Souls Laid Bare

Katie Otten’s Inner Worlds Web Series Explores Fantasy as Healing

Escapism is a divisive coping mechanism. Certain hobbies hinge almost entirely on a disconnect from reality; submersion into a realm of creativity unconstrained by the outside world. Perhaps the most widely known example is the tabletop role-playing game, Dungeons & Dragons. Often shortened to ‘D&D,’ the game has had a fickle relationship with popular culture since its inception in 1974. However, 2017 saw a meteoric resurgence of the property with the release of the game’s fi fth edition ruleset—introducing millions of newcomers to a system of boundless storytelling and self-expression, including Katie Otten.

An Omaha transplant, Otten has established herself as an adjunct theater professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, a model, a nd an actor.

“I moved here about nine years ago now. I'm from Wisconsin originally, and when I moved here, I thought, ‘Okay, I'll just be here for about a year or so for a contract at a theater and then I'm gonna go off somewhere else.’ But I ended up really fi nding my people here and fi nding that Omaha was a really cool, welcoming place,” she explained. “I really like that anything you put your mind to, you can do, and it's maybe easier in some places, maybe there'll be more resources, but there's always going to be people to support you and to help make it happen. You can afford to be here and do it, where with some cities you defi nitely can't.”

No story of success is without struggle, Otten’s notwithstanding. A characteristic common to people possessing great talent is a paralyzing lack of confidence—a wall that Otten threw herself against repeatedly.

“When I went to school for acting in Wisconsin, I only wanted to be an actor, that’s all I cared about. Th ing is, all of the other actors had this extreme confidence,” she recalled. “They would be on stage and just sparkle and command attention. In comparison, I was so scared and confused, I had really bad confidence issues. After two years of working my butt off and not figuring out how to fi nd that confidence the teacher sat down with me and said, ‘Y’know, maybe you’re just not meant to be an actor.’ Th at destroyed me. I wondered what I was going to do with my life…it was all I ever wanted.”

Reminiscing on this painful memory, Otten’s voice never wavered with regret, bitterness, nor self-pity. It was recalled with the same reverence and appreciation of a cherished memory—one of personal growth.

“Th at’s when I tried teaching, and teaching forces you to be confident even if you don’t feel it,” she continued. “You have to pretend you are for the students’ sake. Pretending to be confident actually made me confident; I faked it until I made it.”

Th is steeled optimism propelled Otten throughout her career, eventually leading to the creation of her passion project: Inner Worlds. Uploaded to YouTube for anyone to watch for free, the Inner Worlds web series follows a group of friends as they navigate their daily lives. These characters are vastly different from one another, but are united in their love of D&D. It is through fantasy and roleplaying that the players share and shed their anxieties, and together, process real-world traumas.

Now on its second season, Inner Worlds is an extension of Otten, wearing its uniquely bright outlook of the world on its sleeve, no matter how dark things may get.

“I started writing when the pandemic started. I lost a whole bunch of paid gigs. And I was like, ‘Oh, what am I going to do?’ And I always had sort of wanted to write something related to D&D, because I'm a huge Dungeons & Dragons fan. I was really interested in the show The Guild with Felicia Day, which is about an online game but it had little five minute episodes,” Otten said. “And I was like, this seems like a really cool way to digest information and focus only on what's important in the story. And so I thought, I can write something like that maybe. And once I started to write it, then I was like, ‘Oh, well now I'm really invested in this, I have to make it.’ So there was no going back. It was right at the beginning of the pandemic, really, and it's kind of never stopped.”

Jessica Johnson, director of Inner Worlds and a close friend of Otten’s, explained, “She's probably one of the most generous artists I think I've ever worked with. She is very open about sharing her work and sharing the creative process with other artists. While at the same time being very confident in what she's created which makes it really easy to create something collaboratively. She is probably one of the most joyful people I've been around.”

It can be a frightening prospect to lay bare one’s individuality, whether playing a tabletop game with friends or creating a show for strangers—a risk Otten embraces and encourages.

“There are still times where I doubt myself but I have to remind myself that everyone has something to contribute, a story to tell, and everyone should get that opportunity,” she beamed. “I’ve made something that wouldn’t exist if I didn’t make it. I think that’s a reason to do anything. It can be hard but you have to remember that your unique self is something to be cherished instead of being afraid of.”

“The things that make us unique are also the things that make us wonderful.”

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Dalton Carper’s 2020 photo captured then 7-year-old Zuri Jensen standing atop a truck with her face skyward and one arm raised in a fist of solidarity with Omaha Black Lives Matter protesters. Famed Omaha artist Watie White introduced fellow artist Anthony T. Peña to the viral image. Pena’s resulting poster and mural became synonymous with hope, catapulting him from obscurity to national r ecognition.

