By Amy Nicholson

Old-fashioned comedy, catchy show tunes and happy endings are all part of the show "Lucky Stiff," opening at Heritage Theatre in Perry this weekend.

Jacob Thompson of Deweyville is directing the show, which he saw for the first time about 10 years ago. "It is fun and fresh," he said.

Thompson said he caught the bug for acting and directing a little later in life than most. Although he had played the part of an orphan in a production of "Oliver" at the age of 8, and participated in high school choir, he didn't re-enter the theater arena again until he was 21.

"The theater has a unique way of entertaining, educating and enlightening people. Some shows leave a mark on your spirit. Others help you relax," Thompson said.

"Lucky Stiff" is more along the lines of pure entertainment, he said.

Thompson believes the lighthearted storyline is just what audiences are craving during current tough economic times.

"I like to see the vision that I have unfold on the stage. It's not something made with my hands like other art mediums, but it is still something to be proud of," he said of the directing experience.

The cast has 10 characters, five principal actors, four actors who play several more minor characters, and one actor playing a dead guy for the duration.

The plot

As the plot unfolds, lead character Harry Witherspoon, a shy shoe salesman from England, receives word that a distant uncle has been shot and killed. He has left his estate of $6 million to Harry, but only if Harry follows his instructions.

Harry is told that his uncle would never miss a vacation for anything, not even death, and his final wish was to take a trip to Monte Carlo.

In "Weekend at Bernie's" fashion, Harry hauls the corpse around in a wheelchair, irritated by the things he must do, but also liberated from his boring life and excited to be on an adventure.

If Harry, played by Brett Johnson of Layton, fails to carry out his uncle's wishes, the $6 million will go to a charity that benefits dogs.

Sarah Johnson, who in real life is married to Brett Johnson, plays the part of Annabel Glick, a sweet charity worker who shows up on Harry's adventure, determined to watch his every move and take the money if he makes a mistake.

The Johnsons met while singing in a show choir at Utah State University. The two married 10 years ago and have three sons, ages 7, 4 and 1.

Both enjoy acting and try to do at least one show per year despite their busy family life.

"Theater is our hobby. We try to get away and do it whenever we can," Sarah Johnson said.

The play is a fun one, she said: "It has a little twist and a fun ending you'd never expect."

Playing together

Another couple, Bree Hoskisson and Derek Hendricks of Roy, are also cast in the show. The two have been dating for the past five years and frequently appear in shows together, participating in about five shows each per year.

Hoskisson plays Rita, a hard-edged chain smoker from New York who totes a gun and is determined to get her hands on the $6 million she says was stolen from her.

She pulls her brother, Vinnie Di Ruzzio, a quiet optometrist played by Hendricks, into the plot and spends a lot of time pushing him around.

Hoskisson is currently pursuing a musical theater degree at Weber State University, and Hendricks earned his associate's degree in theater from Western Wyoming Community College.

"We have a song together. It is the first time we've gotten to sing onstage -- just the two of us," Hoskisson said.

the original story can be found here.

By Becky Wright

Carey Ann Francis spent most of her life in the ghettos of Texas cities like Dallas and Houston.

"They're horrible," she said, remembering the poverty, drug addiction and violence that surrounded her.

She left that life behind in 2009, when she moved to Ogden.

"We loaded up my Honda like the Beverly Hillbillies," she said. "I didn't take anything but my art with me."

Now enrolled at Weber State University, Francis is one of 28 students participating in the Spring 2012 BFA Thesis Exhibition.

The art exhibit opens with a reception from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. today, April 13, in the Kimball Visual Arts Center on campus. The exhibit, running through April 29, is the culmination of the students' undergraduate art studies.

Included in the display are samples of painting, drawing, sculpture, video, installation and more. The diversity of the art runs from lace tents by Venessa Gromek to David Powell's animated video, made using hundreds of chalk drawings. Gromek's art was inspired by her work in the outdoor industry; Powell's was inspired by loss and longing,

The art Francis is showing was inspired by her life in Texas.

