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Interim Dean Lawrence Jenkens
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A Message from the
Dean's Desk
It has been my real pleasure to serve CVPA as its Interim Dean this semester. I have also been honored in the last nine years to act as Head of the Art Department when we were still in the College of Arts and Sciences and then as the first Associate Dean in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.
The legacy of the arts at UNCG, with its roots in the very earliest iterations of this institution, are manifest in the excellence of our programs in music, theatre, dance, and the visual arts. We are also expanding, adding a soon-to-be BFA concentration in Musical Theatre and nurturing our interdisciplinary Arts Administration BA program which will welcome its second full-time faculty member in August.
The strength of our programs can be measured both in the productivity of a remarkable faculty and the successes of our students and alumni. This newsletter offers our friends and supporters a glimpse into both, but what we can report is honestly just a fraction of the impressive list of accomplishments of our faculty and students.
I leave UNCG next month to become Dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth
(I think of it as CVPA North) with a sense of excitement for new challenges but at the same time with a sense of nostalgia as I leave something that has been and will continue to be incredibly important to me and more poignantly, a group of people who have been amazing colleagues and wonderful friends. I wish all of you continued success; I know CVPA will continue to grow, thrive, and achieve remarkable things.
And in that spirit, I hope you will join me in welcoming Dr. bruce d. mcclung as the incoming dean, beginning in mid-July.
Enjoy a safe and restful summer!
Lawrence Jenkens, Interim Dean
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Presenting: The 2019-2020 UNC Greensboro Concert & Lecture Series
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Janet Allard, 2018-2019
CVPA Outstanding Teacher
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CVPA Outstanding Teacher Award Presented
The recipient of the 2018-2019 College of Visual and Performing Arts Outstanding Teacher Award is Janet Allard, Associate Professor in the School of Theatre.
Allard teaches playwriting and is also a writer whose recent works include:
Pool Boy, a new musical with Composer Niko Tsakalakos (Barrington Stage, 2010) and Vrooommm! A NASComedy (SPF 2007, published by Samuel French) appeared in Ariel Tepper's Summer Play Festival in NYC.
The CVPA Outstanding Teacher Award is presented each year to a faculty member who exhibits excellence in their field and in their classroom.
Allard was nominated by graduate student, A.E. Sarver, who cited Allard's "selflessness" and "expertise":
"Not only is Janet Allard a good communicator, creates a safe learning environment, and helps her students fully understand difficult concepts, but she is also supportive and wants to help her students thrive. I know I have been inspired by Janet Allard and many other students in the School of Theatre have as well."
A.E. Sarver, MFA
Directing 2020, was named this year's CVPA Outstanding Teaching Assistant.
Her nomination reads, "Ms. Sarver outstandingly facilitated student learning through
the promotion of critical thinking and problem solving skills. She has also been an outstanding guide and facilitator of student development and accomplishment.
Allard and Sarver both received plaques during the School of Theatre's Commencement on May 10, and Allard was awarded a stipend.
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Carla LeFevre ,
Joe Di Piazza at his retirement party
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We hate to see you go, Joe!
CVPA faculty, staff, students, alumni and retirees gathered on May 7 to celebrate Joseph Di Piazza, Professor of Piano, who is retiring after 45 years at UNCG.
School of Music Director Dr. Dennis AsKew presented Di Piazza with
a clock and a photograph
of the UNCG Music Building. Retired music faculty Paul Stewart did the official "roast", full of playful jabs and references to Joe's love of baseball, and guests were given Joe Di Piazza baseball cards.
In his remarks, Professor Di Piazza thanked his wife,
Dr. Carla LeFevre, Professor of Voice (pictured above with Joe),
and his colleagues ,past and present, and his students.
"It is what happens in the studio that keeps you going", he said.
He pointed to the long careers of other School of Music faculty who were present for the celebration: Paul Stewart and George Kiorpes, both retired, and current professors John Salmon and Andrew Willis who are heading into their 30th and 25th years respectively.
"There must be a reason. It's because we love the piano, we love each other and we love UNCG. It's a wonderful place to work."
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Dr. Jill Green |
Congratulations Jill!
After 26 years at UNC Greensboro, Dr. Jill Green retired this spring from the School of Dance.
