OT T ERB E IN T HEAT R E & DAN C E ALUM NI N E T WO R K
OTAND Quarterly
Issue 1 - February 2017
“We connect. We inspire. We imagine.” Christina Kirk Chair, Department of Theatre Dance
Department Chair’s Message It is a distinct pleasure to engage with you, our Otterbein alums, in my new capacity as Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance. Having been teaching at Otterbein since 1992, I am certainly not new to the university or to this department, but as I look forward and imagine what might be, I can’t help but look back and be thankful to each of you for being part of something so significant. We make more than theatre. We connect. We inspire. We imagine. In fact, we spent most of last year imagining an entirely new organizational structure for our department. TJ Gerckens, our resident lighting designer and an Otterbein alum of 1982, is now serving as Associate Chair of the department and Associate Producer of our University Theatre. Rob Johnson, our resident scenic designer and faculty member since 1985, now serves as Associate Artistic Director. Elizabeth Saltzgiver, Audience Services Director since 2000, has expanded her role and continues to be a critical partner in our leadership team. Lenny Leibowitz, a director and faculty member who joined us in 2014, is serving as Artistic Director of Otterbein Summer Theatre. I play the roles of Producer/Artistic Director for University Theatre and of Co-Producer with Elizabeth Saltzgiver of Otterbein Summer Theatre. It takes a village to replace John Stefano! It has been thrilling to see so much momentum from our alumni to stay connected and involved with your alma mater and with our current students. We have had alums from every degree plan and from multiple decades back on campus this year conducting master classes and common hours, bringing their knowledge, expertise and enthusiasm to our very grateful and eager students. Alums, some of whom hadn’t returned to campus since graduation, joined us at Homecoming, sharing stories from the golden era with Pop and Doc and updating us on their incredible life journeys and impressive accomplishments – some theatre related and some having nothing to do with the theatre! Our NYC alums have been enormously generous with their time in helping our Showcase students as they launch into their careers.
From the Board It has been an exciting journey thus far in establishing OTAND as a recognized and supported organization on campus. Even more encouraging is the response from alumni, who have already participated in special events and started working through “alumni hubs” to help solidify efforts in our core pillars of the organization – Networking, Mentorship, Recruitment and Fundraising. Through our efforts with OTAND, we will strengthen communication within our Otterbein family. Together we will find unique and rewarding ways to grow professionally and encourage and support one another as we give back and pay forward. Please help us reconnect by spreading the word about OTAND and special events happening on and off campus. It is our hope to create alumni hubs in locations across the country similar to those that we have established in New York and Central Ohio. If you are interested in being a part of that, feel free to contact me via OTAND@otterbein.edu. Thanks in advance for your efforts and energy in helping to make OTAND a successful organization. - James C. Minter (‘92), OTAND Chair
OTAND Executive Board CHAIR/AT LARGE REPRESENTATIVE
- James C. Minter (‘92)
ACTING REPRESENTATIVE
- Caitlin Morris (‘09)
AT LARGE REPRESENTATIVE
- Trenton I. Weaver (‘11)
BA REPRESENTATIVE - Randy Adams (‘76) DANCE MINOR REPRESENTATIVE
- Kelsey Gorman (‘13)
We honor our past as we look to the future. Whether your path has taken you to Broadway, to television, film, regional or community theatre, or to careers in education, law, nursing, business, or other pursuits, we are so very glad to have you as part of the Otterbein family. I look forward to the future we can imagine together.
DEPARTMENT CHAIR - Christina Kirk
- Christina Kirk
DEPARTMENT REPRESENTATIVE
February 2017 - OTAND Quarterly
David Weller (‘78), Pam Hayes (‘78), and Terry Espenschied (‘76) at the Otterbein Theatre & Dance Homecoming Reception, 2016.
