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THEATRE
ARTS FACULTY
(listed
in alphabetically)
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Jenifer
Alonzo
Jenifer
Alonzo, a multi-disciplinary theatre artist,
is particularly
interested in the collaborative creation of new work for the stage
and in the creation of image-based theatre. She is currently working
with deaf and hearing collaborators on a visual adaptation of A
Streetcar Named Desire for all audiences (including: deaf, hearing,
and non-English-speaking) in the D.C./Baltimore area.
Ms.
Alonzo holds an MFA in Theatre from Towson University. Her thesis
focused on undergraduate training in the collaborative creation
of site-specific and image-based work. Additionally, Ms. Alonzo
has developed theatre workshops for professionals who wish to employ
the tools of the actor to strengthen their work in health care,
teaching, and law.
As
a director, Ms. Alonzo seeks to create collaborative opportunities
for designers and actors to work more closely together. Ms. Alonzo’s
current project is Aristophanes Birds at ODU, through which student
actors and designers will work in direct collaboration to create
CloudCuckooLand's Center'sinhabitants. Ms. Alonzo is also a designer;
her designs have appeared on the Towson University Stage, at the
Baltimore Theatre Project, and on The Kennedy Center’s Millennium
Stage. Ms Alonzo wrote and performed Flying Blind, which she also
produced at Towson University, and she has performed in more than
30 productions since she began acting at the age of eight.
Ms.
Alonzo teaches Experimental Theatre, Theatre History, Performance
and Script Analysis, the Theatre Experience, and the Creative Self.
As a teacher, Ms. Alonzo is interested in developing pedagogy that
encourages theatre-students to develop skills that allow them to
function as flexible artists and self-reliant professionals.
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Katherine
Hammond
Director
of Theatre. Katherine Hammond is an actress, director, teacher and
digital media artist who was born in Louisville, Kentucky. She has
worked in the arts all of her adult life, although her career has
taken many divergent paths through the disciplines. Her work has run
the gamut from academic to commercial. After graduating from the University
of Louisville a Bachelor's in both English and Theatre, she went on
to study at the Webber Douglas Academy of Drama and Music in London,
UK. She received her the base of her movement training during this
time, becoming a member of the British Society of Fight Directors.
Upon her return to the states, Katherine spent twelve years in the
U.S. Regional Equity Theatres performing and directing in 39 states
and 3 countries. She received her MFA in the Theatre & Dramatic
Media in 2002 at the University of Georgia, where she mastered the
arts of digital editing programs such as Premiere and Final Cut Pro.
Her specialty is digital editing and webcasting, but she also gained
experience in sensored, multi-media, live performance. While in Georgia
she also continued her work in the field of documentary, receiving
a grant from the Institute of Creative Exploration that allowed her
to travel to Mexico with a team of educational researchers to document
rural education and its effects on immigration. She has worked as
a Production Manager on such television events as the Kennedy Center
Honors, the Emmy's and the Academy Awards and as Production Coordinator
for The Weird Al Show and The Rosie O'Donnell HBO Special and Project
Coordinator at 20th Century Fox's Photo Archives.
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Christopher
Hanna
Currently the Artistic Director of
the Virginia Stage Company (LORT-C) in residence at the historic
Wells Theatre in downtown Norfolk, Christopher Hanna's experience
has encompassed both academic and professional theatre, alternating
assignments as director, teacher, and producer. He began his career
as an administrative intern at Hartford Stage Company while earning
a BA in Theatre and English from Trinity College, Connecticut. His
first New York assignment was as assistant to producer Joseph Papp
at the New York Shakespeare Festival; he worked in a variety of
capacities on the festival's Broadway productions of "A Chorus Line"
and "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide when the Rainbow
Is Enough," and on its productions of "Shakespeare in Central Park."
He
received his MFA in Directing at the University of California, San
Diego, under the late Alan Schneider (original director of both
"Waiting for Godot" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?") and followed
Schneider to London as assistant director of the world premier of
Beckett's "Rockabye" (subsequently performed at both the National
Theatre of Great Britain and La Mama, etc.) in New York City. Hanna
stayed on in England to serve as a literary assistant at the prestigious
Royal Court Theatre, and toured to the Edinburgh Festival with the
avant garde British company, Lumiere and Son. Upon returning
to the United States, Hanna served as assistant director for John
Houseman's "The Acting Company" on nationally toured productions
of Beckett's "Krapp's Last Tape," "Come and Go," and "Play." He
directed the premier of Frank Higgins' "Never Say Die" Off-Off Broadway,
and carried out support assignments for the Society of Stage Directors
and Choreographers.
