Artistic Values
Play: Play is wildly important and must always permeate what we do, as long as we also professionally approach our common goal to create a successful artistic product.
Curiosity: Curiosity must undergird the pre-rehearsal, rehearsal and performance experience for the entire length of the artist’s career. The theatre artist must be curious about not only each and every project, but about themselves, their lives, and the world in general. Curiosity must be part of the lifelong learner’s journey.
Diversity: I believe the theatre celebrates, questions, and mirrors the vastness of human experience and expression. Therefore, a robust and vibrant culture must be reflected in its art.
Scientific Method: The theatre artist must have an artistic hypothesis and test it within the world of the play being created in rehearsals and must be happy to fail and try different hypotheses.
Excellence: Always strive for making the finest artistic product as possible and never settle for less than the best one can do.
Honesty: Honesty and authenticity is important in order to create a collaborative environment and in order to access the most excellent work possible.
Professionalism: Excellent work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit are both the entrance fee to success and must always be cultivated and strived for within oneself.
Fiscal Responsibility: Unless it is actually your money, you are spending someone else's. In the not for profit world, we are stewards of the community trust. Respect and live up to that responsibility. Understand you are being paid for a service, understand you must produce quality.
Collaboration: The theatre artist and professional is always a small part of the whole, understanding this is vital to successfully fulfilling one’s role.
Service: The arts is a service industry…service to the art, service to the text, service to the story, service to the character, and service to your community and audience.
Self: Your physical and mental health is vitally important to you as a theatre artist and entrepreneur but cannot be achieved simply through sole focus on your job as an artist. One must have a well-rounded life that promotes one’s own health.
Teaching Philosophy
I believe that a successful theatre artist is one who has a generous and curious mind, loves the richness and adventure of excavating text, and thrives in the alchemy of theatrical storytelling. I believe that it is my role as the teacher to shepherd the student through developing into their own version of what this means. It is my job to help the student experience and understand the building blocks of theatrical rhythm and dramatic action, how to collaborate in order to help create the best story possible, and how to honor the power of the communal experience they are a vital part of creating.
As a base I combine strong ensemble ethic and establish Stanislavski’s approach of building an authentic experience based on text. Around this environment of team work and collaboration, understanding of dramatic action and theatrical authenticity, I instill the artistic version of the scientific method in order to excavate and cultivate from the text the most captivating story possible.
It is important to me that the theatre artist understands the profession he or she is taking part in and that from janitor to board member everyone is an important part of the audience’s theatrical experience. In addition to this professionalism it is also important for me that theatre artists understand the work ethic and realities of building a career in the field. I want students to be artistically and technically prepared to do great work on stage as well as cultivate within themselves the work ethic and business acumen to succeed as the theatrical entrepreneurs they must become in order to succeed.