DESIGN/TECHNOLOGY REPRESENTATIVE - Sandy Quinn (‘10) MUSICAL THEATRE REPRESENTATIVE
- David Caldwell (‘86)
- Elizabeth Saltzgiver
Contact the Executive Board: OTAND@otterbein.edu
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ALUMNI UPDATE
Cardinals on the Road
Travis Harty (‘10)
Rachel (Reh) Heine (‘13)
Travis Harty graduated from Otterbein with a BA in Theatre and a minor in Music. After graduation, Travis accepted a season-long stage management internship at Actors Theatre of Louisville. He worked on eight shows in one season at Actors and then was brought back as a stage manager for the Humana Festival in both 2012 and 2013. During the summer of 2013, Travis was working at Crossroads Repertory Theatre in Indiana where he met an actor who was going out with the 2013-14 Memphis tour with NETworks. After hearing of his dream of touring, he recommended that Travis submit his resume to NETworks. It turned out that somebody high up at NETworks knew the Production Stage Manager at Actors Theatre, who spoke highly of Travis, and they hired him as Production Stage Manager for the Memphis tour. After that, Travis went on to stage manage the National Tours of Flashdance the Musical and Once. He’s currently contracted as the Production Stage Manager for the National Tour of 42nd Street through May 2017.
Rachel (Reh) Heine graduated from Otterbein with a BFA in Theatre Design & Technology. Following graduation, she spent two full seasons as a nonequity stage manager at the Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas. Along the way, Reh kept in good contact with friend and fellow alum, Travis Harty. He had been “doing the tour thing” for a couple years, and she hoped to assist him one day. In 2015, Reh made the jump to New York City where she worked on a handful of Off-Broadway productions and a number of large events, including the NYC Marathon every November. She first assisted Travis in New York rehearsals for the National Tour of Once last winter and was overjoyed to accept a full touring opportunity as Assistant Stage Manager/ Assistant Company Manager for 42nd Street this year! - Sandy Quinn (‘10)
OTAND Quarterly caught up with Travis and Reh on January 23rd for a day in the life of touring stage managers for the national tour of “42nd Street.” Here are their schedules from a one-nighter in New Philadelphia, Ohio.
Stay in touch with OTAND! We would love to know what you’re up to these days. Complete your OTAND Update here: www.otterbein.edu/TheatreAlumniUpdate
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February 2017- OTAND Quarterly
“Although the three of us graduated at different times, the professionalism and pure joy for theatre that was cultivated in all of us while students at Otterbein was readily apparent.” - Scott Douglas Wilson (‘02)
Pictured from top left to right, Connor McClennan, David Hemsley Caldwell (‘86), Ralph Scott (‘89), Abigail Worden, Scott Wilson (‘02), Ben Tracy.
Otterbein Theatre Alumni Unite Cracking the case in Columbus Having just finished its run February 12th, at CATCO in Columbus, Ohio, Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery featured Otterbein alumni Actors Scott Douglas Wilson (class of ‘02) and Ralph E. Scott (class of ‘89) and Director David Hemsley Caldwell (class of ‘86). Described by CATCO as a madcap mystery farce, Sherlock Holmes and Watson solve a murder akin to A. Conan Doyles’ novel, The Hound of the Baskervilles. The Columbus Dispatch was rife with praise for all three alumni, describing David’s direction as “deliciously devious, transparently stagy, and archly melodramatic”; turning “aspects of the script into a mock-Victorian mysteryfarce worthy of modern audiences”. The critic considered Scott “ebullient as Watson” and
NYC 101 for Seniors On Sunday February 5th, NYC alumni from all backgrounds came together for an Otterbein organized viewing of the 2017 Senior Showcase. The three hour session was broken up to allow for a preview of the performance, a question and answer panel, and a chance to mingle. Current seniors were able to ask industry-specific questions to producers, performers, and managers.
February 2017 - OTAND Quarterly
credited Ralph Scott’s “madcap dexterity as a marvel to behold”, as he was able to, “plunge into the play’s clever-to-silly spirit with most abandon, perhaps partly because of the range of his roles.”
OTAND Quarterly asked Ralph and Scott to talk about the Otterbein connection. Ralph: “It was a great joy to work with both David and Scott. David was a senior when I was a transfer sophomore at Otterbein. We were in only one show together, My Fair Lady, but knew each other well and admired each other’s work. In my opinion, the best part of the process was seeing little bits of Ed Vaughan. All three of us are students of Ed’s, and his brilliance as a teacher and artist shined through everyday! I believe that is one reason the show has been such a success. It was pure creative joy!”