In
1982, Hanna began an eight-year engagement as associate artistic
director of the Virginia Stage Company, a professional Equity theatre
in Norfolk. In addition to directing the plays of Williams, Shaw,
O'Neill, and Churchill on the main stage of the historic Wells Theatre,
Hanna also coordinated the theatre's well-known new plays program.
He directed the premieres of work by Harry Kondoleon and Allan Havis,
which earned the theatre and its writers awards from the National
Endowment of the Arts, the Guggenheim Foundation, the Rockefeller
Foundation of the Dramatist Guild, CBS Television, and HBO. Hanna
also headed the company's Professional Theatre School and taught
scene study to area actors.
Hanna
began his association with the theatre program at Old Dominion University
in 1984, teaching adjunct classes in acting while in Norfolk with
the Virginia Stage Company. Between 1984 and 1991, he directed scripts
by Shakespeare, Chekhov, Synge, and Bond for the university. He
returned to Old Dominion as Assistant Professor of Theatre in 1993,
and has continued his directing there with works by Wilder, Gogol,
Guare, Moliere, and Kushner. He regularly teaches Advanced Acting
and Directing courses for the theatre program.
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Elwood
Robinson
Elwood Robinson
is the Facilities Manager for the theatre complex at Old Dominion
University . In addition to overseeing the day to day operations
of the theatre plant he designs (scenery and lighting) several shows
each year for both the theatre and dance aspects of the Theatre
Arts Program, the Governor's School of the Arts (Dance and Opera)
and visiting Dance Companies who perform in the University Theatre
performance space. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Stephens
College in 1980 and has worked in New York at the Public Theatre
and designed Off-Off Broadway. Prior to his position at ODU, Mr.
Robinson has worked in San Francisco, North Carolina, Iowa, and
Missouri. He served as a member of the staff at the Virginia Stage
Company (LORT C) but is best known locally for his designs at the
Generic Theatre where he was resident designer for six years. Mr.
Robinson says of ODU, "The students here are great and their
energy and creativity are what make this job a joy.
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Stephen
Pullen
Stephen Pullen
received his BA in theatre and film from Brigham Young Univesity
and his Advanced Certificate in Classical Acting from the London
Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. While in London, his original
play, "Hombre y Hombre" was selected by the Questor's
Theatre of Hammersmith as one of its "Best New Plays"
and received a production at this West End theatre under the patronage
of Dame Judi Dench. Following LAMDA, Stephen organized a theatre
company which produced two original plays at the Edinburgh Fringe
Festival in Scotland. Both plays found enthusiastic audiences and
received critical acclaim.
Stephen
returned to the United States to undertake coursework in film and
television production at the University of Southern California which
culminated in an MFA. While at USC, he was the recipient of the
Jack Nicholson Award for Excellence in Directing. Stephen's first
script, SALLY LOVED ME, was optioned by producer David Wyler soon
after graduating from USC. His second script, ABSOLUTION, was optioned
by Howard "Hawk" Koch and Susan Sarandon. Over the ensuing
several years, Stephen continued to option and sell his original
work and also worked under contract at MGM, Paramount, Sony, Warner
Bros., and Fox.
Stephen
joined the faculty at Old Dominion University in the Fall of 2004.
He teaches courses in Screenwriting, Film/Video Production, and
Acting for Film, Television and Stage. In addition to his teaching
duties, Stephen directs for the department's mainstage theatre season.
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Konrad
Winters
Konrad Winters
is a Production Designer and Director of Technical Production at
Old Dominion University and teaches courses in Film and Theatre
Design and Production. Prior to his arrival at Old Dominion University
in 1986, Mr. Winters taught theatre design and technical production
at the University of Houston-Clear Lake (Tx.), Mankato State University
(Minn.), and Chadron State College (Nebr.).
Mr.
Winters’ academic background includes a Bachelor of Science in Education
from Concordia Teachers College (Nebr.) with an emphasis in Speech
and Drama, a Master of Science in Theatre and a Master of Fine Arts
in Scenic Design (1982) from Illinois State University (Ill.). Mr.
Winters has been teaching design and technical production on the
college level since 1976 and has designed and constructed over 100
theatrical productions in both academic and commercial venues.
