Expressive Writing
Prerequisite: None
Learn to think like a writer through a combination of craft and creativity exercises. Work on important technical aspects of writing, such as conflict, characterization, point of view, the revision process, and the art of observation. Benefit from a friendly workshop environment, where you will share prose and poetry daily. Experience the exhilaration of oration at public readings at the end of June Session and at Sun Celebration.
NOTE: Participants are asked to bring at least one sample of their writing to the first class. This should be a piece you are most proud of, or one you would like to improve.
Song Writing
Prerequisite: None
“There’s something on your mind you wanna be saying/That somebody someplace oughta be hearing,/ But it’s trapped on your tongue and sealed in your head/and it bothers you badly when you’re laying in bed.”
If these words from Bob Dylan strike a chord with you, the new Song Writing course may be just the thing. Learn the basic craft of song writing—lyrics, music, any genre—through creative and technical exercises in: poetic forms and devices; basic song forms, styles, and arrangements; co-writing; collaboration; revising; and recording/producing. Capture the music of your mind for the world’s ear at the end of June Session, by professionally recording one of your co-written songs.
At the culmination of this class, participants will have the opportunity to make a recording of a song created in class at the professional recording studios of Video Arts Studios, Fargo. This recording session will be scheduled for each student outside of June Session class time.
NOTE: Participants are asked to bring at least one lyric sample or recorded original music to the first class—either to share and/or to work on over the course of the session.
Important Notes:
Placement Verification:
This will ensure all students in a vocal music class are at a similar skill level, which will maximize learning. Any student registered up for a Level 2 or above Vocal Music course, MUST participate in this process on Monday, June 9, 1:00-4:00 pm. Your course level selection will be verified (or modified) based upon skills demonstrated at this session.
The Vocal Music Placement Verification process will involve warm up exercises, scales, and solo singing in an effort to determine each student’s vocal range and singing skill set. Bring a prepared song to sing, with sheet music for the accompanist. For Musical Theatre, session activities will also include vocalizing scales and singing through 16 bars of appropriate musical theatre material. Come prepared with 16 bars of song, with sheet music. If there are any level modifications to a student’s schedule based upon skills demonstrated on Placement Verification Day, the student will be notified via phone Monday, June 9 by 9:00 pm. If a student is not contacted, their course choices are appropriate for their skill level.
Classes begin on Tuesday, June 10.
Important Notes:
Placement Verification:
Any student registered for a Level 2 or above theatre course, MUST participate in the Placement Verification process on Monday, June 9, 1:00-4:00 pm, Trollwood Park. This will ensure all students in a theatre class are at a similar skill level, which will maximize learning. Your course level selection will be verified (or modified) based upon skills demonstrated at this session.
The Theatre Placement Verification process involves a brief interview, physical and vocal warm ups, theatre and improv games, and exercises to determine each student’s performance ability level and acting skill set. If there are any level modifications to a student’s schedule based upon skills demonstrated on Placement Verification Day, the student will be notified via phone by Monday, June 9 by 9:00 pm. If a student is not contacted, their course choices are appropriate for their skill level.
Classes begin on Tuesday, June 10.
Note: All courses are repeatable, but priority for class enrollment will be given to students who have not taken the class before.
Important Notes:
Safety Practices:
All technical theatre study work is carried out under strict safety practices. Therefore, Students must complete safety instruction on the care and use of all hand and power tools, equipment, and materials prior to being allowed to use them. Students will be expected to use hand tools, power tools and machines, electrical equipment, computers, paint, chemicals, foam, and other construction materials appropriate to the area of study as part of their coursework. Any student who abuses or misuses any TPAS tools, equipment, or materials will not be allowed further access to the item, which may affect their ability to complete required coursework and thus result in a failing grade for the course on the student’s permanent transcript.
Footwear:
Proper footwear must be worn during all technical theatre classes and work or construction sessions to ensure maximum safety for participants. Proper footwear constitutes closed toe and covered heel shoes, and may include athletic shoes, boots, loafers or street shoes. Proper footwear should form to the foot and not be “loose,” nor allow for movement of the foot inside the shoe. Sandals, flip flops, open-backed, and some slip-on shoes are not adequate footwear for technical theatre classes and work sessions.
Video Production
Prerequisite: None
Priority for class enrollment will be given to students who have not taken this class before.
Learn to write, produce, direct, shoot, perform, and edit—and when you’re done, you’ll have produced “Trollwood News at Noon,” June Session’s weekly TV program created entirely by Trollwood students. Class members work in hands-on situations in both field production and studio settings, and complete post-production editing on computers using digital, non-linear software.
NOTE: This course meets for two consecutive periods. Students must sign up for both periods to be part of this class, and will be responsible for the program fee for both periods (2 classes).
Important Notes
Dance Study:
Solid training in ballet provides an excellent foundation for success in all other dance genres. Trollwood students intending to seriously study dance should include at least one ballet class in their roster of dance classes.
Placement Verification:
All students who are enrolling in specified level 2 or above courses in dance, theatre, or vocal music are required to participate in the Placement Verification on Monday, June 9, 1:00-4:00 pm, Trollwood Park. In order for students to learn as much as possible in their classes at Trollwood, instructors will assess the skill level of each participant. With this information, teachers will verify that each class is composed of students at a similar skill level to maximize the learning experience. This placement process ensures that individual and group advancement will occur at the most effective pace.
If there are any level modifications to a student’s schedule, based upon the Placement Verification, the student will be notified via phone on Monday, June 9 by 9:00 pm. If a student is not contacted, their course choices are appropriate for their skill level.
Classes begin on Tuesday, June 10.
Dance Footwear:
Proper footwear must be worn during ALL dance classes to ensure maximum safety and the highest quality of performance. Proper footwear includes jazz shoes for jazz, ballet slippers for ballet, and tap shoes for tap. Modern dance is traditionally done barefoot, but please have jazz shoes with you at all times. Sandals, flip flops and some types of tennis shoes are not adequate footwear for dance classes.
In the event that financial barriers preclude the purchase of appropriate dance shoes, please contact TPAS for assistance.
Summer Strings General Information
Open to students completing grades 5-12 in Spring, 2008
Location: Carl Ben Eielson Middle School, Fargo
Dates: August 11-15, Monday-Friday
Time: 9:00 am-3:00 pm, with lunch break, please bring your own bag lunch
Registration Deadline: Friday, July 11, 2008. Please note that registration remains open after this deadline. However, a $10 late fee will be assessed.
What is Summer Strings
Improve your playing skills!
Trollwood Performing Arts School offers stringed instrument students an intense week of chamber ensemble and small group work. Led by strings instructors and professional musicians, students will experience sectional study, one-on-one coaching and performance training.
2008: String Colors
Students will experience a colorful spectrum of musical styles including a focus on jazz and jazz improvisation. Our guest artists are Ben Sung, violinist, and Alex Pershounin, bassist, from Minnesota State University-Moorhead. Each day students will hear a recital from area artists, focusing on a different instrument. High school students will have the opportunity to mentor younger students. Be ready for lots of contests involving color!
Trollwood’s production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will feature a children’s choir composed of third graders from the Fargo-Moorhead-West Fargo-Dilworth area.
Children currently in grade 3 who are interested in being considered for a Choir role should come to auditions with a one and on-half minute portion of MEMORIZED song to be sung a cappella or you may choose to bring music-only taped accompaniment. Auditioners will be asked to participate in a theatre game exercise. Dress comfortably to move (school clothes are appropriate).
Children’s Choir Auditions will be held 4:00-5:30 pm at the following locations:
Tuesday, April 15—Lewis and Clark Elementary, Fargo
Wednesday, April 16—Longfellow Elementary, Fargo
Thursday, April 17—Centennial Elementary, Fargo
Monday, April 21—Hopkins Elementary, Moorhead
Tuesday, April 22—Centennial Elementary, Fargo
Wednesday, April 23—Roosevelt Elementary, Fargo
Thursday, April 24—West Acres, Fargo
Anticipated Children’s Choir rehearsals will include 1-2 weekday (M-F) evening rehearsals per week, June 9-July 3. More intensive, all-day and evening rehearsals will take place from July 7-July 15. Performances begin July 16, and run through August 3 (with August 4 as a rain out option).
If selected, Children’s Choir members MUST be able to participate in ALL rehearsals and performances.
Experience a new culture as an International Student Host Family!
TPAS exchange students reside with Host Families during part of their time in the Fargo-Moorhead community. Host families welcome the international students into their homes for one-ten weeks, integrating their international guest into the rhythm and activity of daily family life. It’s a great opportunity for the international exchange students and host families alike to experience new cultures first hand, with that special personal touch only a local family can give to an international student living in our community.
If your family is interested in hosting an international student for only a few days or the entire summer, please call the TPAS office for more information: 241-4799.
You’re sure to make some lifelong friends!!
IN ST.E.P. is a Student Exchange Program for TPAS students.
“If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to live on another continent, or speak a different language, entering this program is a fantastic way to start making those thoughts real,” said Stacy Gausman, TPAS alumnus.