Scott: “It has been an absolute pleasure working with Ralph and David! I had not worked with either gentleman before rehearsals began for Baskerville, although I had crossed paths briefly with David nearly fifteen years ago at Otterbein, and I remembered Ralph from my time as a student, when he was brought in by Acting professor, Ed Vaughan, to teach workshops on improvisation! I have truly enjoyed the positive spirit, endless ingenuity and humor, and artistic skill that both David and Ralph share in abundance. Although the three of us graduated at different times, the professionalism and pure joy for theatre that was cultivated in all of us while students at Otterbein was readily apparent. This experience has certainly been a fun-filled, theatrical adventure!” - Sandy Quinn (‘10)
Moderated by Christina Kirk, alumni spoke about what casting agents look for in an audition, what to expect in a first meeting with an agent, and recommendations for classes to keep skills sharp. Alumni also shared their best pieces of industry advice. The room was electric with a common desire to educate and encourage these young artists on the beginning of their journeys. Alumni and the NYC Showcase class of 2017 - Sandy Quinn (‘10)
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Coach talks “Business” Recently, we began taking a new approach starting the first semester of freshman year. to provide sequential units on the practicalities of building a career in professional theatre. The goal is to layer-in the building blocks of professional bestpractices as well as to create and reinforce smart personal and professional business habits that can be second-nature by the time our students leave Otterbein. The primary focus at the onset of this work targets Otterbein Performance majors, but we do intend to expand to other concentrations as well.
Faculty Spotlight
Mark Mineart Mark ‘Coach’ Mineart’s professional theatre career spans over 25 years and three continents as an actor, director, and fight choreographer. He has appeared on and Off-Broadway as well as worked at many of the nation’s most well-respected and award-winning regional theatres.
Freshman performers had a unit on resumes, headshots, and auditions nestled into their acting sequence this year, and we will begin threading more audition work in throughout the following semesters. A unit in the first part of the TV/Film sequence is devoted to determining the various ‘types’ that each student can target and expect to be typed as when they move into the professional world. Students are taught an effective method for self-taping auditions, how to edit their classroom scene work, and how these techniques can be applied to the creation of a demo reel. The second part centers around the creation of a short web series which is produced in cooperation with Film Production students as well as students from the Department of Music. This work builds entrepreneurial skills as well as a body of noncopyrighted work that students can use as part of their demo reels.
Matt Wolfe (‘04) and I did a major revamp of the Internship Prep course, which now is more targeted on the “Business of the Business.” A refresher on resumes, headshots, and auditions, as well as how to write a cover letter and construct a CV are covered. Students are charged with the development of knowing who they are as business entities. This includes targetable and specific measureable conditions to define success in addition to the branding and presence of their business on the Internet. All students design and construct professional websites and secure business-only email addresses and social media accounts which they are required to populate for the course. The class tackles survival jobs, making auditions more useful, how to network without feeling dirty, staying sane while pursuing work, and how to behave on the job so as to get hired again. We have also expanded internship prep to include sessions with Actors Equity representatives as well as NYC real estate brokers. Our goal is to complement the exceptional performance training Otterbein provides with equally useful head-start information on how to best become and remain a working professional. - Mark Mineart
Classically trained, he has portrayed many of the great characters of western theatre, among them Cyrano de Bergerac, Macbeth, Cassius in Julius Caesar, Touchstone in As You Like It, Caliban in The Tempest, and Lennie in Of Mice & Men. He has created roles in premiere productions by such playwrights as Jane Martin and Eric Cobble, and even had roles written for him by Arthur Kopit. Mark has appeared in feature films, television programs and worked as a performance capture artist for video games. He served as head of the Acting faculty at the American University in Cairo from 2011-2015 and joined the Otterbein Performance faculty in the fall of 2015. Mark will direct Damn Yankees at Otterbein this spring. He teaches Introduction to Acting, Stage Combat, Acting Shakespeare, Acting Styles, Acting for TV/Film I & II, and ‘The Business of ‘the Business.’ Find Mark online at www.MarkMineart.com
The Cap & Dagger Executive Team, pictured from left: Morgan Wood (‘18), Ethan Wintgens (‘19), Hannah Pohlman (‘18), Ben Folts (‘18), Lauren DiMario (‘18), Nick Hahn (‘18), Chris Smith (‘19). Not Pictured: Lottie Prenevost (‘18), Savannah Schakett (‘20), and Olivia Crawford (‘18).
