I Am Not a Dancer

For the second time this school year, I volunteered to understudy for a guest artist dance show. A week ago today (so on Jan. 23), three members of Ballets with a Twist arrived on campus. They auditioned campus dancers in the morning, announced the cast around noon, and immediately began rehearsing. Over the course of four days, thirteen Ohio Northern University dancers learned a nine minute long professional dance piece to be performed on Jan. 30 and Jan. 31.

ONU dancers performed a piece called Champagne in the cocktail-themed show.

I came to ONU with only a few months of formal dance training under my belt. However, I fought to become a dance minor so that I could have priority for class scheduling and try to catch up to my peers, many of whom have been dancing for several years. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, the theatre arts department here is very good about bringing in guest artists to train with. In this particular case, Ballets with a Twist came in to set a piece using a combination of their company members and ONU dancers, then performed an entire show from their repertoire.

Though I was not cast at the initial auditions, I volunteered to understudy for the performance, meaning that I would be a part of the entire rehearsal process and be prepared to take the place of another dancer if circumstances required me to. Luckily, the artistic director and choreographer of the company, Marilyn Klaus, was so impressed with my eagerness to learn that she added me to the piece. I did the exact same thing for the fall semester of 2015 when the Taylor 2 dance company made a similar visit.

From these experiences, I have learned an incredible amount about myself and the world of dance. The visiting company members that helped to set the piece were incredibly kind and helpful, praising my strengths and helping me improve upon my weaknesses. Every day before rehearsal, we would have a 90-minute warmup based entirely on technique. The fresh perspective worked wonders for me; I began to feel things in a completely different way than I ever had before and benefited from it. One of the company members, Aengus Ortiz, told me that I was "dancing with a whole new body."

Though I am far from considering myself a dancer, I love the experience of working with professionals and having the opportunity to suck up as much information from them as I can. Of course, I also benefit from it as a resume builder and a networking opportunity. The company is based out of New York City, an artistic hub. I befriended several of the dancers, including one who actually offered to help me find an internship at the PR firm that she works for when she is not touring.

Despite the late nights of rehearsal and my aching feet, working with the Ballets with a Twist company has been an incredible experience. I think it might be within my best interest to volunteer to understudy for every dance show that comes through Ada until I am skilled enough to finally be cast the first time around.

Until next time!

Kathryn

Social Justice and the Media

Wednesday, it was announced that Ferguson, Missouri reached an agreement with the Department of Justice concerning the city's police force. This story follows up on the riots that took place in late summer 2014 after the death of Mike Brown. His death began a social media revolution concerning police brutality and its relationship with racial discrimination. After images of Brown's body lying in the streets went viral, Ferguson residents began protesting. The city's police force reacted violently with riot gear and tear gas, causing uprisings that lasted over two weeks. Since then, several other cases of unwarranted police brutality against people of colour have been brought to media attention, sparking social justice reactions such as the #BlackLivesMatter movement.

Protesters in Ferguson

The recent social media attention on police and blacks is a great example of the way that technology has changed the way we think. Personally, I find it terrifying to think that police brutality has been going on for decades with little to no attention. Without social media spreading news like wildfire, we may never have been made aware of such a daunting issue in our society. Social media changes the way that we think- whenever something is happening, people jump to take a picture or video and post it to whatever platforms they prefer. This means that there are numerous first-hand accounts being shared with the world in mere moments. Suddenly, people can not get away with the same things that they did before. Like Kasy said in her recent blog post, Big Brother is watching.

It blows my mind how social media has been turned into such an influential tool for news and grassroots movements. The United States are still reeling from Brown's death and more examples show up every day, all thanks to the immediate access to information. Issues that have been hidden for years are very suddenly being brought to light. The world is changing as quickly as technology is, with new ways to communicate discovered every day.

Until next time!

Kathryn

Additional information regarding Ferguson's agreement with DOJ: NBC New York Times USA Today

Real-Time Chapters 6-7

The power of social media is undeniable. Nowadays, we think in hashtags and memes rather than headlines. Reading these chapters, it was fascinating to evaluate the shift in technology for the marketing and PR world over the past decade. Even this book, which was published in 2010, has become outdated in its commentary on social media platforms. For the author, Twitter was just beginning to take hold as a real-time tool. Nowadays, Twitter is the be-all-end-all for immediate information. One of the interesting examples the book used was President Obama's real-time response to a different politician's statements. Nowadays, presidential candidates live tweet debates, responding to statements within mere moments.