"I was born in Austin," she said. "I moved to Houston, then Dallas, and a lot of little bitty subcities. ... They're covered in ghetto areas."

Lost and found

Francis, a grandmother on a waiting list for a kidney transplant, works mostly in oil and acrylic -- but rarely paints on canvas. Her art is created on objects that other people have thrown away, such as old doors, a cast-iron sink and metal pipes. It's something she's done since she started taking art classes in Texas.

"I wasn't spending money properly, so when the teacher would give an assignment, I didn't have a nice, clean canvas," she said. "I've adapted it now, and applied it into my paintings and it's working well."

Francis has stories to go with all of her artwork.

"I try to reflect all the way back to childhood," she said, adding that she was born in 1960. "Some of it's during the civil rights movement, and Jim Crow laws."

One of the paintings is about how things had changed by the time Francis was 6 years old.

"They didn't want us to pick cotton," she said. "They wanted us to get an eduction. They said, 'You've gotta learn to read and write.' ... I didn't really understand at the time, but now I do."

Lost

Francis painted a story of abuse and violence on a cast-off door from the late 1800s.

"It's about a girl in the ghetto getting shot over $15, by a drug dealer," she said. "She comes and buys more drugs from him, and he accepts money from her."

But she still owed him $15.

"He goes and gets a gun," Francis said. "The dealer pays drug addicts to drag her to a Dumpster. ... Nobody knew she was behind the Dumpster, because it smells bad anyway."

The door has an image of the shooting on one side, and a woman's dead, swollen body painted on the other.

"She was covered with ants, and the ants were taking her flesh away, back to their little house," said Francis.

Found

The painting "Negro Spiritual: Oh My Lord, Lord, Lord, Lord" focuses on the songs of slaves.

"We brought these spirituals with us, through our culture, because that was the way of prayer," Francis said. "It played a part in our upbringing, and our coming forth."

A mixed-media piece combining painting and newspaper collage, "And This Is My Friend," is about letting go of prejudice and hate.

"I had a best friend," Francis said. "Her name was Ginger, but she was a white girl."

Growing up with racism, Francis said, she was taught to feel hatred and hostility.

"I met her when I was 32 years old," she said of her friend. "Until I met her, I didn't know better from what I was taught. ... I found it's not about the color of your skin, but who you are as a person."

Francis says she learned that lesson late, but well.

"From that point on, I didn't have any hatred or hostility in my heart anymore," she said.

PREVIEW

• WHAT: Spring 2012 BFA Thesis Exhibition
• WHEN: Opens with a reception 7-9 p.m. today, April 13; continues 11 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays, noon-5 p.m. Saturdays, through April 29
• WHERE: Kimball Visual Arts Center, Weber State University, 3848 Harrison Blvd., Ogden
• ADMISSION: Free; 801-626-7689

The original story can be found here.

The Weber State University performing arts department’s 2011-2012 theater season came to a close with the showing of a completely student-run production, The Cradle Will Rock. The show was put on by the Associated Actors and Technicians.

“I love the student-directed stuff here just because it really shows the intense dedication,” said Shauna Ross, who has recently joined AAT and was house manager for the performances, enabling her to see the show several times.

The show was directed by Trent Cox, a theater education major at WSU. According to Cox, there were several difficulties that could go along with holding the title of student director.

“It’s difficult kind of drawing that line between ‘Now I’m director, and now I’m your friend,’” Cox said. “But I feel like there wasn’t any issues with that or anything. I wouldn’t say just as a student director, but as a director in general, just the material is difficult. It’s a 75-year-old play, and just relating it to nowadays is a great challenge.”

The Cradle Will Rock was written by Marc Blitzstein and was originally part of the Federal Theater Project in the 1930s, a program used to put theaters back to work during the Great Depression. However, the program had some past problems with censorship, and shortly before it was about to open, the show was shut down.