IN ST.E.P. is a student exchange program for TPAS students, developed in 1996 by students, along with TPAS instructors, artists, and staff members. IN ST.E.P. pairs an international exchange student with two American students participating in similar activities at Trollwood.<
If you’re already planning on taking classes, participating in the TPAS mainstage musical or Second Stage production, then you’d be the perfect person to help our international guests understand not only their Trollwood experiences, but also our local cultures and lifestyles (with the help of an interpreter, if needed). Imagine—in addition to meeting some great new friends, you might learn to cook colorful cuisine from another land, learn some cool phrases in another language, find out what life is like for teenagers in another part of the world, plus share the things you think are great about living in the U.S.
The fun starts even before our international guests arrive—and you can be a part of it! Even the preparation for our guests will be a blast. You can participate in the international delegation’s arrival, shooting a preview video greeting to be sent to the international participants, planning and attending a welcome party shortly after our guests arrive in Fargo, and adding an international flavor to Trollwood Park by creating signs in both English and the international languages of this year’s IMAGINE exchange participants.
Get IN ST.E.P.— it’s simple, easy, and can be shaped to the time YOU have to give it! Call the TPAS office, we’d be happy to set up a personal appointment to visit with you about this exciting program.
This program is currently on hiatus. Look for its return in subsequent seasons.
Since 1989, Trollwood Performing Arts School (TPAS) has offered young people the opportunity to expand their cultural horizons by participating in the TPAS-sponsored cultural exchange program, IMAGINE.
IMAGINE promotes cross-cultural understanding by providing ways for people of diverse cultures to work together in the arts.
Started as an international program, TPAS has hosted artists and young people from Russia, China, Hungary, South Africa and Australia. In fact, TPAS earned the prestigious United Nations Peace Messenger Award for its efforts to encourage global peace and understanding through IMAGINE.
Today, TPAS is committed to building bridges between people of the diverse cultures of our world, even those within our own community.
This program is on hiatus.
This program is on hiatus.
Trollwood Performing Arts school’s national award winning STAR (Students At Risk) program was formally organized in 1998 to give an extra boost to kids with extraordinary challenges in their lives. STAR targets students with learning disabilities, behavior difficulties or those who might not otherwise be able to participate in TPAS programs due to poverty, family situation or refugee status. STAR helps get these students involved by providing both adult and peer mentors, academic support, tuition assistance, meals and transportation. STAR focuses on goal setting, positive personal expression, and skill development in the arts for participants. Comments from community partners who refer students for this program, TPAS instructors and mentors, and most importantly from the STAR participants themselves indicate that the program is a resounding success.
STAR participants are integrated into all classes and performance programs of TPAS and are not identified as such to the general TPAS student body. This is a conscious effort to give all TPAS participants an equal opportunity to engage and mature in positive personal expression and cooperation-hallmarks of the total TPAS experience.
If you feel you (or someone you know) might benefit by becoming a STAR participant, please contact the TPAS Executive Director at (701)241-4799.
David Wintersteen
Second Stage Director
David Wintersteen teaches acting, theatre history and dramatic literature in the Theatre Program at Concordia College (Moorhead, MN). David is an active member of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, and was awarded their 2006 National Faculty Fellow in Directing. David’s directing credits include An Inspector Calls, She Stoops to Conquer, Lend Me A Tenor, Picnic, Medea, Pippin, The Tempest, Equus, Measure for Measure, Doctor Faustus, God’s Country, Cloud Nine, True West, and The Foreigner. As a founding member of Theatre B, David has performed in Sylvia, Joined at the Head, Quake and Dinner with Friends; he directed Wintertime and Hiubed; and he serves as the company’s technical director. David earned an MFA in Directing from Minnesota State University, Mankato, and a PhD in Theatre from the University of Oregon. This is David’s fifth season of leading the Second Stage ensemble.
Content updated 3/5/08.
Second Stage gives a voice to young artists who have questioning minds, and a desire to explore and respond to issues that touch their lives through theatre. Is that you?
Since its inception, whether innovatively staging classic works like Much Ado About Nothing, creating student-written works like Summer Shorts, or commissioning new works like Pandora’s Box, Second Stage brings young artists fully into the creative process with accomplished professionals, involving them not only as performers, but as individuals whose personal ideas and insights are woven into the final product. Students come away from the experience with a better understanding of the power and relevance that art can have in shaping society, and in their own potential as artists. This is an exciting chance to work with dramatic literature, typically unavailable to high school students.
TPAS is proud to continue its collaboration with Theatre B, one of Fargo’s newest theatre companies. Theatre B is dedicated to bringing socially relevant issues to the stage through thought-provoking, character-driven theatre—a perfect match with TPAS’s Second Stage.
Second Stage for 2008 This season Second Stage participants will work as an ensemble to stage Good ‘N’ Plenty, by Jeffrey Hatcher. An idealistic young teacher in Wintersville, Ohio embarks on a bold experiment with his 1976 civics class: he plans to teach the constitution by having the class model the American judicial system through a mock drug war, using Good and Plenty candies as the contraband of choice. The students—who reflect every high school type—play pushers, buyers, narcs, cops, lawyers and judges. The classroom execise gets out of hand, however, and the game takes students, teachers and administratiors through a series of chaotic twists. This unconventional comedy reflects the craziness of high school and provids a unique look at our legal system.
Second Stage Important Notes
Open to students who have completed grades 8-12.
Program Dates: June 5 through July 20, 2008
Auditions: Sunday, May 18 and Monday, May 19, 2008—7:00-9:00 pm, The Main Avenue Theatre, 716 Main Ave, Fargo.
Call backs: Tuesday, May 20, 2007—7:00-9:00 pm.
Audition Instructions: Students may prepare a one-minute monologue, or plan to do cold readings from the script. Students will also audition in pairs, reading scenes from the play. Sign up for an audition session at the TPAS Information Session or call (701) 241-4799.
Perusal Scripts available for a 3-day check-out from the TPAS Main Office beginning Monday, April 28.
Firup Jump Start Event: Thursday, June 5, 2008, 6:00-9:00 pm, Trollwood Park
Location/Rehearsals: Trollwood Park, Fargo
Location/Performances: The Main Avenue Theatre, 716 Main Ave, Fargo
Rehearsals: June 6, 6-9 pm; June 9-July 3, Monday-Friday, 4:20-9:00 pm (tentative) with dinner break, possibly some Saturdays.
Construction/Tech Rehearsals: July 4, Time TBA; July 5-9, 1:00-5:00 pm & 6:00-9:00 pm.
Performances: July 10-12 and 17-19, 2008 at 7:30 pm.
Strike & Celebration Party: Sunday, July 20, 1:00-5:00 pm.
Registration Deadline: Wednesday, May 28.
Terry Ruud
Terry Ruud grew up in rural MinneSnowta, but wandered off in search of Bohemia—touring with a band, making records, and getting national radio airplay. He then moved to Nashville, recorded a solo CD, and got a song recorded by two international recording artists. He returned to the Midwest, got BS/ English Education and MFA/Creative Writing degrees from MSUM, and currently teaches English at MSCTC-Fergus Falls. He enjoys his family, writing, and playing music with The Cat Sank Trio.
Expressive Writing
Prerequisite: None
Learn to think like a writer through a combination of craft and creativity exercises. Work on important technical aspects of writing, such as conflict, characterization, point of view, the revision process, and the art of observation. Benefit from a friendly workshop environment, where you will share prose and poetry daily. Experience the exhilaration of oration at public readings at the end of June Session and at Sun Celebration.
NOTE: Participants are asked to bring at least one sample of their writing to the first class. This should be a piece you are most proud of, or one you would like to improve.
Song Writing
Prerequisite: None
“There’s something on your mind you wanna be saying/That somebody someplace oughta be hearing,/ But it’s trapped on your tongue and sealed in your head/and it bothers you badly when you’re laying in bed.”
If these words from Bob Dylan strike a chord with you, the new Song Writing course may be just the thing. Learn the basic craft of song writing—lyrics, music, any genre—through creative and technical exercises in: poetic forms and devices; basic song forms, styles, and arrangements; co-writing; collaboration; revising; and recording/producing. Capture the music of your mind for the world’s ear at the end of June Session, by professionally recording one of your co-written songs.
At the culmination of this class, participants will have the opportunity to make a recording of a song created in class at the professional recording studios of Video Arts Studios, Fargo. This recording session will be scheduled for each student outside of June Session class time.
NOTE: Participants are asked to bring at least one lyric sample or recorded original music to the first class—either to share and/or to work on over the course of the session.
Musical Theatre 1
Prerequisite: Vocal Technique 1, Acting 1 and placement verification
For the beginning actor/singer, this class introduces you to the fundamental techniques of performance on the musical stage. Development of your vocal technique and integration of your voice and body will help you in song interpretation and provide you with solid groundwork from which to further develop your musical theatre performance skills. Learn how to gain the confidence to “sell a song!” Material will be chosen from classic musical theatre (Rogers and Hammerstein, Berlin, Porter, Loesser, and others) for class work and performance.