Konrad
Winters’ professional credits include Producing Director of the
Houston Shaw Festival, Scenic and/or Lighting designs for: Magic
2000 at the Virginia International Waterfront Festival, The Virginia
Ballet Theatre, Contemporary Ballet Theatre of Williamsburg, Virginia,
High Frequency Wavelengths Dance Company, (New York City, NY), The
San Jacinto Ballet (Houston, Texas), The Houston Shaw Festival,
and the Opera and Theatre divisions of the Virginia Governor’s School
of the Arts.
Mr. Winters recently served as a member of the National Board of
Directors ( Director at Large) for the United
States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) where he also
served as the immediate past National Commissioner for Education.
Mr. Winters is also a member of the Chesapeake Section of USITT.
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EMERITUS
FACULTY
Dr.
Erlene Hendrix
Dr. Hendrix received her Ph.D. in Theatre from the University
of Missouri, where her emphases were on acting theory and experimental
theatre. She has also studied acting with Lee Worley, a founding
member of the internationally known Open Theatre company, and
Pablo Vela, an actor and co-director with Meredith Monk and Monk's
acclaimed experimental company, The House. Hendrix has published
articles on the Open Theatre, Meredith Monk, and Djuna Barnes,
and performance reviews for Theatre Journal. Her work on Joseph
Chaikin, Open Theatre director and author of The Presence of the
Actor, a major work of acting theory first published during the
1970s, is cited by Mr. Chaikin in Joseph Chaikin and Sam Shepard:
Letters and Texts, 1972-1984, and in Eileen Blumenthal's Joseph
Chaikin: Exploring the Boundaries of Theatre. She was invited
by Mr. Chaikin to be a presenter at the 1983 Open Theatre Conference,
celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the theatre's founding,
and at the 1987 Edwin Booth Award ceremony honoring Mr. Chaikin.
At
Old Dominion University, Dr. Hendrix served as Acting Chair and
then as Chair of the Department of Communication and Theatre Arts
for five years, and as Theatre Coordinator for nine years. During
that time, she was instrumental in leading the theatre program
to develop a Guest Artist program of directors from the professional
theatre, to participate in the American College Theatre Festival,
and to receive accreditation by the National Association of Schools
of Theatre. She was also instrumental in introducing the experimental
acting techniques and performance styles of Tadashi Suzuki and
Anne Bogart to ODU students and the Hampton Roads community.
Dr.
Hendrix has directed over forty plays, and received the 1998 Port
Folio award for Best Director in the Hampton Roads region. Early
in her theatre career she acted in a number of productions, appearing
as Hedda in Hedda Gabler, Antigone in Antigone, Rosalind in As
You Like It, Claire in The Maids, Jean Brodie in The Prime of
Miss Jean Brodie, among other roles. She presently teaches acting,
improvisation and collaborative creation, and history/theory classes
at Old Dominion University. She also advises all theatre majors
and minors about their academic programs.
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ADJUNCT
FACULTY
(listed
in alphabetically)
Shawn
Crawford
Steve
Earle
Steve J. Earle is Chair of the Theatre Department
at the Governor's School for the Arts and the Associate Director
of the Workshop Theatre Group in Norfolk. He has been an actor and
director for over twenty-five years.
Acting
credits include the Virginia Stage Company, Theatre IV, Swift Creek
Mill Playhouse, Richmond Triangle Players, and numerous other theatres.
Television
credits include F.B.I. Files, Interpol, and commercial work. Directing
credits include The Cripple of Inishmaan, The Who’s Tommy,
Galileo, Boys in the Band, Marriage of Bette ‘n Boo, Deranged
Durang, Tempest, Playboy of the Western World, Dracula, Heathen
Valley, 1984, The Investigation, and several others.
Mr.
Earle holds an M.F.A. from Virginia Commonwealth University and
a B.F.A. from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte. He has
also studied at the Gaiety School for Acting in Dublin, Ireland
and he studied "The Meisner Technique" with Jon Ruskin
of the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York and with Janet Wilson
of the Firehouse Theatre in Richmond, VA.
Before
coming to Norfolk., Mr. Earle taught at Longwood College, The Governor’s
School for Visual and Performing Arts at the University of Richmond,
Virginia Commonwealth University and the School for the Performing
Arts in the Richmond Community as well as other places. Steve is
a member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers.
Keith
Flippen
Keith Flippen is a professional film, television,
and voiceover actor with 20 years of experience and teaches courses
in Voice, Dialects, and Acting for the Camera.