“The cast and director (Orson Welles) gathered the opening night audience, the cast and one piano, and walked 21 blocks to a new theater, and performers were told they were going to be arrested if they performed the show on stage because of ‘political overtones,’” Cox said.

He said that Marc Blitztein just got up and started performing the show’s music by piano, and one by one the cast members got up from the audience and sang their parts, performing the entire opening show within the audience.

“I just go to thinking what a great experience that would be as an audience member, as a performer, as just someone in the theater at that time; so I wanted to put that into nowadays and relate that to now,” Cox said.

The in-audience feel of the performance may have been the live piano performance of all the show’s music by music director Rick Rea, and even having the cast perform its own side effects off-stage while the show continued.

The show is about an average American town in the 1930s called Steeltown, USA, which is being rocked by the efforts of an average worker, Larry Foreman, to form a laborers’ union. This doesn’t go over well with greedy steel tycoon, Mr. Mister, as he’s gone out of his way to own the entire town from the preachers to the press in order to make sure this very thing doesn’t happen.

Foreman is arrested giving a public speech about the union along with a group of Mister’s various henchman called the Liberty Committee who were sent to break up the speech and are awaiting Mr. Mister to bail them out for their loyalty. Each of their stories are told of how they sold their souls for Mr. Mister’s money, and in the end it is left up to the people to decide whether the union or a corporate agenda will succeed.

“Mr. Mister, who’s like the government, he owns everything, he pays everyone off to say what he thinks is good to help him personally,” said Addison Welch, the graduating theater performance student who played Larry Foreman. “But we need to fight for what we know is true and what we know is right.”

Welch believes that the show deals with some of the issues faced in today’s politics, and even though they aren’t exact, he still finds them to be applicable.

“I’ve had to really be honest and truthful and pull from what I know is true from the situations happening in our media right now, our life right now, and apply to this character in the thirties,” Welch said.

The show closed last Saturday, but AAT is opened for all students to join if anyone has  interest in these opportunities for the upcoming theater season.

“I think the central theme is talking about those weaker people, the people that weren’t part of the richer class,” Ross said. “This theme is about those people that got tired of being suppressed. They got tired of being pushed down, and they were able to build up into these unions and help to support what America is today and the rights that we have.”

the original article can be found here.

By Nancy Van Valkenburg

Gallery to host NCUR project show

OGDEN — Weber State University’s Mary Elizabeth Shaw Gallery will host the project exhibit of the National Conference on Undergraduate Research, which comes to WSU this week.

The exhibit of student projects will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, at the gallery. For information, call 801-626-7689 or visit www.weber.edu/dova.

Weber State is at 3848 Harrison Blvd.

The original article can be found here.

By J. Michael Call

Weber State University's giggle-inducing production of "Xanadu" has made some people smile on a national level.

The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival has announced its national awards for 2011, and the WSU musical earned some kudos.

In each of 21 categories, the KCACTF awards recognize one outstanding show and several distinguished achievements for productions showcased at the eight regional festivals held across the country in January and February. WSU hosted the Region 8 presentation last month on the Ogden campus.

"Xanadu" earned three distinguished recognitions, including Distinguished Production of a Musical. The lighthearted romp back to the '80s was directed by Jim Christian, director of musical theater studies at WSU. Christian earned Distinguished Director of a Musical and Distinguished Choreography for the show.

"We were pleasantly surprised, it's always nice to receive things like that," Christian said. "We had an audience member who came and saw it at the festival. She came up to me the next day and said, 'That was the most delicious piece of literary bubble gum I have ever chewed.' "

Others Region 8 awards included Rene Michelle Aranda, who won the Outstanding Performance by an Actress as Willy the Space Freak in Los Angeles City College Theatre Academy's "The Unseen Hand." The college's production also was awarded Distinguished Performance and Production Ensembles.