Dr. Green is a widely published expert in the field of somatics and has been teaching somatics, body studies, and pedagogy to UNCG Dance majors since she joined the faculty in 1993.
She also served as the Interim Director of the School of Dance while Director Janet Lily was on research leave in spring '19.
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FACULTY NEWS & NOTES
Dr. Constance McKoy, Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies in the UNCG School of Music, and
Dr. Andrew Willis, Professor of Piano and Historical Keyboard Instruments, have been appointed Marion Stedman Covington Distinguished Professors in Music for a five-year term, effective Fall 2019.
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Jim Fisher, Professor of Directing, Theatre History, and Theatre Scholar, has been inducted into the College of Fellows of the American Theatre, one of the highest honors bestowed upon educators and professionals in American theatre.
Read full story. |
Steve Haines, Professor Miles David Jazz Studies Program, has been recognized with the campus -wide Gladys Strawn Bullard Award. Read about
UNCG Faculty and Staff Awards here. Haines also just released
album "Steve Haines and the Third Floor Orchestra featuring Chad Eby, Saxophone and Director of the Miles Davis Jazz Studies Program along with Becca Stevens, Vocals, and Joey Calderazzo, Piano. The Third Floor Orchestra is made up of CVPA music faculty and alumni.
Dr. Heather Holian, Associate Professor of Art History and The Art of Disney and Pixar, recently brought a guest artist to campus to teach a workshop in animation. Read more about Pixar Art Director
Dan Holland's visit here.
Tami Draves, Associate Professor of Music Education, had her peer-reviewed research article "Teaching Ambition Realized: Paul's Beginning Music Teacher Identity " published in the Journal of Music Teacher Education.
Read her article here.
Dr. Elizabeth Keathley, Associate Professor, Historical Musicology and Women's & Gender Studies and Director of Graduate Studies, Women's and Gender Studies, has a book coming out in May. Schoenberg's Correspondence with Alma Mahler documents a modern music friendship beginning in fin-de-siécle Vienna and ending in 1950s Los Angeles. The correspondence is edited and translated by Elizabeth L. Keathley and Marilyn L. McCoy, with commentaries by Elizabeth L. Keathley. The book was made possible by a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship, with support from UNCG, including a one-semester research assignment from the College of Visual and Performing Arts, a Faculty First summer excellence grant, and a publication subvention from the office of research and engagement. Read more here.
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Two CVPA Alumni have been honored by the American Theatre Wing- one with a Tony Award that has already been announced, the other with a nomination.
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Beth Leavel, MFA '80
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Beth Leavel, '80 MFA Acting and Directing
, is nominated for Lead Actress in a Musical for her
as Dee Dee Allen in the hit Broadway musical, The Prom.
Leavel holds a Tony for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for
The Drowsy Chaperone in 2006. She was nominated for Lead Actress in a Musical for
Baby It's You in 2011.
The Prom is her twelfth Broadway show. She debuted in
42nd Street in 2001 and other credits include
Young Frankenstein
,
Mamma Mia
,
Bandstand and
Elf
.
In
The Prom, she plays one of four fading Broadway stars in desperate need of a new stage. They travel to a small town in Indiana to help a student bring her girlfriend to the prom, and in hopes of using their involvement in the cause to help jumpstart their careers.
Her show-stopping solo is "The Lady's Improving"(
watch it here) but it's almost impossible to imagine Beth Leavel getting any better.
The Prom opened at the Longacre Theatre on November 15
th, and the show has a total of 7 Tony nominations. Winners will be announced during the 73
rdAnnual Tony Awards Presentation on Sunday June 9
th, televised on CBS.
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Joe Forbes, BFA '76 |
Joe Forbes, '76 BFA Scenic Design
has been selected as one of four recipients for this year's
Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre.
The award was established in 1990 and are awarded annually to institutions, individuals and/or organizations that have demonstrated extraordinary achievement in theatre, but are not eligible in any of the established Tony Award categories.
Forbes is the founder of Scenic Art Studios, Inc. which has become the premiere scene painting studio for Broadway Scenery. Since its inception, the company has created backdrops, sculptures, and painted built scenery for more than 350 Broadway productions. Productions include, Book of Mormon, Kinky Boots, Hello Dolly, A Bronx Tale, School of Rock, Beetlejuice, and Beautiful.