Musical Theatre 2
Prerequisite: Musical Theatre 1 and placement verification
Learn solo, duet, trios and small ensembles from the more contemporary musical theatre repertoire (i.e. Sondheim, Weber, Maltby and Shire, and Wildhorn), receive personalized coaching on song repertoire, musical interpretation, characterization, proper pronunciation of languages, melody and diction. This class provides information the singer needs in creating individual interpretation and expression of song. You will also learn to incorporate singing in parts and dramatic movement, in addition to the art of blending as an ensemble while holding your harmonies. The skills of this exciting art form are essential for any performer who dreams of being on the Broadway stage!
Musical Theatre 3
Prerequisite: Musical Theatre 2, Vocal Technique 2 or written recommendation of voice teacher and placement verification
Further exploration of musical theatre styles, incorporating elements of vocal technique, acting and some advanced ensemble work. The focus will be placed on challenging the student to explore different types of characterizations through musical theatre roles.
NEW! Vocal Styles—2008: Jazz
Prerequisite: Vocal Technique 2 and placement verification
Take your vocal technique to the next level! This course is designed to allow the more advanced singer an opportunity to explore highly stylized and influential vocal genres that go far beyond the basic techniques of “singing.” Annual course topic will rotate, studying the rich stylizations and technique specifics of either Opera, Jazz or Madrigals. These three genres are the Western European vocal standards that are typically only offered for study at the post-secondary level. Coursework will cover the basics of each genre, including technique, history and the genre’s influence on other vocal styles.
For 2008, this course will explore vocal jazz. In addition to learning the history of jazz, students will have the opportunity to sing solos and ensembles using a variety of jazz techniques, including improvisation and interpretation.
Vocal Technique 1
Prerequisite: None
This class provides essential training for the young singer, as well as anyone who wants to become a better singer. You will learn all the basics of singing and deal with such fundamental questions as “Where is the voice?”, “How does it work?” and “What are my vocal possibilities?” Techniques for proper breathing, how to support the voice, proper diction and vowel formation, extending your range and finding the ideal resonance for your voice will be explored. You will learn how to sing for an audience, including correct posture, interpretation, and how to work with an accompanist through the use of folk songs and solos from musical theatre. Daily sessions include physical and vocal warm-ups, group work on vocal techniques, and individual coaching on solo pieces.
Vocal Technique 2
Prerequisite: Vocal Technique 1, or at least one year of private voice lessons and placement verification
This class is designed for the more experienced singer. The students in this class should be ready to work on solo repertoire from standard musical theatre, operetta and classical art songs. Emphasis will be placed on refining your vocal technique skills and finding the appropriate repertoire for your voice. Focuses include continued development of proper breath technique, voice support and control, body posture and alignment, increasing vocal strength and stamina, extension of vocal range, placement, resonance, pitch, diction and musical style. Learn to incorporate movement while singing with confidence and strength. Beginning level Italian Art Song will be explored.
Vocal Technique 3
Prerequisite: Vocal Technique 2 and placement verification
This class is an invaluable aid for anyone considering a professional singing career or someone who wants a really intensive vocal experience. Designed to polish a singer’s skills to performance level, you will learn how to prepare and present yourself for a performance or audition, regardless of musical style. You will learn the proper mental tools needed to show yourself off to best advantage. Learn to communicate at an audition with confidence, grace and style! The class is structured to combine coaching with group feedback and critique. Advanced vocal repertoire from classical art song, operetta and musical theater will be explored.
Aaron McAllister
June Session Musical Theatre Instructor
Darci Bultmema
Vocal Music 2 & 3 Instructor
Soprano Darci Bultema has performed on the operatic stage in a variety of roles, such as La Contessa in Le nozze di Figaro, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Cleopatra in Handel’s Giulio Cesare, Clorinda in La Cenerentola, The Female Chorus in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, and Lavinia in Bononcini’s Camilla. Originally from ND, Miss Bultema has brought her talent to opera companies across the United States via Florida Grand Opera, Tulsa Opera, Natchez Opera, Peabody Opera, and the F-M Civic Opera.
Additionally, Ms. Bultema has appeared as a soloist in an assortment of orchestral works with The Florida Philharmonic, New World Symphony, Miami Chamber Symphony, Peabody Symphony Orchestra, Washington DC Youth Orchestra, and the F-M Symphony. Her voice has been showcased in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, the Chants d’Auvergne of Canteloube, Griffes’ Three Poems of Fiona Macleod, and oratorios of Bach, Handel, Haydn, and Rossini.
She has earned a BS from NDSU and a Master of Music Degree from Peabody Conservatory of Music, where she was honored with a Graduate Performance diploma. She has participated in the Young Artist with Florida Grand Opera, Tulsa Opera, and Natchez Opera. Recently, Miss Bultema returned to Fargo, where she is working towards a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at NDSU. She currently serves on the voice faculty of Concordia College, Moorhead, MN.
Acting 1
Prerequisite: None
Through fun theatre games you will unlock your creativity, imagination and freedom of expression in order to use all of you in your work. The goals of this course are to help you learn more about acting and theatre, to learn exercises that may help your sense of ease and confidence in group situations, to learn more about yourself and TO HAVE FUN! If you’ve been interested in learning more about acting, but are a bit shy, this class is for you!
Acting 2
Prerequisite: Acting 1, Improv 1 or equivalent and placement verification
Now that I got the role, what do I do? This scene study class will offer you a step by step approach to the process of being in a play. The emphasis will be on actions and objectives in scene work. What does your character want? What do they do to get it? “Keep it active” is our goal!
Audition Techniques
Prerequisite: Acting 2, performance experience in Second Stage or Mainstage Musical, or two or more plays at your school or community theatre and placement verification
Whether you are planning a theatre career or want to improve your auditioning skills for the next school or community play, this class is for you! The class will be structured as an advanced acting workshop. The basic skills developed in acting, dance, musical theatre, and performance experience will be used to support effective audition technique. Monologue selection and performance, cold reading technique, effective selection and performance of 16 bars of song for a musical audition, basic dance combinations, and basic interview questions will be covered. Discussions will be held about résumé preparation, appropriate photo “head shots,” schools and conservatories, and casting agents. Goals include preparation for community and high school production auditions, as well as auditions for undergraduate school entrance.
Directing
Prerequisite: Any level of acting or dance class or performing in high school productions or recitals
If you’ve ever said to yourself, “But what I really want to do is direct,” then this course will get you started. With hands-on experience in a laboratory setting, you will explore the many functions of a theater director. You’ll learn about blocking, coaching actors, theatrical pace and rhythm, visual composition, working with designers, casting, and interpreting plays. Using your classmates as performers and collaborators, you will fill the “empty space” with your own scenarios, expand and refine, and then begin to stage text. Step-by-step, you’ll follow your vision as it develops from concept to reality on the stage.
Improvisation 1/Fundamentals of Improvisation
Prerequisite: None.
Students will learn the fundamentals of improvisation: how to accept and not block offers, how to work intuitively rather than intellectually, how to rely on storytelling rather than jokes, understand status work, and the basics of scene building—character, physicalization, careful listening, the importance of opposites, building trust, high stakes, environment, and creating a beginning-middle-end. Simple warm-up games and exercises will be used to practice these skills. Students will also watch film and/or video of professional improvisers, and may bring their own games and ideas to class.
Improvisation 2/Intermediate
Prerequisite: Improv 1 and placement verification.
Improvisers will begin to experiment with longer, more complicated handles (games with particular structures and rules) leading to long form improvisation. Building on the principles in Improvisation 1, students will begin to enhance relationships, status and plot and perform longer open scenes. Students will be given greater theatrical problems to solve alone and in groups. More attention will be given to working interactively with audiences, analyzing the effectiveness of scenes, listening, and taking time to build a story.
Improvisation 3/Advanced Ensemble and Long Form
Prerequisite: Improv 2, performer maturity and placement verification.
Improvisation 3 emphasizes performance before an audience and performance opportunities will be created by both Trollwood staff and the class. The emphasis is on forming a solid, interdependent performing ensemble which takes risks onstage, supports each other with generosity, works interactively with audiences, listens deeply and takes the time to build a satisfying story for those watching. Improvisers in this class must be extremely proactive. Building on the principles in Improvisation 2, students collectively study and analyze the effectiveness of scenes, using rigorous exercises to strengthen Relationships, Status and Plot. Students will be expected to show mastery in the elements of storytelling, using their skills and daring to solve advanced theatrical challenges both alone and in groups.
Martial Arts for the Stage
Prerequisite: None
Welcome to the fascinating world of Martial Arts! With dedication and a little sweat, you’ll advance in coordination, grace and flexibility. Learn the basic kicks, punches and blocks used by most of the Asian-based arts of self-defense. Then, use these techniques to choreograph short fight scenes guaranteed to get gasps from any audience! Whether or not you plan to pursue the marital arts, you’ll be proud of your accomplishments. Besides, it’s great exercise.