Cap & Dagger
We’ve been hard at work this year to unify the students in the department since the degree plans have very different schedules that don’t often overlap. Cap & Dagger has organized several events to accomplish this, including our annual Pumpkin Carving in October and Grab-A-Cookie-N-Go close to finals week during the fall semester. We have more coming up - there’s even talk of an Easter Egg Hunt in Cowan later on during the Spring Semester! In order to support the emotional and mental health of our department, Cap & Dagger officers regularly check in with the students in the degree plans they represent so that we can continue to boost morale and put smiles on students’ faces when times are rough! - Morgan Wood (‘18), Cap and Dagger President
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February 2017- OTAND Quarterly
DEPARTMENT NEWS
OST 2017
Epic Imagination, Intimate Encounters Newly appointed Artistic Director, Lenny Leibowitz, is re-imagining the creative possibilities for Otterbein Summer Theatre’s 51st season, which he has dubbed “Epic Imagination, Intimate Encounters.” “We’re beginning a new chapter in our story, and entering a new era of artistic enterprise. This season, we will stage two of the most captivating musicals ever written with a dynamite company of our very own Otterbein students working both onstage and behind the scenes,” Lenny Leibowitz explained. The season will open with My Fair Lady which will feature a resourceful cast of eleven, many playing multiple roles, and a radically re-imagined scenic design that eschews elaborate set changes, placing primacy instead on actor-driven ingenuity and a joyous sense of theatricality. The production will be staged in the small, 237 seat on-stage arrangement in the Fritsche Theatre at Cowan Hall by Leibowitz himself with Music Direction by Lori Kay Harvey and Choreography by Stella Hiatt Kane. The production will run June 1-24. “I love the challenge of re-envisioning a big musical in a small space; it can be a thrilling, exhilarating experience for audiences and artists alike to encounter a show like My Fair Lady in a setting much more intimate than they may be accustomed to when experiencing a large-scale musical,” Leibowitz explained.
The summer season will continue with the Neil Simon, Marvin Hamlisch collaboration of They’re Playing Our Song, July 6-22 in Riley Auditorium in the Battelle Fine Arts Center, Otterbein University’s Music Building. The big-hearted musical will be led by Director Melissa Lusher, Music Director Dennis Davenport and Choreographer Kane. Set in the 1970’s, They’re Playing Our Song is a funny, romantic musical about an established composer and his relationship with an aspiring young female lyricist. Professionally, their relationship works beautifully, but ultimately leads to conflict on the home front. Of course, there’s a happy ending. The traditionally three-show season will be shortened to just two in order to make way for renovations to the theatrical rigging system in Cowan Hall, but it marks the start of many new, exciting changes. According to Leibowitz, “We plan to maintain our commitment to providing our students practical pathways to the professional stage. At the same time, we plan to expand our artistic family by returning to the tradition of occasionally bringing in exciting, talented guest artists, enlarging our creative breadth as well as our external reputation.” Other additions will include the introduction of a staged reading series and the commitment to produce big plays and musicals with great stories in a way that defies expectations and transcends conventional thinking. Tickets can be purchased beginning May 15th at www.otterbein.edu/drama. - Elizabeth Saltzgiver
Theatre & Dance
By the Numbers 131 CURRENT STUDENTS
in the Otterbein University Dept. of Theatre & Dance, including 19 students minoring in Dance.
2,507 PRE-SCREEN AUDITIONS
for the 16 spots in the 2017 Freshman Performance Class.
6,436 TICKETS SOLD
for the 2016 production of “Fiddler on the Roof” featuring John Stefano.