In an effort to share his love for scene painting, Joe also founded The Studio and Forum of Scenic Arts in 2004, a not-for-profit school, where he still enjoys being an instructor. It is the studio's mission to teach the traditional skills of scene painting, while incorporating new materials and techniques. His passion for teaching also lead him to Purchase College, where he was a Lecturer in Theatre Design/Technology for 12 years.
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UNCG Theatre Industry Showcase
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This year's showcase was performed on April 15 and attended by talent agents, casting directors, managers, Broadway producers, composers, professional actors, and Off Broadway theatre companies.
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To date, 7 of the 13 students have been contacted about meetings with industry representatives.
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Congratulations Class of 2019!
Nearly 2,500 Spartans turned their tassels at Commencement on May 10.
Comedian, actor, writer, producer, and physician Ken Jeong, imparted words of wisdom to the Class of 2019, urging them to "find their passion". Watch the highlight video here.
In the
Schools of Art, Dance, Music and Theatre 216 degrees were conferred - 142 undergraduate and 74 advanced degrees.
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ALUMNI NEWS & NOTES
Linda Sloan, '82 MFA Theatre, has been named to the UNCG Board of Trustees. Linda s a dynamic leader in the Greensboro community, particularly in the area of theater and the arts. Read more about Linda and other UNCG Trustees in the
announcement here.
Nancy Ellis Riggs, '85 BFA Acting, recently celebrated her 20th anniversary as a puppeteer with Piccadilly Puppets, a small touring company based out of Atlanta. She has been the director of the company since 2011. Nancy is also performing the role of Marge (pictured here) in The Bridges of Madison County: The Musical at the Legacy Theatre through May 19, 2019. Legacy is in Tyrone, GA, a southern suburb of Atlanta.
Hugh Hysell, '88 BFA Acting, is rocking it out on tour with Million Dollar Quartet.
Read the review
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Kevin Lawson, '06 Music, is serving in the Peace Corps in Ukraine as a Youth Development Volunteer. He works at a school with around 500 students hosting English Speaking Clubs, organizing events for youth, and leads trainings on volunteerism and leadership. Kevin also sings with his school's vocal group and visits the local music school to play piano as well.
Tim Heath, '07 Music Education, has been named Director of Athletic Bands at Wake Forest University.
Ian Passmore '09 Music, has been named Associate Conductor of the
Omaha Symphony.
Matt Bishop, '15 BM Music Education, works at Dunecrest American School in Dubai, UAE teaching Choir and Piano. Matt gives a shoutout to his professors, Dr. Donald Hartmana and Dr. Carole Ott.
Victoria Morris, BFA Acting '17 is performing
in
Little Shop of Horrors at Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre
in Fort Myers, Florida.
Here's a pic of Victoria with that loveable killer plant, Audrey II.
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Community Engagement Corner
The ever popular "Instrument Petting Zoo" strikes again! This time it's at LeBauer Park where UNCG Music Education students let kids of all ages try out various instruments every first Monday through August.
To see more pictures,
click here.
| In April, The Spartan Jazz Collective played the music of American Jazz Icon Lee Morgan at the Greensboro Urban Ministry this month, giving folks something fun to listen to and creating awareness of the need in our community. Faculty members: Thomas Heflin (trumpet), Steve Haines (bass), Student members: Alex Hames (tenor saxophone (tenor saxophone), Greg Snakard (piano), Jackson Coyne (alto saxophone). |
Thank you to all of our faculty and students who participate in these terrific community engagements!
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The Woman's College Tribute Committee meeting with Interim Dean Jenkens on May 6. (l to r, front row: Agnes Price, Lawrence Jenkens, Jo Safrit; behind: Gerri Fox, Molly Roberts, Sarah Shoffner, Emmy Mills (Art, Class of 1962). Photo credit to John Poole.
The WC Tribute project, designed to create a permanent tribute to the WC era in our university's history, is slated to be completed in 2020. The committee is excited to have the final design from artists James Dinh and Michael Stutz by mid May; their concept project perfectly captured the spirit and values of WC, and its commitment to making higher education accessible, that still underlie UNCG's core mission. More information coming soon to
wctribute.uncg.edu.
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Looking for something fun to do with friends and family
this summer in the 'boro?
Check out the 2019 Spartan Cinema in LeBauer Park.
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