Movement and Voice for the Actor
Prerequisite: Acting 1 or equivalent and placement verification
Do you feel “wooden” or awkward onstage? Do you have a hard time projecting and articulating your lines? Do you feel like your voice and movements aren’t expressing your full range of emotion? Then this class is for you! Learn how to release inhibitions and integrate movement, sound and emotion in your performance. This class introduces students to the basic voice techniques of Kristin Linklater and the dynamic approaches to movement and stage relationships in Anne Bogart’s Viewpoints. Learn how to increase your stage through with greater freedom and more emotion.
Multi-Media Theatre History—2008: Commedia Dell’Arte!
Prerequisite: None
As artists, it’s important to understand not only theatre history, but also how art movements developed in response to world events. Each summer we’ll study a country or region from Asia, Africa, the Native Americas, Europe, or European America. This exciting course will explore, through hands-on activities, the common links between theatre history and these major world cultures. We’ll express our knowledge throgh creating original performance pieces and other works of art (i.e. painting, sculpting, sewing, writing, etc.) Annual course topic country will change, focusing on one world culture and its corresponding theatre history, presented through an interdisciplinary arts curriculum.
For 2008, explore the Italian Art form known as Commedia dell’Arte, also known as “Italian comedy. It was a humorous theatrical presentation performed by professional players who traveled in troupes throughout Italy in the 16th century. Performances took place on temporary stages, mostly on city streets, but occasionally even in court venues. It is unscripted but uses stock characters, masks, music, dance, witty dialogue, and all kinds of chicanery contributed to the comic effects. Subsequently the art form spread throughout Europe, with many of its elements persisting into present-day theater. In this multi-media Theatre History class, you will create Commedia for today using hand-son activities, and you will be able to explore your creativity.
Stage Combat
Prerequisite: None
There are few things as thrilling as watching a well-executed fight scene in a movie or play. In addition to the thrills, stage combat can serve as an essential tool to inform character and advance plot. The tricky thing is how to pull off these complicated moves without getting hurt, or hurting your partner! The answer is proper technique, control, and practice, practice, practice! This class will introduce students to the basic elements of Stage Combat, starting with simple partner exercises and progressing to punches, slaps, kicks, and grappling. Students will learn how to tumble and fall (safely!). Finally, if time permits, students will review common weapons and learn basic movement with the Quarter Staff. Students will also choreograph a short fight scene as a final project. Be prepared to sweat!
Note: Appropriate clothing and supportive/athletic footwear required.
Lori Bartlett Koenig
Theatre Department Chair
Lori received her MFA in Directing from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She has directed in North Carolina, California, Tennessee, Virginia, Minnesota and now North Dakota. She has been a Theatre Educator for over 20 years, teaching and coaching all grade levels in Creative Dramatics, Theatre Arts, Acting, Directing and Stage Management. In addition, she has taught all levels of English Education and enjoys combining her love of literature into the theatre. She has been Teacher of the Year in Virginia, taught at the NC Governor’s Schools, and has served on various local and state-wide committees promoting English, Language Arts and the Theatre. She was the Company Manager for the North Carolina Theatre for Young People, and managed the Young Company for the Western Stage in Salinas, California. She was the Artistic Director for the Morristown Theatre Guild in Morristown Tennessee. She is new to the Fargo-Moorhead area and currently teaches at both MSUM and NDSU. She is married to Hardy Koenig and they have two children, Austin and Savannah.
Costuming for the Stage
Prerequisite: None
This course provides an overview of the costume design process. It traces the development of a costume design, from initial reading, through construction, to final presentation on the stage. During week one, we’ll select and analyze a play, and delve into character development through costuming. In week two, students will learn the art of costume rendering. The last two weeks of coursework are dedicated to creating costumes and accessories. The class will take a field trip to a local theatre to “pull” a costume from stock, and each student will also choose a costume or accessory to build from scratch.
Sound Reinforcement: Principles, Design and System Application
Prerequisite: Stagecraft
This class explores sound reinforcement with an emphasis on how it relates to the theatre. Study will include the principles of audio/acoustic theory and the equipment used in sound reinforcement, with attention given to sound reinforcement for theatrical application. You will gain a solid foundation from which to continue building a working knowledge of audio technology. Class participants will have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience through the creation of certain aspects of the Mainstage Musical sound reinforcement.
NOTE: If you have previously taken Sound Reinforcement, we invite you to take this class again, as course topics and instruction levels will adjust each year to match the experience and knowledge levels of the students enrolled.
Stagecraft: Basics of Scenery Construction
Prerequisite: None
Theatre is creating an illusory reality. The scenic carpenter transforms the designer’s vision from paper to stage. Course participants will learn the safe operation of hand and power tools in a hands-on experience that covers both the mechanics and artistry of scenery construction. Using tricks of the trade, you’ll take an element of the Mainstage Musical set from paper to reality alongside the professional staff of scenic carpenters. You will leave this class with a general introduction to stagecraft and a basic overview of scenic design, with specific knowledge in the equipment and techniques used to build it. Completion of this course can be a springboard to membership on the running crew for the Mainstage Musical!
Stage Lighting
Prerequisite: Stagecraft
This course provides an overview of the mechanics and artistry of lighting for stage performance. General lighting design concepts will be highlighted, along with specific knowledge of the lighting equipment and techniques used for stage application. You will gain a basic working knowledge of the skills needed to become a theatrical electrician. The main thrust of coursework will be “hands-on” learning, including excursions to view various local theater lighting systems, handling of actual equipment, and student design and implementation of lighting applications. Time may also be devoted to studying and implementing the lighting design for the Mainstage Musical.
Stage Makeup
Prerequisite: None
Makeup is an essential step to creating a character for the stage. Every good actor should know how to correctly apply makeup for each character he or she portrays. This class covers the basic makeup application techniques used to create a variety of character looks, including youth, old age, glamour and character oddities. As class time permits, specialty makeup applications may also be explored, including animal, fantasy, and injury makeup. Be a better actor. Be a better technician. Learn the do’s and dont’s of stage makeup application.
NOTE: If you have previously taken Stage Makeup, we invite you to take this class again, as course topics and instruction levels will adjust each year to match the experience and knowledge levels of the students enrolled.
ALSO: The purchase of a $45 personal makeup kit is strongly recommended. Kits will be available for purchase on the first day of class. If financial barriers preclude the kit purchase, please contact TPAS for assistance.
Scenic Design Basics
Prerequisite: None
This is a hands-on, brains-on class, introducing the basic principles, skills and techniques of designing for the theatre. Through exercises geared to stimulate imagination and potential as a designer, students will learn how to collaborate and brainstorm with a production team to develop an effective concept for their project. Working from a solid concept, students will then explore methods of solving design problems using creative research, practical experimentation, unexpected connections and positive limitations. Finally, they will learn how to communicate their design concepts and solutions. Students will explore a varied array of theatrical design areas, such as set, costumes, props, lights, and graphics. Time will be allotted for completion of class-related projects, however, students should plan on some out-of-class work as well.
Shelly Hurt
Costuming Instructor
Shelly Hurt is the Costume Designer and Program Director for F-M Community Theatre. She has been working for this theatre since 1996. Shelly completed her BS at NDSU in 1997 and worked towards an MF in Fine Arts at NDSU from 1998-2000. Shelly also holds Cosmetology licenses in North Dakota and Minnesota. She really enjoys designing costumes and scenery for children’s shows. In addition to designing for F-M Community Theatre, she has also designed for Moorhead High School, area churches and Gooseberry Park Players.
Mark Gostomski
Tech Instructor
Mark Gostomski is a transplant to Augusta, Georgia having graduated in the spring of 2003 from Western Michigan University as an Education major. Mark has been working in theatre for many years both at the educational and professional level. He spent many years working for local touring companies and local schools while in Kalamazoo. Currently he is working as Technical Director and Technical Theatre Instructor for Davidson Fine Arts School. There, he has been able to teach construction techniques in both wood and metal, theatrical design, and stage management. During his time at DFA Mark has worked to build the Technical Theatre Program into a true arts area at DFA. In 2004 he started a student chapter of USITT and in 2006 took a delegation of students to the USITT National Conference. Mark has also worked with the Fort Gordon Dinner Theatre and the University of South Carolina - Aiken while in the Augusta area. Mr. Gostomski is also starting his training as a Stage Combat Fighter in the summer of 2006 by attending the SAFD National Stage Combat Workshop.
Greg Carlson
A native of Fargo, Greg teaches film appreciation and analysis, video and audio production, and telecommunication at Concordia College, Moorhead, MN. He is the director of media activities in their Communication Studies and Theatre Art department. Greg is also the associate film editor for the High Plains Reader, where his movie reviews appear each week. He enjoys producing, writing, and directing films. His movies have been included in the Fargo Film Festival, the Fargo Winter Carnival, and the Free Range Film Festival. Greg earned his BA from Minnesota State University-Moorhead and holds an MA in Humanities from Cal State Dominguez Hills and is currently a doctoral candidate in NDSU’s communication program. Greg loves talking about the films of Wong Kar-Wai, admiring the artwork of Marcel Dzama, and listening to the music of the White Stripes. This is his tenth summer at Trollwood.