Shortly
after he graduated from Virginia Tech with BA in Theatre Arts, Keith
Flippen participated in a Soviet-American Actor Exchange program
at the National Theater Institute in Connecticut in 1990. Upon his
return to Virginia Beach from the Leningrad State Institute of Theatre
Music and Film, Mr. Flippen appeared in a number of critically acclaimed
roles in local and regional theatre and in early 1992, booking his
first major television job on CBS's The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
.
That
fall , Mr. Flippen returned to Russia as the U.S. Administrator
of the Russian American Theatre for several months working in St.
Petersburg, Moscow and Minsk to produce plays for children in the
country of Byelorus. Mr. Flippen's film credits include The Wire
(HBO), American Gothic (CBS), Minority Report, Dawson's Creek (WB),
Surface (NBC), Virus , as well as the Emmy Award winning From the
Earth to the Moon (miniseries) and Iron Jawed Angels , both for
HBO. Recently, Mr. Flippen appeared in ABC's Same as it Never Was
with Lacey Chabert and Wendi Malik as well as in CBS's Heartless
with Melanie Griffith and Esai Morales. Mr. Flippen has just finished
shooting Ruffian for ABC/ESPN with Sam Shepard which will air on
ABC in July 2007. Over the years Mr. Flippen has been a talent agent,
produced television commercials, theatre administrator, professional
dialect coach, and is currently owner of The Actors' Place, Inc.,
a private acting school in VA Beach.
John
Forte
John
Forte is currently a Producer/Director with Coastal Training Technologies
and has directed over 200 professional films and videos in his 20
plus years at Coastal. Coastal Training Technologies is an international
training organization recognized as one of the world's leading training
product publishers.
Mr.
Forte is an award-winning and celebrated director in the film industry,
having received numerous awards of distinction such as The International
Film and Video Festival Award, The Golden Eagle Award, The Telly
Award, The New York Festival Award, and The Aurora Award. He is
well respected nationally within in the training industry and as
a founding member of the Virginia Production Alliance (the Hampton
Roads affiliate of the Virginia Film Office). As an adjunct instructor
at Old Dominion University Mr. Forte continues to contribute significantly
as a mentor to rising film and video students in the region.
Mr.
Forte' teaches the Corporate Filmmaking course for advanced filmmakers.
Patrick
Mullins
Gerald
Schwarz
Gerald
M. Schwarz hails from Salzburg (Austria), where he also received
his Magister philosophiae from Paris Lodron University. Between
1989 and 1992 he served on the faculty of this institution, while
also becoming an assistant professor for dramaturgy in the drama
division of the renowned Mozarteum University there (through 1998).
Since then, he has relocated to the Hampton Roads area, where he
lives with his wife and two children.
Since 1981, Mr. Schwarz has directed over 50 theatrical productions
on the professional, college, and amateur level, in his native German,
French and English, with a growing interest in forms that mix spoken
drama with music. Authors whose work he has directed include Edward
Albee, Elias Canetti, Miguel de Cervantes, Anton Chekhov, Hélène
Cixous, Carlo Goldoni, Bernard-Marie Koltès, Gotthold Ephraim
Lessing, Molière, Cole Porter, Arthur Schnitzler, William
Shakespeare, Botho Strauß, Johann Strauß, Tristan Tzara
and Boris Vian.
Dramaturgical work includes adaptations and translations (German
- English, English - German, Italian - German, French - German)
of several plays; work as a theatre critic for numerous publications
in Austria; guest stints at the Juilliard School and Classic Stage
Company, both in New York City, and the Mark Taper Forum, L.A.;
as well as facilitating panel discussions for several international
theatre festivals in Europe.
Mr. Schwarz has also served as artistic director of a series of
theatre companies (ensemble "les acteurs", 1981 - 1986);
Theater SCHAUKASTEN (1989 - 1996); Théâtre Français
de l'Université de Salzbourg (1985 -1992); and, most recently,
the Elizabeth River Theatre Company (2000-05 and again since May
2006).
Classes Mr. Schwarz has been teaching as an adjunct in ODU's theatre
program include Theatre History, Theatre Experience, and Dramaturgy.
Jeni
Schaefer
Jeni Schaefer is the resident Costume Designer and
Studio Manager at the Virginia Stage Company (LORTA-D), Norfolk,
Virginia. She has been an adjunct faculty member with the Theatre
Program since 2005 and teaches courses in Costume Design and Technology.
Angela
Winters
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