“It’s amazing how art brings people together. We all make up this story of hope,” said Peña, 55, a Metro Area Transit bus operator. “The photo says so much. I wanted to use my First Amendment right to say something, too, but in a different way. At first my drawing was black and white. As I kept running through concepts, I added yellow. At first, Zuri wasn’t holding a sign. I saw where someone commented they saw hope in the photo, I thought it would be perfect for her holding a sign that says hope.”

The signed poster sold out, becoming a collector’s item same for a T-shirt print. Proceeds of The Hope Project were shared with Carper, the Jensens, and Culxr House.

“It’s amazing how people react to the images. It feels really good that people gravitate to the message,” Peña said.

His experience proves recognition often comes when lea st expected.

“I guess it was just time. Before 2020 my artwork might as well have been nonexistent. The only place you could see it was on Instagram,” Peña reflected. “I would get likes here and there, but nothing substantial. Watie White liked one of my posts. I reached out to him to meet for coffee. I had a whole lot of questions and he gave me a lot of good advice on how to get my artwork out there. I took it that was a real ga me-changer.”

Peña and White subsequently collaborated with Bart Vargas, Patty Talbert, and Ang Bennett on the 18-by-24-foot “Hope” mural in NoDo. The Jensens help ed paint it.

“I was nervous. These artists are established and here I was, a new kid on the block,” Peña said.

Winter storm damage in 2022 forced the mural’s removal. It’s being repainted while a new site is be ing scouted.

Previously, Peña drew exclusively for family and friends.

“My mom bought me sketchbooks, but I would always draw them up and end up drawing on the walls, in books,” he said. “She didn’t get upset. She encouraged me.”

A North High teacher urged him to pursue college fine arts studies, which Peña did at the University of Nebras ka at Omaha.

“I didn’t finish because I thought I knew everything,” he conceded. “I didn’t really apply myself as much as I s hould have.”

His work’s stark contrasts and primary colors reflect pop art influences. The selftaught artist learned his craft from comic books, particularly the work of Marvel Comics illustrator John Byrne.

“I loved his style,” Peña said, “the way he did action scenes, his characters’ facial expressions, his realistic depictions of the human body a nd anatomy.”

Peña’s own graphic novel project, “4 OUT OF 5,” imagines a near future when human cloning is big business. He’s both illustrating and writing it.

He’s held “making ends meet jobs” his entire adult life.

“When it comes to loving your craft, you’re going to have to sacrifice a lot ,” he said.

He’s now a full-time artist with a commissioned portrait, mural, and logo projects, though he still drives a Metro Area Transit bus. Whereas before he created out of his apartment, he now has a Hot Shops studi o downtown.

MAT hired Peña to paint a veterans wall mural at its headquarters, and he’s among the featured artists in the Omaha by Design Art and Infrastructure Metro ORBT mur al project.

“It’s fun to be a part of somethin g that big,” he said.

His mural “Up in the Air/Escapism,” a take on daydreaming, adorns the 72nd and Dodge westbound ORBT station.

He finds it surreal seeing his art on public display, or readi ng about it.

“I do a double-take,” Peña said. “It feels like they’re talking about som ebody else.”

He collaborated with Talbert on another mural, “Peace.” He’s also worked with several artists on a mural cube dedicated to Ukraine, plus a Lexington, Nebraska, billboard image he did for Nebraskans for Abor tion Access.

“I’ve been very fortunate. For years, nothing, and since 2020 an incredible ride getting my work out there and people loving it,” Peña said.

White finds Peña’s continued growth “impressive” and “inspiring,” complimenting the artist’s “ability to find joy and meaning i n his work.”

“My work is constantly evolving,” Peña acknowledged. “You don’t ever want to be stale or just be known for doing one thing. I’m really challenging myself to do different mediums and use more color.”

“I love the experience and atmosphere of being around other artists,” he said of his flourishing studio practice. “It’s my second home. I can go there to create. If I want to free my mind I can walk around and check out what other artists are w orking on.”

In yet another personal milestone, last year saw Peña’s first solo exhibition at Benson’s BFF Gallery.

“[My family is] so happy for me,” he said. “For years they pushed me to get my artwork out there. I never really had the confidenc e to do it.”

“Opening night, I felt like I wa s dreaming.”

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-Anthony Peña

For over 50 years, Omaha’s 90.7 KVNO has been broadcasting classical music programs, such as Saturdays with the Metropolitan Opera or Friday Favorites featuring cinematic movie scores. On October 21 of last year, KVNO celebrated its 50th anniversary with aplomb premiering an original piece by renowned composer Stacy Garrop performed by the Omah a Symphony.