Advanced Repertory
Prerequisite: Advanced level of modern, ballet, or jazz dance experience and placement verification
This is a highly specialized, challenging course for the advanced dancer. Students will work with a different professional choreographer each week. The class will include modern, ballet and jazz repertory in a weekly rotation. The final week will be designated for preparation and review of the work to be presented at Sun Celebration. This course will give students insight into the choreographic process, as well as experience performing unique dance styles.
Fundamentals of Ballet & Modern
Prerequisite None
Have you been curious about ballet or modern but just wanted to get a taste of them first, in a non-theatening, fun environment? Rhonda Cinotto and Michael Estanich are teaming up to create a wonderful introductory course covering both disciplines. The Ballet portion of this course encompasses the basics of ballet, which are considered the foundation of performance dance. Students will become familiar with the terminology and movements at the barre and centre. The Modern portion of this course introduces the fundamentals of the modern dance vocabulary. Students will explore the various aspects of modern dance that make it unique, using fun, challenging movement phrases to learn the concepts. The class emphasizes proper alignment, injury prevention, strength and flexibility, and musicality.
Ballet 2
Prerequisite: Intermediate level of ballet experience and placement verification
Placement Standards: Ability to demonstrate: basic coordination and rhythmic accuracy; a quick grasp and retention of short combinations; awareness of safety; and basic understanding of ballet vocabulary and terminology, such as feet positions, traveling steps, and basic jumps.
Ballet 2 explores more complex combinations at the barre and centre. Emphasis will be placed on understanding correct technique and placement from both anatomical and classical perspectives, as well as on challenging the student with more complex movement combinations. The student will gain strength, stamina and musicality as they gain a broader ballet vocabulary.
Ballet 3
Prerequisite: Advanced level of ballet experience and placement verification
Placement Standards: Ability to demonstrate: strong concentration; understanding of quality, dynamics, and musicality; broad and comprehensive ballet vocabulary; a quick grasp and accurate retention of combinations through verbal instruction without excessive demonstration by instructor.
This class intensifies the barre exercises and centre work for the development of strength and form. Phrasing and more complicated movement combinations, longer adagios, multiple turns, combination turns, petit allegro and grande allegro will be emphasized.
Hip-Hop
Prerequisite: None
Hip-Hop will allow students to let their personality and style show as they learn basic hip-hop and breakdance elements. Students will discover how hip-hop borrows technique from jazz dance and ballet, freedom and interpretation from modern dance, and rhythm and athleticism from African dance, to become its own art form. Classes will offer an aerobic, choreographed warm up and weekly combinations to allow students to find their own approach and style to movements, as well as stretches and exercises to build strength.
Jazz Dance 1
Prerequisite: None
This class gives dancers experience in the basic movement vocabulary of jazz dance, and helps them develop artistic understanding of its stylistic principles. The class focuses on the fundamentals of traditional jazz dance vocabulary (including isolations, jazz walks and runs, leaps, and turns) through exercises and movement combinations, and is designed to increase strength, flexibility, coordination, and balance.
Jazz Dance 2/3
Prerequisite: Minimum of intermediate level of jazz dance experience and placement verification
Placement Standards: Ability to demonstrate: understanding of rhythm and musicality; spatial awareness; proper body alignment; and basic technique, such as pirouette, leg extensions, jumps, and ballet terminology. The ability to pick up, execute, and retain combinations without excessive demonstration by instructor. At least some familiarity with and ability in the following area: subtle body articulations and sequential body movements; adaptation to different contemporary/jazz styles; highly technical, athletic movement vocabulary; and strong technique, such as double pirouette, difficult jumps, leaps, and off center turns.
This class is designed to provide students with experience in jazz dance technique and style beyond an introductory level. Class work will focus on swifter acquisition of movement material and increased technical, stylistic, dynamic, and rhythmic range. Both intermediate and advanced level students will be challenged by the material in a positive way.
Men’s Introduction to Dance
Prerequisite: None
For Men Only! This course introduces male students to the four basic dance disciplines of jazz, tap, modern and ballet, in an atmosphere geared especially for them! Improve your coordination, flexibility, sense of timing and stamina. By course end you will be able to apply movement techniques and improved skills to other physical disciplines such as basketball, football, hockey and track. Coursework includes an overview of each of the four dance disciplines. Jazz Dance focuses on the many movement expression styles that reflect the varied forms of jazz music, from funk to blues. Modern dance explores the entire body’s potential for movement and expression. Tap relies on rhythm, flexibility and showmanship, and this course teaches you how! Ballet is the basis of all other dance, and muscle strengthening exercises in this portion shows how much of a workout dance can be!
Modern Dance 2/3
Prerequisite: Intermediate or advanced level of modern dance experience and placement verification
Placement Standards: Ability to demonstrate: understanding of rhythm and musicality; spatial awareness; smooth weight shift; proper body alignment; adaptation to different contemporary/modern dance styles; ability to pick up, execute, and retain combinations without excessive demonstration by instructor.
This class works on strength, flexibility, movement memory and rhythmic accuracy by way of challenging, fun movement combinations. Each class will begin with a warm-up that focuses on clear articulation and coordination of body parts, while preparing the body for exciting center and travel combinations. Proper alignment and injury prevention will be emphasized. Both intermediate and advanced level students will be appropriately challenged in the course.
Social Dance/Swing
Prerequisite: None
Swing dancing has been around since 1926 and probably earlier. This is a fun dance done to Swing Jazz, Jump Blues and Rock-n-Roll music. These related styles of music make this flashy, infectious form of social dance something that students can do their whole lives, anywhere around the world. Students will learn various styles of swing dance: East Coast Swing, some Charleston, swing “Line Dance,” and “shine” steps, as well as the grand daddy of all swing dance—the Lindy Hop! Latin dances such as Salsa, Cha-Cha and Merengue may also be covered as class time allows. Students will also explore the culture and fashions associated with social swing dance.
Tap Dance 1
Prerequisite: None
This course is a must for all serious dance and theatre students! Studying tap improves rhythm, flexibility, showmanship and performance stylization. Coursework will include execution of tap steps, patterns, accents, syncopation, rhythm, musicality, discipline, confidence, performance quality, clarity of sound, accuracy, stylization, tempo, weight changes, changes of direction, the development of themes, choreography and improvisation. The course will include technique classes with weekly dance combinations, classroom discussions and student projects.
Tap Dance 2/3
Prerequisite: Intermediate level of tap dance experience and placement verification
Placement Standards: Ability to demonstrate: rhythmic accuracy; spatial awareness; proper body alignment; basic command of gross motor movements; and basic technique, such as strong core, use of relaxed ankle to execute sound; articulation of feet, hands, arms, and legs; smooth weight shifts in various directions; and a quick grasp of combinations without losing technical integrity. As stated for Tap Dance 2, and ability to demonstrate: rhythmic accuracy with a variety of meters and tempi; movement initiation from the hip; dynamic sound quality; highly technical tap dance movement vocabulary; adaptation to different tap dance styles and rhythms; and a quick grasp and accurate retention of complex combinations through verbal instruction without excessive demonstration by instructor.
The theory and principles of intermediate/advanced tap dance and the practical application of these principles in a dance technique environment are the focus of this class, with an emphases on intricate rhythms and full body involvement. Students will continue to hone skills and steps from the intermediate level of tap dance, while placing a large emphases on the ability to pick up choreography and musicality. Students will be encouraged to develop style, performance quality and become proficient at improvisation. The course will provide intense technique work, choreography assignments and various projects to ensure students are versed in the history of the art form.
Yoga Fusion
Prerequisite: None
Fortify your morning or end your day with the perfect treat. This exercise/stretching class will combine principles from Yoga, Pilates’s and Barteneiff Fundamentals to warm-up and work on the strength and flexibility that will help fortify and energize the body and mind. Students will work to develop core strength, flexibility, and coordination, integrating breathing into moving, and learn about basic anatomical and functional principles of movement that encourage an intelligent, facile body.
Jen Salk
Dance Department Chair
Jennifer Salk is an Associate Professor at the University of Washington, where she teaches modern technique, composition, dance history, teaching methods, graduate seminars on Higher Education and Teaching Methods, and the Creative Process. Prior to UW she was at the University of South Florida in Tampa. After receiving her MFA from Ohio State University, Jennifer taught at Harrison Arts Center, a performing arts high school in Lakeland, Florida for three years. She received her BFA in Dance from the University of Utah and spent seven years in NYC touring and dancing with various choreographers, including David Dorfman, Chris Burnside, and June Anderson, and was also the Artistic Director of Jennifer Salk and Company. She has taught at American Dance Festival and teaches master classes and choreographs for companies and schools around the country. Jennifer is a master teacher at the National High School Dance Festival in Norfolk, VA and a frequent presenter at the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science and National Dance Education Organization Conferences. In 2006 she reconstructed her work “Night Flight” with dancers from the Virginia Governor’s School of the Arts. Jen also went to Paraguay, where she trained dance teachers in her experiential anatomy methodology, taught advanced modern technique, and volunteered at Cultural Melodia, where she taught creative movement to children ages 7-19. Her article, Teaching Modern Technique Through Experiential Anatomy was published in The Journal of Dance Education in Fall 2005 and a DVD on the subject is in due for publication in early 2009. Salk was recently awarded the University of Washington’s Distinguished Teacher of the Year award. This will be Jennifer’s 17th summer at TPAS.
