Tag Archives: instructor

Interview

Kyle Haden of Ashland New Plays Festival

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For over a quarter century, The Ashland New Plays Festival has presented the work of exceptional playwrights in a fall festival of dramatic readings of new plays.

Now there is Play4Keeps, a free podcast of recorded plays that can be accessed on computers and iPhones.

Over 30 plays have been recorded. Recordings are done in Ashland using local actors, many from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The recordings are expertly produced and narrated by Jim Pagliosotti.

I spoke with Kyle Haden, artistic director of the Ashland New Plays Festival, by telephone.

KH: We started Play4Keeps a year and a half ago to take the next step in what ANPF does: promote playwrights to get their work out there and to reach a broader audience. There are a lot of people outside of this area interested in what we are doing. This is a way to spread that reach. Continue reading Kyle Haden of Ashland New Plays Festival →

Interview

Damien Genardi on finding your resonance

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DSC_1105 (5)Opera singer Damien Genardi recently opened The Resonant You Studio on North Main Street in Ashland.

Genardi, who sang with the Portland Opera for a decade and taught voice for 15 years, is also a photographer and cinematographer. His philosophy is, “The world is on fire. Art is the answer.”

We met at his vocal and spiritual healing studio, complete with digital healing pools, magnetic treatment mats and Tibetan singing bowls.

 

DG: I love to sing everything, jazz and everything.

EH: How were you first introduced to music?

DG: When I was 1 year old, my mom and dad gave me a record player and all my own music. I listened all day long to jazz, Billie Holliday, Aretha Franklin, Sarah Vaughn, a lot of Motown, and kids’ stuff. I loved music. Continue reading Damien Genardi on finding your resonance →

Interview

Backstage: Character revealed by movement

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Suzanne Seiber is the choreographer for Brava! Opera Theater’s “Hansel and Gretel.” Seiber holds a Master of Arts degree in dance from the University of Oregon with a focus on movement training for actors. She teaches dance and choreographs in numerous settings including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Oregon Cabaret Theatre and Southern Oregon University. We chatted one morning at The Growler Guys in Ashland.

EH: How do you choreograph plays?

SS: A lot of it is character movement. As a theater choreographer you work with, “Who is this?” “What kind of movement is going to show who they are?” “What’s the mood of that particular moment?” and, “What’s going to make it pop?” It’s also about getting into patterns, to give a sense of the time, the place, the character, and then embody the music.

Suzanne Seiber is the choreographer for Brava! Opera Theater’s “Hansel and Gretel.” Seiber holds a Master of Arts degree in dance from the University of Oregon with a focus on movement training for actors. She teaches dance and choreographs in numerous settings including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Oregon Cabaret Theatre and Southern Oregon University. We chatted one morning at The Growler Guys in Ashland.

EH: How do you choreograph plays?

SS: A lot of it is character movement. As a theater choreographer you work with, “Who is this?” “What kind of movement is going to show who they are?” “What’s the mood of that particular moment?” and, “What’s going to make it pop?” It’s also about getting into patterns, to give a sense of the time, the place, the character, and then embody the music.

Continue reading Backstage: Character revealed by movement →

Interview

Backstage: Jazz offers a lot to riff about

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Ed Dunsavage, artistic director of the Siskiyou Institute, promotes jazz and jazz studies throughout the Rogue Valley. He is also a guitar instructor at Southern Oregon University. We met at Boulevard Coffee to talk about jazz.

ED: The guitarist Frank Zappa had a great quote: “Jazz isn’t dead, it just smells funny.” Like classical music, it’s probably in the 2 to 3 percent range of what people listen to. Jazz, as an art form, is recognized worldwide. It’s more appreciated in Europe and Asia than here.

EH: Is there a difference between jazz and classical musicians?

ED: I think there is a difference in terms of attitude, from the classical approach to the jazz approach; they’re different worlds. Classical musicians are amazing sight readers and interpreters of music, but if you ask them, “Can you improvise over these chord changes?” that’s a whole different thing.

Continue reading Backstage: Jazz offers a lot to riff about →