Garrop, one of the most accomplished freelance composers of her day, has written over 100 commissioned pieces for clients throughout the United States from chamber choirs and symphony halls, to orchestras and opera theaters. She’s had notable works commissioned by the Pittsburg Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Opera Theatre, and the Grammy-nominated choir, Th e Crossing.

When KVNO deliberated on a high-profile composer to feature, Garrop immediately c ame to mind.

While negotiations with KVNO were underway, Garrop discovered a 41-yearold document while cleaning out a filing cabinet: an important piece of family history. Beyond vague ties to Eastern Europe, her father’s side of the family had remained mysterious. In a twist a fate, the document chronicled Berko’s Stacy’s great grandfather journe y to Omaha.

Berko Gorobzoff (later changed to Garrop,) was a Jewish-Ukrainian immigrant to Omaha in 1904. He founded Garrop’s Grocery, where the Spielbound Board Game Café s tands today.

During an executive meeting discussing the commission, Garrop mentioned this connection, noting immigration was at the forefront of the project’s vision and that she could expand on this theme through her own family’s experience. Garrop set to work, researching the perilous time period of Jews fleeing Eka t erinoslav.

“My family’s history is basically that of ‘Fiddler on the Roof,’ that was our story,” Garrop said. “They went through religious pe rsecution.”

Situated on the limits of the Pale of Settlement a region originally outlined by the Russian Empire for Jewish containment in 1791 Ekaterinoslav, now Dnipro, Ukraine, was a site of both industry and hardship for Russia’s Jewish population.

In 1904, a year before the bloody Russian Revolution, Berko escaped the city across a backdrop of pogroms and Jewish persecution. Ultimately, Berko and his family found refu ge in Omaha.

“We wanted something that would be a gift to Omaha,” affirmed KVNO station manager, Sherry Brownrigg. “The whole story behind it was that it was just a tribute to the history of Omaha really being made up of so many people from many other incredible melting pots that we have now. We still have so many immigrants coming in and finding their home in Omaha. We felt that really the whole thing was just a gif t to Omaha.”

The Omaha Symphony, helmed by symphony director and maestro, Ankush Kamar Bahl, was excited to partner with KVNO on the project. Bahl had a distinct vision for this piece.

“For 50 years, KVNO has continued to provide locally composed and community supported classical music programming for the great Omaha region. Local classical radio stations like KVNO are rare and to show our gratitude for our longstanding partnership, we [were] excited to premiere a work by award-winning composer Stacy Garrop,” Bahl said. “I look forward to seeing this partnership continue to flourish for year s to come!”

Berko’s Journey consists of three movements. The first, Leaving Ekaterinoslav details the harrowing journey of leaving the city as tensions rise between Jews and Russian proletariats. The second movement, In Transit , is a cinematic soundscape that places listeners aboard a locomotive replete with train whistles and an air of mixed relief and uncertainty as Berko travels westward. The third movement, At Home in Omaha , resonates with hope and new beginnings as Berko and his family arrive in, settle, and embrace their newfoun d community.

“Stacy is a programmatic composer where she tells a story,” Brownrigg noted. “It’s one of those pieces of music that you can see with your mind.”

“There’s chromaticism everywhere and dissonance,” Garrop said. “There is balance in the structure. At first you can’t see what the form is, it’s a skeleton…form is the most important musical parameter.”

A medley of instruments, from brass to wind ensembles, to a principal clarinet playing the lead as Berko, envelops listeners in a poignant musical sojourn interweaving traditional Jewish folk songs and Klezmer music, such as the Miller’s Tears and Tumbalalaika , throughout. The lyrical composition explores the perils and triumphs of Ber ko’s flight.

In celebration of the 50th anniversary gala and longstanding legacy of classical music in Omaha, Berko’s Journey made its debut on the Scott Hall main stage at the Holland Center. The event consisted of two nights, with a performance Friday evening and a live broadcast of the work the following night. A pre-performance 30-minute presentation by Garrop was held as light hors d’ouevres were served.

Since its establishment in 1972, KVNO has continued to promote classical music in the metro. As a public station offering fine arts radio programming, it once partnered with other public stations s uch as NPR.

“We started out as just a radio station, but now we have a smart phone app, we stream from kvno.org, and we’re strengthening them and putting new things into them all the time,” Brow nrigg said.

She hopes that radio and broadcast mediums can continue to reach the average person and inspire a love for the art form, even offering a respite for those feeling burdened by the humdrum of a negative news cycle.

“It’s like an oasis for people. It’s very accessible,” Brownrigg said. “From professors and doctors to truck drivers, it’s for everybody.”

Indeed, as Burko’s Journey illustrates through sound, Omaha is a city flush with opportunity for classical music lovers, artists such as Garrop, and for those seeking a be t ter life.

Visit garrop.com and kvno.org for more information.