Rhonda Cinotto
Dance Instructor
Rhonda Cinotto is currently teaching Modern and Jazz at Western Michigan University. She received M.F.A and B.A. degrees in dance from the University of Washington. From 1997-2003, she was a member of Spectrum Dance Theater, a professional repertory company that toured throughout the Pacific Northwest and Mexico, Germany, and the Netherlands. While in the company she performed works by Anne Reinking, Dwight Rhoden, Daniel Buraczeski, Daniel Ezralow, Frank Chaves, Lar Lubovitch, Margo Sappington and Donald Byrd, among others. Ms. Cinotto served as Spectrum’s rehearsal director and was responsible for restaging and rehearsing works in the company’s repertoire. In 2005 Ms. Cinotto was a guest artist with the Chamber Dance Company, the resident professional company at the University of Washington, and became a company member while earning her Master of Fine Arts. In addition to performing, Ms. Cinotto has been teaching for over ten years at numerous schools in the Seattle area, including the University of Washington, Spectrum Dance Theater, and Arc Dance Productions. She has also choreographed for dance companies and public and private schools throughout the Pacific Northwest.
Sarah Gamblin
Dance Instructor
Sarah Gamblin danced in New York City from 1988 to 2000 as a member of Bebe Miller Company (1993-2000) and Bill Young and Dancers (1996-1999). She toured various cities in South Africa, Portugal, Poland, Russia (including St. Petersburg), Estonia, Peru and Venezuela, as well as numerous cities throughout the United States while with those companies. In 2000 Sarah moved to Seattle to earn her MFA in Dance from the University of Washington. While there she performed with the Chamber Dance Company, Rob Kitsos, Lingo dancetheater and Amii Legendre. Sarah joined the dance faculty at Texas Woman’s University in 2002, where she teaches ballet and modern technique, composition, choreography, improvisation and experiential anatomy. Her choreography has been produced by Texas Woman’s University and the Greater Denton Arts Council, University of Washington, Northwest New Works Festival, and in New York City at Hundred Grand and Dia Center for the Arts.
Michael Estanich
Dance Instructor
Michael Estanich received his Master of Fine Arts degree from Ohio State University in 2006 and his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Denison University in 1995. His work currently focuses on long form choreography that investigates the choreographic issues of time, space and perspective and how they relate to the act of seeing. Before coming to UWSP, Michael danced in Chicago, IL for six years with Mad Shak Dance Company under the artistic direction of Molly Shanahan. He has performed throughout the Midwest, Texas and at Dance Theatre Workshop in NYC. While in Chicago, Michael also performed with Rebecca Rosen and Martha Mulligan and co-founded Motivity: A Choreographer’s Festival for young and emerging artists. His own choreographies have been presented in galleries, festivals and dance venues throughout Chicago. In 1999, he was awarded a creative summer scholarship from the Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago for the creation of a new work under the advisement of Shirley Mordine. Michael was a recent guest artist at Denison University in 2005 creating a new dance theatre work on 11 undergraduate students. He has taught for several years at the American College Dance Festival and performed in the Gala Concert in 2005.
Michael worked as a graduate administrative position in Membership at the Wexner Center for the Arts during his years at OSU. He has performed in works by Bebe Miller, Melanie Bales, Larry Keigwan and Blake Beckham while at OSU, and performed in Mark Morris’ All Fours, reconstructed from Labanotation score by Valarie Mockabee and coached by Matthew Rose, in OSU Dance Downtown 2006.
Aysha Upchurch
Dance Instructor
Aysha Upchurch is a Washington, DC-based Hip Hop and tap dancer and choreographer, having studied with legends in both genres, from Buster Brown and Diane Walker to Rennie Harris and Mr. Wiggles. In DC, she was a member of local dance companies, Jam Crew and DC ARTistry.
Aysha has choreographed, taught and performed throughout the country in Philadelphia, New York, Texas and North Dakota, as well as internationally in the Caribbean and Eastern Europe. In the Washington, DC area, Aysha is in demand as a dancer, instructor and choreographer. She has been on faculty at Joy of Motion Dance Center since 2000 and has worked with CityDance Ensemble since 2003. Her work has been seen at Dance Place, the Carter Barron Amphitheatre, DARS Constitution Hall, Atlas Performing Arts Center, the Verizon Center and on promotional commercials for the Washington Nationals. She has choreographed for Georgetown Dance Company, DCypher Dance Company, Namyanka Dance Ministry and Joy of Motion’s Youth Dance Ensemble Senior Company. In 2007, Aysha received the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage Local Dance Commissioning Project, and was nominated for a Metro DC Dance Award for Emerging Choreographer.
In 2006, Aysha formed her own dance ensemble to reflect her experience as a writer, educator and children’s rights advocate. Life, Rhythm, Move Project (LRMP) uses a mixture of various dance forms, including Hip Hop and tap, and spoken word to fuse passion and education with artistry. LRMP’s mission for the stage is to put on a fun show while provoking deeper discussion. The company is committed to upholding the history and integrity of the Hip Hop culture, showing that the dance is a powerful tool to entertain and engage diverse audiences. Aysha is a St. Louis, MO native who motive to DC to attend American University where she earned a BA in International Studies and an MA in International Peace and Conflict Resolution.
| Class Period | Instructor | Prerequisite |
|---|---|---|
| Period A/7:30-8:50 am | ||
| Yoga Fusion (section 1) | Camelia Lamey/Sarah Gamblin | None |
| Period 1/9:00-10:30 am | ||
| Acting 2 | Kristin Larson | Acting 1, Improvisation 1 or equivalent and placement verification |
| Expressive Writing | Terry Ruud | None |
| Fundamentals of Ballet & Modern | Michael Estanich/Rhonda Cinotto | None |
| Modern Dance 2/3 | Jennifer Salk | Intermediate or advanced level of modern dance experience and placement verification |
| Movement & Voice for the Actor 1 | Jennifer Goodlander | Acting 1 or equivalent and placement verifcation |
| Musical Theatre 3 | Joel Briel | Musical Theatre 2, Vocal Technique 2 or written recommendation or voice teacher and placement verification |
| Stagecraft: Basics of Construction | Rich Haptonstall | None |
| Tap Dance 2/3 | Aysha Upchurch | Intermediate level of tap dance experience and placement verification |
| Video Production | Greg Carlson | None |
| Vocal Technique 2 | Darci Bultema | Vocal Technique 1 or at least one year of private voice lessons and placement verification |
| Period 2/10:40 am-12:10 pm | ||
| Acting 1 (section 1) | Kent Burnham | None |
| Audition Techniques | Matthew Thibedeau | Acting 2, performance experience in Second Stage or Mainstage Musical, or two or more plays at your school or community theatre and placement verification |
| Ballet 2 | Michael Estanich/Rhonda Cinotto | Intermediate level of ballet experience and placement verification |
| Ballet 3 | Sarah Gamblin | Advanced level of ballet experience and placement verification |
| Directing | Kristin Larson | Any level of acting or dance class or performing in high school productions or recitals |
| Scenic Design Basics | Richard Haptonstall | None |
| Song Writing | Terry Ruud | None |
| Sound Reinforcement | Kerry Horst | None |
| Tap Dance 1 | Aysha Upchurch | None |
| Video Production (continued) | Greg Carlson | None |
| Vocal Technique 3 | Darci Bultema | Vocal Technique 2 and placement verification |
| Lunch Hour/12:10-1:00 pm | ||
| Period 3/1:00-2:30 pm | ||
| Costuming for the Stage | Shelly Hurt | None |
| Jazz Dance 1 | Michael Estanich | None |
| Jazz Dance 2/3 | Rhonda Cinotto | Minimum of intermediate level of jazz dance experience and placement verification |
| Hip Hop (section 1) | Aysha Upchurch | None |
| Improvisation 3 | Kathleen Lake | Improvisation 2, performer maturity and placement verification |
| Martial Arts for the Stage | Jennifer Goodlander | None |
| Musical Theatre 2 | Joel Briel | Musical Theatre 1 and placement verification |
| Stage Lighting | Richard Haptonstall | None |
| Vocal Technique 1 | Dixie Sellers | None |
| Period 4/2:40-4:10 pm | ||
| Advanced Repertory | Jen Salk/Sarah Gamblin/Rhonda Cinotto | Advanced level of modern, ballet, or jazz dance experience and placement verification |
| Improvisation 2 | Kathleen Lake | Improvisation 1 and placement verification |
| Men’s Introduction to Dance | Aysha Upchurch/Rhonda Cinotto/Michael Estanich/Jen Salk | None |
| Multi-Media Theatre History | Jennifer Goodlander | None |
| Musical Theatre 1 | Joel Briel | Vocal Technique 1, Acting 1 and placement verification |
| Stage Combat | Kent Burnham | None |
| Stage Makeup | Kristin Sauter | None |
| Vocal Styles: Jazz | Justin Metz | Vocal Technique 2 and placement verification |
| Period 5/4:20-5:50 pm | ||
| Acting 1 (section 2) | Kent Burnham | None |
| Hip Hop (section 2) | Liz Brandenberg | None |
| Improvisation 1 | Kathleen Lake | None |
| Social Dance/Swing | John & Katherine Noone | None |
| Vocal Technique 1 (section 2) | Dixie Sellers | None |
| Yoga Fusion (section 2) | Sarah Gamblin | None |
| Mainstage Rehearsal | Michael Walling | By Audition |
| Second Stage Rehearsal | David Wintersteen | By Audition |
| Note: * This class runs for TWO consecutive periods. You must sign up for both periods, and will be responsible for the tuition fee of both class periods. | ||
Content updated 6/2007
- Dance
-
Advanced Repertory**
Ballet 2** & 3**
Fundamentals of Ballet & Modern *
Hip Hop*
Jazz Dance 1*, 2/3**
Mens Intro to Dance*
Modern Dance 2/3**
Social Dance/Swing*
Tap Dance 1*, 2/3**
Yoga Fusion* - Technical Theatre
-
Costuming for the Stage*
Sound Reinforcement*
Stagecraft/Basics of Construction*
Stage Lighting*
Stage Makeup*
Secnic Design Basics* - Theatre
-
Acting 1* & 2**
Audition Techniques**
Cabaret Theatre**
Directing**
Improvisation 1/Fundamentals**
Improvisation 2**
Improvisation 3**
Martial Arts for the Stage*
Multi-Media Theatre History*
Stage Combat*
Movement and Voice 1** - Media Arts
- Video Production 1* & 2**
- Vocal Music
-
Musical Theatre 1**, 2** & 3**
Vocal Styles Jazz**
Vocal Technique 1*
Vocal Technique 2**
Vocal Technique 3** - Writing
-
Expressive Writing**
Song Writing*
*Entry level classes
**Placement verification required through participation in Placement Verification Day and meeting stated prerequisites
June Session General Information
Open to students completing grades 8-12 in Spring, 2008
Based upon available space, students completing grade 7 (Spring 2008) may also enroll with instructor approval. Enrollment for 7th graders will not be confirmed until June 9 (first day of classes is June 10).
