UArts / Pig Iron Devised PerformanceAttending the UArts/Pig Iron Devised Performance Program allowed me to immerse myself in theater-making and expand my artistic vocabulary. The 5-semester program is a rigorous training ground and a crucible for creation. I became known as a stalwart collaborator with a keen sense of storytelling. My work was consistently included in public showings.
Highlights from the intensive 2nd year of the program include Quick Dick, a hilarious modern mask piece; Peter/Weiner, a grotesque satire; The Educational Industrial Complex, a scathing critique in the bouffon genre; The Withers' Family Traveling Extravaganza, a red nose clown show; and the tragicomic solo cabaret performance, Do You Realize? I was also featured in 4th semester capstone projects by other members of my cohort. Two of them are pictured below. My own student capstone projects—In The South, and Visitation—are featured on separate pages of this site. Production stills by Lindsay Brown, courtesy Pig Iron School. |
The Withers' Family Traveling Extravaganza
This red nose clown show features Clementine (Sarah A. Gardner), the sole survivor of a family variety show, and her faithful Preston Tuttle. The piece stood out for its sensitive storytelling, character work, and an extraordinary slapstick cascade by the hardworking but hapless Preston. I was invited to portray Preston and recreate his trademark slapstick cascade for Revolution Shakespeare Company.
The Troubadours, My Whisper Became a Howl, and Do You Realize?
In Sarah A. Gardner's capstone project, The Troubadours, I play Oscar, a member of a musical ensemble who can't quite get the show started—despite the extraordinary efforts of their self-appointed manager, Ann (without-an-E). (Sarah A. Gardner, Ashley Demain, and Sterling Melcher) In Sterling Melcher's surreal, My Whisper Grew Into a Howl, I'm the protagonist's enigmatic guide—or perhaps captor. In my solo-devised tragicomic cabaret, Do You Realize? I play Neil Armstrong Claybourne, whose personal and professional setbacks have led him back to the workplace one last time. I was invited to reprise this funny and poignant work at Pig Iron Theater's annual fundraiser.
Peter / Weiner
This grotesque (a genre closely related to the bouffon) satirizes the shameless prurience of the news media and the ridiculous figures in the headlines—in this case, Peter Theil and Anthony Weiner (Andrew Olewine and Donna Jean "DJ" Fogel). I play news anchor John Matthew Scott, who has a voice of gold and a heart of filth.
The Educational Industrial Complex
In the bouffon piece, Educational Industrial Complex, I played the head coach of a sports-obsessed university in this scathing critique of the higher educational system. (Sarah A. Gardner, Sterling Melcher, Courtney Cooke)
Prison Break and Quick Dick
Pig Iron cultivated my passion for mask making and mask work. In Jail Break, the much-abused Reggie finally turns the tables on his bickering cell-mates (Devin Preston and Larema Russell). Quick Dick was a masked tour de force set in the Old West. I play saloon proprietor, Bauregard, who has recently been deputized to defend against the outlaw Richard "Quick Dick" McGripp (Sarah A. Gardner). "Bo" and his witless assistant Durwood (Devin Preston) are a classic comic duo, and the town's most unlikely heroes.