Twitter and other social media are also powerful tools for crisis management. When tempers run high and gossip is in the air, people can use social media to make immediate responses, often alleviating the situation almost immediately. Recently, music stars Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj got into an argument on Twitter; Minaj posted that she was upset with the way that the Video Music Awards were going, Swift replied thinking that it was about her, Minaj assured her that it was not, and Swift swiftly apologized. At the end of the day, because of the real-time problem-solving, it became a non-event.

Remember to apologize; it's the nice thing to do!

Businesses should take a lesson from Swift and Minaj, quickly dispelling any harsh feelings or negative energy in a real-time fashion.

Until next time!

Kathryn

Flying High in Freed

Being a theatre major often puts me in interesting situations. This past week, I spent most of my time in the air.

ZFX Flying Effects brought a variety of flying equipment and three flight instructors to campus and set up in the Freed Center for the Performing Arts for five days. Over the course of those five days, students had opportunities to operate all of the mechanisms, fit and fly in several different harnesses, and choreograph scenarios that are common in film and theatre. Personally, I preferred operating travel ropes and flying in a somersault harness, meaning that I had the mobility to perform flips. I also had the unique experience of flying in the "Billy Elliot" harness, which is fit for young boys in the musical "Billy Elliot," and running the stock choreography from that particular scene.

ZFX is known throughout the world as one of the leading Flying Effects organizations. Being able to work with their professionals and learn the basics of their equipment is an incredible resume builder. In the future, if I choose to audition for shows such as "Mary Poppins," "The Wizard of Oz," or "Peter Pan," my flying experience gives me a competitive edge. In addition, it was extremely fun, and I feel as if I got a full body workout from pulling ropes and stabilizing myself in the wires. 

Despite its small size, the Ohio Northern University theatre department continues to impress me with the guest professionals that they bring in and opportunities that they offer. Theatre is a kinesthetic art that requires practice to fully experience, something that our unique classes offer. Now when my friends at well known universities such as Carnegie Mellon or Cincinnati Conservatory brag about their programs, I can one-up them with all of the master classes and experience that I am getting. As always, I am proud to be a polar bear.

Until next time!

Kathryn

Theatre in the Age of Social Media

It is no secret that I am a little bit obsessed with the new Broadway musical, "Hamilton." Written by Lin-Manuel Miranda and inspired by the biography by Ron Chernow, the show is based on the life and works of founding father Alexander Hamilton. It has been coined as the first hip-hop musical, heavily influenced by musicians such as Notorious B.I.G., Eminem, Busta Rhymes, and Destiny's Child. The cast album, which has 46 songs and is nearly three hours long, is incredibly dense with quickly-rapped and shockingly cerebral verses. It has been praised not only for its technical brilliance, but its accessibility to mainstream audiences.

Alex Lacamoire, who orchestrated "Hamilton," often answers fan questions

"Hamilton's" mainstream success comes largely in part from the cast and crew's interaction with fans. Miranda especially is quite the Twitter fiend, coining hashtags like #Hamiltunes, #YayHamlet, and #Ham4Ham, as well as revealing fun facts about the show and constantly interacting with fans. His #Ham4Ham campaign has been especially influential; each show has a ticket lottery in which fans can enter a drawing for front row seats that would only cost them $10 (i.e., to see "Hamilton" for a Hamilton). Miranda began providing free entertainment on two-show days, utilizing guest stars from the Broadway community and other performers, which he called Ham4Ham Shows. Each show is filmed and posted on YouTube for fans all over the world to see, gaining hundreds of thousands of views.

"Hamilton's" social media presence has been met with unprecedented mainstream support. The show practically markets itself, with tickets being booked out months in advance to audiences that include celebrities such as Beyoncé, Jimmy Fallon, and President Obama. However, the demand for tickets from the general public makes it hard for even the biggest names to find seats. Theatre is notorious for being a pastime for the old and rich; "Hamilton" breaks down all barriers by being modern and responsive. In essence, it is real-time theatre, where fans know that they will be given quality content and thoughtful responses without having to wait. It is my hope as a theatre lover that future shows will learn from this and allow for a more inclusive Broadway community. As my generation begins to take the reigns, I dream that we will create new, exciting, and experimental content like "Hamilton." Theatre is an interactive art, and frankly, it is foolish to ignore the possibilities that lie within the social media backchannel and expect continued success. "Hamilton" is, pun intended, absolutely revolutionary.

Until next time!

Kathryn