Brigham Young University's production of "The Elephant Man" also won awards, including Distinguished Performances by an Actor, which went to both Darick Pead as Frederick Treves and Graham Ward as John Merrick. Jennifer Chandler also earned a Distinguished Performance by an Actress as the cellist/narrator for that same production.

For a complete list of winners, visit http://kcactf.blogspot.com/2012/03/kennedy-center-american-college-theater_04.html

A Grand show

Christian first fell in love with the zany "Xanadu" when it premiered on Broadway in 2007. He vowed then and there to bring the show to Utah audiences. WSU was the first Utah theater to premiere the musical, written by Douglas Carter Beane, with music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar. The show sold out when it played on campus in November in the Browning Center's black-box Eccles Theater.

Because of budget cutbacks within the KCACTF, Christian won't be taking the show to Washington, D.C., next month for the national festival.

But he isn't quite done with "Xanadu." Utah audiences will have another opportunity to see Christian's vision of the show as he directs a new production of "Xanadu," opening in May at the Grand Theatre in Salt Lake City.

"It's an absolute joy to work on," Christian said. "It's a very clever script and it's got music that is caught in the hearts of everybody who lived through the '80s. It's just one of those little confections of a show."

That Grand Theater production will feature many of the same elements that were used in the WSU show, as well as some of the same actors, including WSU senior Sean Bishop as Sonny.

Sonny is a chalk artist living in 1980 Venice Beach, Calif. Discouraged over his sidewalk mural depicting the Greek Muses, Sonny becomes despondent and suicidal. He needs help and inspiration, which comes in the form of a Greek muse named Clio, who rises with her sisters out of his sidewalk creation to help Sonny find Xanadu. The musical fondly spoofs the 1980 movie starring Olivia Newton-John, as well as the 1980s version of "Clash of the Titans."

Other returning cast members include Shelby Andersen as wicked muse sister Calliope, Maggie Goertzen as Urania, and Stephanie Jameson, who will take on different role and serve as Christian's dance captain for the show.

"It's going to be really fun to explore the show in the Grand Theatre space just because of the big open proscenium. There will be all types of different things that we will be able to do because of that," Christian said.

The original story can be found here.

 Board members of AHA! (The Arts & Humanities Advisors) are pleased to announce winners of AHA! Scholarships, as well as Awards for Faculty, Staff, Alumnus, and Friend-of-the-College  for 2012-13.  The AHA! Board funds these scholarships and awards to support “unsung heroes” in the Telitha E. Lindquist College of Arts & Humanities at Weber State. 

Scholarships go to students who persevere despite difficult circumstances, reach beyond their grasp, and exhibit a talent or promise indicating their commitment to education.  Based on nominations from faculty members and application statements from students themselves, the Board determined that Kierstan Voorhees and Amy Gerard, both from the Communication Department, both of whom have faced considerable challenges in attending and succeeding in school, merit AHA! Scholarships.  Each will receive $2000 toward next year’s tuition and fees.

This year’s AHA! Recognition Award for Faculty, for a faculty member doing an exceptionally good job but who has not been previously recognized in significant public ways, goes to adjunct Music faculty member Linda Lee.  About Linda, her nominator notes: “By using her disarming sense of humor and her rather unassuming character, she skillfully nurtures novice singers, and yet she can also challenge the most advanced singers to reach new heights.”  Linda consistently works with between 14 and 16 vocal students per semester, pitches in to design and construct costumes for opera productions, and quietly takes on all kinds of other duties.  Again, her nominator comments: “She is not simply an ‘adjunct voice instructor;’ she is one of the most reliable, trustworthy, and highly competent voice teachers and colleagues we could hope for.”  Although it may seem ironic to give an “unsung hero” award to someone whose specific expertise is song, the Board is delighted to honor Linda Lee as our AHA! Faculty Member.  This award is $3,000.

