister advice on the family and on life as a teen.

The film follows the family on a Christmas trip that goes wrong when the mom takes an airline offer to delay her flight for a second, free ticket. She and Teddy spend the film trying to reunite with the rest of the family before Christmas.

"I think the movie is good for parents and kids, and I think it is funny," Sanford said. "It has something to say about teenagers being responsible, and the importance of family. It's also a lovely mother-daughter story."

Rubbing elbows

Rees, WSU class of 2010, said she heard about the need for extras from her agent, and shot scenes at The Gateway, in Salt Lake City. Another way to learn about extra jobs is to subscribe to www.utahextras.com, which charges an annual fee.

"Being an extra is fun," Rees said. "You sort of get to rub elbows with a lot of important people."

The standard extra rate in Utah is about $100 per day, Rees said. She also has worked as an extra in Los Angeles, where the rate is $64 for eight hours, and then increases depending on additional hours and factors -- including whether the extra has to get wet or use his or her own car.

Rees said she recently took a trip to Los Angeles and worked as an extra for "Law and Order," "Torchwood," "Damage Control" and a pilot for "Wonder Woman."

"I was there for a week, and worked pretty much every day," she said.

No guarantees

Rees said she hopes to move to the West Coast within the next few months to seek work as an actress. Her biggest stage role at Weber State was playing Dorinda, female lead in "The Beaux' Stratagem."

"I have done a lot of theater work, and I love it, but one of the things I like about film is you get to watch yourself and critique your work. It's something you can keep forever."

That's true for actors with key speaking roles, but there are no guarantees in extra work. All extras know they could easily end up on the cutting room floor.

"I was in a couple scenes," Rees said of "Good Luck, Charlie, It's Christmas!" "I was a shopper walking past in one scene, and that could easily get cut, but there's a second scene where I'm holding a big, giant blow-up candy cane, and an actress (Bridgit Mendler, as Teddy) steals it from me. It always depends on editing. You never know what shots they will use."