Location: Trollwood Park, Fargo.
Dates: June 9-July 3, Monday-Friday
Registration Deadline: May 28, 2008. Please note that registration remains open after this deadline. However, a $10 late fee will be assessed.
NOTE: Final 2008 class offerings are dependent upon instructor availability, adequate enrollment, and location availability.
What is June Session?
During June, students in grades 8-12 (grade 7 as permitted) may design their own individualized program of performing and production arts study for as little as 90 minutes a day, up to a full day of 6 classes. Taught by professional artists/teachers from around the nation, these classes offer students opportunities to explore the arts. With nearly 50 beginning to advanced classes to choose from, students can expand their horizons by trying something new in one of our beginner’s courses or challenge themselves with an advanced class. Whatever your interest, Trollwood has a class just for you!
Recommendations for Registration:
Trollwood students benefit the most when they try a variety of classes. While they may be tempted to focus their class schedule in a specific discipline, it is best to acquire a diverse arts background so students may become well-rounded performers and/or technicians.
For example, to be a proficient dancer, one should not only know how to execute the technique of the dance, but also be able to project the dramatic significance of it (acting classes), understand the rhythms and sounds (music classes), and be sensitive to the stage setting, lights, etc. (tech theatre classes). A broad understanding of performing and production arts can help artists realize their creative goals. For this reason, we encourage students to enroll in a variety of performing and production arts classes. If you have questions about appropriate class selection, contact the Program Coordinator or Registrar at (701) 241-4799.
Class Placement Verification Day
Upper Level Skill Placement Verification Sessions will be held Tuesday, June 9, 1:00-4:00 pm, Trollwood Park.
All students who are enrolling in specified level 2 or above courses (see level designations on the course list) in dance, theatre, or vocal music are REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE in the class placement verification process.
In order for students to learn as much as possible in their classes at Trollwood, instructors will assess the skill level of each participant. With this information, teachers will verify that each class is composed of students at a similar skill level to maximize the learning experience. This placement process ensures that individual and group advancement will occur at the most effective pace.
All June Session students should report to Trollwood’s Student Orientation Session on Monday, June 9 at 10:00 am following a lunch break at the close of placement verification activities.
The Plaza Café (Trollwood’s lunch program) will serve lunch this day.
If there are any level modifications to a student’s schedule, based upon the Placement Verification, the student will be notified via phone on Monday, June 9 by 9:00 pm. If a student is not contacted, their course choices are appropriate for their skill level.
All June Session Class begins Tuesday, June 10.
Jane Capistran
Orchestra Strings
Guest Artist
Jane Capistran is in her third year as Conductor of the Concordia College Chamber Orchestra. In addition Mrs. Capistran teaches violin and viola, and supervises the String Music Education student teachers. A native of Moorhead, MN, Mrs. Capistran studied violin in junior high and high school with Isabelle Thompson and Robert Strava at Concordia College. She received her BS in Music Education from Bemidji State University, and her Master of Arts in Violin Performance from the University of Iowa. Previously conductor of orchestras at Fargo South High, Mrs. Capistran currently conducts the F-M Area High School Youth Symphony and is the founding conductor of the First Lutheran Church Chamber Orchestra in Fargo. She continues to serve as a guest conductor and clinician for string festivals and workshops in the upper Midwest. Mrs. Capistran is the Assistant Concertmaster of the F-M Symphony and first violinist in the Dakota Rose String Quartet.
Dan Italiano
Orchestra Conductor
While this is Dan’s 15th year as TPAS Mainstage Musical Orchestra Conductor, it is the 39th production he has conducted. During the school year, he teaches orchestra at Fargo North High School, a program recognized as one of the finest in the Midwest. Dan’s major instrument is violin, which he plays in the FM Symphony and the FM Silver Strings; he is also a percussionist. Dan has performed with many Midwest groups, including the Waukesha Symphony, Grand Forks Symphony, Milwaukee Civic Orchestra, and the FM Civic Opera Company. Dan has continued his education in conducting studies with such musicians as Hugo Jan Huss, former conductor of the Rumanian Radio Orchestra, and the late John Paynter of Northwestern University. He is a past president of the ND Music Educators Association and the ND Chapter of the American String Teachers Association. In 1996 Dan was named NDMEA Music Educator of the Year.
Dr. Kyle Mack
Orchestra Brass
Guest Artist
Dr. Kyle Mack has been a member of the NDSU faculty since 1993. He teaches Applied Low Brass, Music Education Classes, and Basic Conducting. He directs the Jazz Program and the Varsity Band and assists with the Gold Star Marching Band and Concert Band. He also serves as the Music Director for the F-M Jazz Arts Group Big Band. Dr. Mack’s trombone playing can be heard on the F-M Jazz Arts Group Big Band’s CD, And That’s That.
Before coming to NDSU, Dr. Mack directed elementary through high school band programs in ND and Maryland and taught at Simpson College in Iowa. While at Ball State he served as Assistant Director of Bands and Assistant Director of Jazz Studies. Immediately preceding his NDSU appointment, he was the Director of Bands at Valley City State University.
Dr. Mack has been an active clinician, adjudicator,and guest conductor in North Dakota, Minnesota, Indiana, and Iowa, and he performs regularly as a trombonist.
Dr. Leigh Wakefield
Orchestra Woodwinds
Guest Artist
Dr. Leigh Wakefield, originally from Minneapolis, received his undergraduate degrees in Political Science and Music from the University of Minnesota. He has since earned an MA in Clarinet from the New England Conservatory of Music and has completed the DMA at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Wakefield has performed as principal clarinetist in the New Bedford Symphony and the Nashua Symphony, as well as being an active chamber musician in the Boston area. Currently, he is principal clarinetist with the F-M Symphony Orchestra, the F-M Opera Company, and a member of the F-M Symphony Wind Quintet, Concordia Wind Trio and the Concordia Wind Quintet. Dr. Wakefield has performed at the International Clarinet Fest, the International Double Reed Society Convention, and the Minnesota Music Educators Convention. Dr. Wakefield is an Associate Professor of Music (clarinet, chamber music, and woodwind methods) at Concordia College. During his 18 years there he has also been the Conductor of the Concordia College Cobber Band and the Jazz Ensemble.
Important Notes:
Open to students who have completed grades 8-12. Participation by audition.
Location: Fargo North High School and Trollwood Park, Fargo
Meetings/Events: June 3-August 8. Be sure to attend the Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Student and Parent Meeting on Tuesday, June 3 at 7:15 pm, Discovery School Theatre. Scores will be distributed, designs unveiled, and schedules discussed. Also, the Cast, Crew & Orchestra Event on Thursday, June 5, 4:00-8:00 pm, Trollwood Park.