Diane Neri Stern, Director of Weber State’s Cultural Affairs Program, is recipient of the AHA! Recognition Award for Staff.  One of her nominators says: “Energy, creativity, resourcefulness, talent, and integrity are but a few of Diane’s attributes.  Her belief that the soul of a community must be nurtured by culture makes her exceptional.”  Another nominator points to the way Diane has contributed to numerous programs—Mandy Patinkin, James Balog, Ta’u Pupu’a, for example—outside her own realm of responsibility.  Anthea Kreston, co-founder and violinist of the internationally touring Amelia Piano Trio, writes that Diane is a person with “razor sharp intelligence, passion, and creative energy. . . .  In her work, she digs deep to find the richest experience possible for her audiences.  She cares equally about her artists and audience, and works with both to create memorable and thought-provoking events.  She is, in my opinion, among the best of the best - always seeking to learn and share what she has discovered.  Her passion is infectious and affects all who she touches.”  We are grateful that Diane is a member of the Arts & Humanities College.  This award is $3,000. 

AHA! Recognition Award for a Friend of the College goes this year to the WSU “Treble Makers,” a student chapter of the Music Teachers National Association. The Treble Makers hold the national record of being awarded the most number of MTNA National Student Chapter of the Year (1997, 2003, 2005, 2007). Students who graduated from WSU’s Piano Pedagogy Program have also received the highest number of Student Teacher of the Year awards from the Utah Music Teacher Association (in 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007).

The Treble Makers merit the Friend of the College Award in recognition of their involvement in helping WSU become an “All-Steinway School of Music.”   The hard work of individual members and of the group, as a whole, was directly responsible for enabling the Department of Performing Arts and Weber State University to join the ranks of the top music programs in the nation which provide Steinway pianos for student practice, lessons, rehearsals, and performances.

Over the past three years, the Treble Makers became increasingly involved in WSU’s All-Steinway School Initiative. Their participation began when several of their members took part in home recitals hosted by university donors such as Dr. Candadai Seshachari to raise awareness of the WSU music program. Their ability, as both musicians and as ambassadors for the university, grew as they performed, talked about their music, and conversed with current and potential donors.  Award: a plaque and as much publicity as possible.

Dr. Stephanie Chamberlain is this year’s AHA! Alumnus.  The daughter of Dr. Elmer Ericson, WSU professor of English (b. 1926, d. 1980), Stephanie  received her BA in English in 1982 from Weber State College, followed by a master’s degree and doctorate in English. She currently is a Professor at Southeast Missouri State University, where she teaches Shakespeare and Renaissance Literature.  A consummate scholar, she has published extensive and has presented at numerous conferences and other scholarly events. Through her education, teaching, research, scholarship and charitable donations, she has demonstrated a personal commitment to academic excellence that reflects highly on the Telitha E. Lindquist College of Arts & Humanities.

Stephanie has supported WSU through a gift to endow the Elmer H. Ericson Scholarship in English and through a gift to fund the Dr. Elmer H. Ericson Classroom in Elizabeth Hall. She also extends her commitment to education at Southeast Missouri State University where she has endowed the Dr. Robert W. Hamblin Lecture.  Award: a plaque and as much publicity as possible.

Contact: Madonne Miner   madonneminer@weber.edu">madonneminer@weber.edu" data-mce-href="mailto:madonneminer@weber.edu">madonneminer@weber.edu   801-626-6424

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.

Accusations of witchcraft and McCarthyism may be relics of the past, but fear is still a factor in this post-9/11 world.

The power of fear is one of the driving forces in Arthur Miller's award-winning play "The Crucible," opening March 7 at the Grand Theatre on the Salt Lake Community College campus.

The play, which won the 1953 Tony award for best play, takes place during the Puritan era and dramatizes the hysteria and frenzy surrounding the Salem witch trials. Miller famously wrote the play as an allegory of the McCarthyism of the 1950s.