41,008 POUNDS
or roughly 8 Dodge Rams, will be the lifting capacity of the Cowan Hall rigging system after summer 2017 renovation.
Alumni Events in NYC: March 27 OHIO ACTOR SHOWCASE NYC ALUMNI RECEPTION featuring the Otterbein University BFA Performance Class of 2017
Monday, March 27 1pm, 3pm & 7pm
hosted by Board Member Pete Bible ‘80, EisnerAmper and Otterbein Theatre & Dance
Monday, March 27 9-11pm
The Irene Diamond Stage Green Fig Urban Eatery At the Pershing Square 570 Tenth Ave. Signature Center 480 W. 42nd St. (bet. 9th & 10th)
Limited Space Available. Please RSVP:
RSVP for any performance: www.otterbein.edu/
www.ohioactorshowcase.com TheatreAlumniEvent
February 2017 - OTAND Quarterly
SHOWCASE Class of 2017 5
Learning the Tiger Rag from “Bullets Over Broadway,” from Corinne Munsch (‘14). Pictured from Left: Erin Ulman (‘16), Bobby Moody (‘16), Madison Tinder (‘15), Natasha Natraj (‘16), Corinne Munsch, Mariah Parris, Rachael Bardnell (‘15), and Haley Jones (‘15) at Ripley-Grier Studios NYC.
Let’s Dance! I have come a long way from my first anxietyfilled dance call, but I am still learning with every audition. Over many early mornings and hundreds of unofficial lists, I conceived a way to use the talents of dancing alumni to help improve our auditioning skills.
Most shows have specific audition rep that is always taught at the call and most competitive auditionees will arrive at the call having already learned it. With this group, we have an opportunity for alumni to share their mastery of dance call repertoire to help one another strut into dance calls more confidently. Lili Froehlich (class of ‘13), who is currently performing on Broadway in Cats, taught our first ever audition combo class for Hamilton. Alumni of all dance abilities showed up in hip hop sneakers to “not throw away our shot” !
This year, we have expanded the group to include alumni taught dance classes as well as audition rep. Our goal is to create a fun, affordable class where Otterbein alumni can come together to dance and learn from one another’s professional experiences. With the amazing teachers we have had so far in 2017, I know this will continue to be a wonderful resource for Otters new and old in New York. - Haley Jones (‘15)
Classes are offered for a suggested donation of $5-15. All donations go toward space rental and teacher compensation. The most accurate class information is available on the Facebook group page, “Alumni That Dance Together, Book Together.” If you are interested in joining the group or teaching, please email Haley at haleyjjones5@gmail.com.
OTAND
Otterbein Theatre & Dance Alumni Network The Otterbein Theatre and Dance Alumni Network will bring together graduates of the Department of Theatre and Dance, as well as alumni who participated in theatre and dance activities before we became an official department, to provide networking support for each other, mentoring of current students, assistance with recruiting and fundraising for the department. “As You Like It” cast members Jim Lewis (standing in back with dark hat), Teri Hiatt Devlin (standing center), Greg Sabatino (sitting left), and Jim Granger (standing right).
From the Archives Homecoming participation is a part of the history and tradition of the Department of Theatre & Dance. A 1966 parade float from the then Department of Speech and Theatre featured the cast of As You Like It, the first production of the 1966-1967 Academic Year in the 60th season of theatre at Otterbein. Department Chair Charles Dodrill was in his eighth year at the helm. As You Like It is one of the most popular and often-produced Shakespeare plays at Otterbein with productions in 1907, 1911, 1927, 1956, 1966, and 1980. - Mark Peters (‘75), Theatre Archivist, & Betty Peters. Both are members of Theatre Advisory Board
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STAY INFORMED
Otterbein Theatre & Dance Alumni Network
IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF OTAND Quarterly: Alumni News from Chicago, Florida, LA & Texas · Cowan Hall Rigging Renovation · Come on Home to Otterbein 2020
STORY IDEAS? Contact Sandy Quinn, Editor: OTAND@otterbein.edu
February 2017- OTAND Quarterly