Rehearsals/Performances: Orchestra rehearsals are June 6-27, 6:30 to 9:30 pm, Monday-Thursday, in the Fargo North High Orchestra Room. Leave ALL Fridays open for additional rehearsals as needed. Saturdays and Sundays during June are free time. More rehearsal time may be scheduled as necessary. Daily evening rehearsals with the cast begin at Trollwood Park on Monday, July 7. Conflicts for all possible dates must be submitted at auditions. It is possible to miss a limited number of rehearsals and still perform for the shows. This is at the director’s discretion.
Poster Distribution Day:
Orchestra members are required to participate in Poster Distribution Day, Tuesday, June 19, 2:15-6:00 pm.
Strike: Orchestra members are required to attend strike, August 2-6.
Production Party: August 7.
Prerequisite: By audition.
Pegistration Deadline: Wednesday, May 28.
Being in the Trollwood Mainstage Orchestra is a great way to meet new friends from all over the region!
It improves your skills as a musician, teaches you how to perform in a style you may not get to experience otherwise, connects you with the region’s finest musicians, demonstrates your commitment to music/performance for post-secondary education recruiters, and—best of all—it’s FUN!!
Yes, as an orchestra member at Trollwood you will work hard to provide the musical framework that creates a really great musical show, but you’ll also make life-time friends and memories while you laugh and play (as in “have fun!”), and create wonderful music!
Our rehearsal schedule (evenings) allows you to have a day job, take summer school or other Trollwood classes, or just hang out with friends, so you CAN “have it all” this summer!
Top Reasons to join the Mainstage Orchestra…
- Orchestra members will work with music mentors in small ensembles and as soloists to prepare additional music for featured pre-show and special event performances—YOU get to be the “star” on the stage!
- Orchestra Scholarships and Student Leadership positions are available, see pages 48 & 49 for further information.
- and, of course, it’s FUN!
Participation Information
Students may earn elective credits toward high school graduation for orchestra participation.
Student Leader positions are available.
All students involved in the production, including the orchestra, are required to complete ten hours of “tech work” during the course of rehearsals for the musical. Hours may be spent working in the costume shop, props, scenery, or marketing/publicity (in addition to Poster Distribution Day). Anyone not completing this requirement will not be allowed to attend the Production Party.
Audition Information
Sign up for an audition session at the TPAS Information Session, Tuesday, March 18, 7:15 pm, Discovery Theatre or by contacting TPAS at (701) 241-4799. All auditions are in the Fargo North High Orchestra Room (park on the north side, by the theatre). If you are unable to attend these auditions, you may audition by cassette tape or CD.
Orchestra Audition Sessions:
Auditions are scheduled to last 10 minutes each.
- Saturday, May 3, 1:00-3:00 pm
- Monday, May 5, 4:30-6:00 pm
- Tuesday, May 6, 4:30-6:00 pm
- Wednesday, May 7, 4:30-6:00 pm
- Monday, May 15, 4:30-6:00 pm
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat calls for the following instruments:
Violin, Viola, Cello, Bass, Acoustic, Electric and Bass Guitar (including spots for Lute & Mandolin), Percussion, Horn, Trumpet, Trombone, Flute/Piccolo, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Bassoon, Oboe/English Horn, Accordion and Keyboard. Other instruments are welcome to audition and parts will be adapted for their use.
If Auditioning by Tape or CD:
Cassette tapes or CD’s must be received in the TPAS Office by Wednesday, May 7 to be considered. If you would like your tape or CD returned, please enclose a pre-stamped and addressed padded envelope.
Requirements:
Please label the tape or CD with the auditioner’s name. Accompany your tape or CD with
a brief written profile, including
name, address, phone,
current age and grade,
school, music teacher’s name and audition instrument.
Include the following on your tape or CD: Begin with an introduction of yourself—name, age and grade, information about you and your personal experiences! A solo selection. Scales as specified in Audition Requirements.
Audition Requirements
The goal of the audition is to determine your training level and ability to master the music in the allotted rehearsal time. The audition will be performed for the orchestra conductor and may be taped for later reference.
Each audition will consist of three parts:
- Solo: any selection of your choice from 45 seconds to 1 minute in length. Choose something that shows your playing at its best. It can be part of a solo, etude or ensemble, and may be band or orchestra music.
- Sight Reading: This will be relatively short and will likely contain a key change and a time change. Practice counting and playing music at sight to prepare.
- Scales: are specified by instrument as follows: Be prepared to play all scales in two ways: as quarter notes (60 on metronome) and as eighth notes (quarter note = 120 on metronome).
- Woodwinds (Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Oboe and Bassoon): 2 octave Major scale of your choice; 2 octave Minor scale of your choice; and a Chromatic scale of your entire range.
- Brass (Horn, Trumpet, Trombone and Tuba): 1 or 2 octave Major scale of your choice; 1 octave Minor scale of your choice; and a Chromatic scale of your entire range.
- Guitar (Acoustic, Electric and Electric Bass): 2 short solo selections of different styles, one must be jazz, the other of your choosing. Note: You must be able to read music.
- Strings: 2 or 3 octave Major scale of your choice; 2 octave Minor scale of your choice.
- Keyboards: 2 short solo selections of different styles, one must be jazz, the other of your choosing.
- Percussion: Both sight reading and solo performances on the same two of the following instruments: mallets, snares, drum set or timpani.
Important Notes
Open to students who have completed grades 7-12.
Location: Trollwood Park, Fargo
Early Construction Session! May 19-30, Monday-Friday, daily.
Meetings/Events: June 3-August 8. Be sure to attend the Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Student and Parent Meeting on Tuesday, June 3 at 7:15 pm, Discovery School Theatre. Scripts will be distributed, designs unveiled, and schedules discussed. Also, the Cast, Crew & Orchestra Event on Thursday, June 5, 4:00-8:00 pm, Trollwood Park.
Construction/Performances: Regular construction sessions for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat begin May 27, and run 8:30 am to 5:00 pm Monday-Friday. MM Tech students and their instructor/supervisor work together to craft and individual schedules that meet the students needs. Evening construction sessions are scheduled for Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:00-9:00 pm, family members, and friends are invited to work alongside you at Trollwood Park.
Full day and evening rehearsals, technical run-through, and dress rehearsals with the cast and orchestra begin Monday, July 7.
Poster Distribution Day: Technical Crew members are required to attend Poster Distribution Day on Tuesday, June 24 from 2:15-6:00 pm.
Strike: Tech crew members are required to attend strike August 2-8.
Production Party: August 7.
Prerequisite: None. No audition required.
Participation Information
Students may earn elective credits toward high school graduation for tech crew participation, see eligibility.
Student Leadership positions are available.
Production Crews
The TPAS Technical Theatre program provides comprehensive training in all the production skills needed to mount a stage production. It is open to any student regardless of experience level. Students work with a staff of theatre professionals to develop their skills through a sequential technical theatre curriculum, beginning with basic safety guidelines and equipment use. Each student will demonstrate what they have learned by completing graduated levels of the TPAS Achievements in Technical Theater (ATT) for each discipline, entitling them to earn higher positions of responsibility and leadership on running crews.
- Costume crew creates clothing, hats, and footwear to enliven the show.
- Lighting crew is responsible for hanging, gelling and focusing lights for the show, to provide mood and spirit to each scene.
- Makeup/Hair crew has the opportunity to create new faces and hair styles right before their eyes!
- Props crew “dresses” the stage by creating set pieces, as well as collecting set accessories from throughout the community.
- Scenic Art crew puts the color in the show by painting and/or sculpting the scenery to create the shows many locations.
- Set Construction and Running crews are responsible for building the set and executing scenic shifts during performances.
- Sound Reinforcement crew makes sure the audience can hear all the performers.
To sign up for any of the production technical crews, check the box marked “Mainstage Musical Technical Crew” on the Registration Form. Also note the technical area you prefer. Crew participation assignments will be made depending upon space available.
Note: Lighting and Sound Crew positions require completion of a basic safety and stagecraft skills test.
Running Crews
Running crew members are team members selected to operate equipment and carry out various functions of the mainstage musical during performances. They are selected by department heads, who consider the student’s dedication to learning, their performance throughout “construction” sessions, and their ability to handle responsibility.
Preference will be given to students at any grade level who are also enrolled in June Session classes appropriate to that crew discipline.
Early Construction
May 19-30, this construction session allows for timely completion of the set by the beginning of Tech Week, Monday, July 7. Activities will include stage repair, organization of all work areas, building of platforms, flats, stair and rolling units. Students whose primary interest lies in a discipline other than set construction are still encouraged to participate—there’s something for everyone to do regardless of experience! Participation in this session is not mandatory, but is welcomed.
Important Notes:
Open to students who have completed grades 8-12. Participation by audition.
Location: Trollwood Park, Fargo
Meetings/Events: June 3-August 8. Be sure to attend the Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Student and Parent Meeting on Tuesday, June 3 at 7:15 pm, Discovery School Theatre. Scripts will be distributed, designs unveiled, and schedules discussed. Also, the Cast, Crew & Orchestra Event on Thursday, June 5, 4:00-8:00 pm, Trollwood Park.
Rehearsals/Performances:
NEW! No more than 3 excused absences will be allowed for each cast member during the rehearsal session. Approval for an excused absence