"It's the idea of what-does-fear-do-to-us," said Ogden native and actor Tyson Richard Baker, who is playing the Rev. John Hale in the production. "At what point do we draw the line, where we're starting to suspect our neighbors and suspect people that we've known all of our lives? What do we do in those situations?"

Hale is a well-respected minister with a reputation as an expert on witchcraft, Baker explained. He comes to Salem to lend his expertise when a young girl is unable to move in her bed and the villagers suspect witchcraft.

"The town kind of looks to him as the go-to guy to try to fix their problem," Baker said. "He's someone the audience can follow and empathize with really easy, because he is on the same journey of being introduced to this madness of the girls claiming that everybody's a witch."

The girl and a group of her friends are making the accusations because they are trying to hide a secret about themselves. As the frenzy escalates, the Salem witch trials begin and, ultimately, some of the townspeople are found guilty and executed.

Hale is largely responsible for whipping up the furor in the town and pushing for the trials.

Director Mark Fossen and the actors are trying to convey to audiences how real the fear of witchcraft was during the Puritan era and how that affected their behavior.

"Everything that he has ever known as a preacher, and as one who has studied the signs of witchcraft, these signs of witchcraft are pointing to 'yes,' and it's freaking him out," Baker said.

However, Hale begins to realize his folly and later struggles to persuade the accused "witches" to lie by confessing so they can live, rather than tell the truth and die.

"He sees that there is something innately good about the people who are being convicted," Baker said. "It is an inner torment for him."

A student of the play

Baker, who lives in Liberty, is working on a theater arts degree at Weber State University. Audiences will recognize the actor from recent roles as an apostle in "Jesus Christ Superstar" in Park City, Friar Laurence in "Romeo and Juliet" at WSU, and the summer season of the Old Lyric Repertory Theater Company in Logan.

A Baker not only in name but also by present occupation at the Great Harvest Bread Company on Historic 25th Street in Ogden, Baker is hoping to someday work as a full-time actor.

"I work in the early mornings so I can do theater at night, and hopefully will one day will be able to just act," he said.

Baker has studied "The Crucible" throughout the course of his education and was originally drawn to the role of John Proctor, the protagonist of the play who is accused of witchcraft and eventually faces the gallows.

But Baker said he has enjoyed fleshing out the part of the conflicted reverend.

One of his favorite lines comes in the final act as Hale tries to atone for his actions.

"Life is God's most precious gift; no principle, however glorious, may justify the taking of it," Hale says in the play.

Like his character, Baker came to the role with "newbie eyes" and has dived into the play along with the rest of the cast of 19, which includes Cassandra Stokes-Wylie as Elizabeth Proctor, David Hanson as John Proctor, Sahara Hayes as Abigail Williams and Max Robinson as Judge Danforth.

Other Utah favorites in the cast include Ron Frederickson, Richard Scharine, Stephen Williams, Toni Byrd, Barb Smith and Jon McBride.

"Everyone else in the show has really brought their A game, and I felt that from the get-go," Baker said. "People may have preconceived notions about what 'The Crucible' is, but they will find something entirely new with this one because everyone in the cast is very, very talented, and I'm really excited to be able to see how that comes across with the audience."

Related reading

In addition to the show, the Grand Theatre presents a free lecture by Joseph McCarthy scholar David Oshinsky, who discusses his 1983 book "A Conspiracy So Immense: The World of Joe McCarthy" and how it relates to the theater's production of "The Crucible."

Ochinsky will be speaking at noon March 7 in the Oak Room at the Salt Lake Community College Taylorsville/Redwood Campus, 4600 S. Redwood Road, Salt Lake City.

Prior to Wednesday's opening performance, Ochinsky will continue the conversation at 6 p.m. on the Grand Theatre stage in a question-and-answer session moderated by two SLCC faculty members.

The discussion will focus on Oshinsky's insight about the McCarthy era and how it influenced Miller and other artists of the time.

The events with Oshinsky are free and open to the public.