Q&A with SPA’s Newest Board Chair: MARK JODON

BY JORDAN DRUM

Pictured: Mark and Kris Jodon at their home, preparing for SPA’s 2020 Arts Forward Virtual Gala

Q: How did you first get involved with Society for the Performing Arts?

A: My wife, Kris, and I moved to Houston in 1985. We both enjoy the performing arts. Soon after we arrived in Houston, we discovered SPA. The seasons offered such a variety of performances. We have been attending performances for more than 35 years.

Q: Why do you believe it’s important to support the arts?

A: There has not been a day when I have not sung a few lines of a song, hummed a tune without thinking about it, snapped my fingers or tapped my foot to some rhythm. I suspect many people have the same experience to some degree. The arts are an essential part of life, an essential part of spirit and soul, a piece of something divine in all of our hearts. I support the arts because they are essential to life and living in community. They are essential to the human experience. A performance may be the thread that connects us to what we have in common, creating space for new conversation and perhaps even room for new friendships.

Q: What has it been like serving on an arts board through COVID-19?

A: It was a time when we saw the passion and commitment from so many people who love the performing arts and SPA step forward and offer their presence, their talents and their gifts to ensure this organization would emerge from the pandemic and be in a position to thrive once we were ready to return to the stages. This outpouring of support did not come from only current and past board members, but from SPA visionaries, community partners and so many people who are part of the SPA family. I saw how creative and responsive the SPA staff was to pivot quickly to virtual performances at a time when stages were shuttered for the indefinite future. Every single member of the SPA staff made significant contributions, provided critical leadership and made personal sacrifices for the sake of the arts. I cannot thank them enough for their commitment and dedication. I reflect on this time with a sense of thanksgiving and gratitude – thankful to be a part of this amazing arts community and grateful that its legacy will live long beyond the darkness of the pandemic.

Q: Tell us about your background as an artist.

A:I love music. I participated in the musical arts in elementary school through high school, singing in choirs and performing in musicals. I even performed the role of Conrad Birdie in the musical Bye, Bye Birdie, and wore a gold sequins body suit! I know, some things cannot be unseen. Sorry. I started writing poetry in college. I like to say I started writing poetry because of a woman, and I eventually married her! My poetry has been featured in the Houston Poetry Fest, displayed in a city hall with a photography exhibit, quoted in a doctoral dissertation, incorporated in a wedding ceremony, and read in contemplative worship services, in addition to being published in a variety of poetry journals and anthologies. I am the author of a fulllength book of poetry, Day of the Speckled Trout (Transcendent Zero Press) and a limited-edition chapbook, What the Raven Wants (Provision Press). I perform poetry readings as an Iconoclast Artist (www.iconoclast artists.org), where I am paired with a slam or performance poet and we create an evening of poetry, improbable friendships and deep conversation.

Q: What’s one of your favorite SPA performances?

A:My favorite performances are those where the artist and the audience have an immediate connection. The performances of Jeff Goldblum, Lila Downs and the iconic Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater are just a few examples that come to mind. Many years ago, Goran Bregovic & His Wedding and Funeral Orchestra performed in Jones Hall. This was the only time I ever experienced the audience charge the stage and dance in the aisles throughout the entire performance. It was an amazing (and very memorable) evening.

Q: What are you most looking forward to this season?

I am excited for us to return to live performances. There is something so special about being in the audience, hearing the pre-curtain buzz, the audience’s response to the curtain rising, absorbing the electricity of the artist’s passion and being part of the excitement that continues after the performance as we leave the hall.

I am looking forward to the broad expanse of artistry this season offers. I am looking forward to being in community with artists and people who love the arts. I am looking forward to making memories. Q: Would you be willing to share a poem with us?

This poem was written for all of us as we emerge from the isolation of the pandemic.

Needle & Thread

At first all we thought we had was a black bolt of cloth.

Eventually we unrolled the cloth and when we held it up before us

there was a pinhole of light. Hope is a needle and thread

we pull through the darkness. Here there are many hands

teaching us to sew. Hands threading the needle for us, holding

and feeding the cloth. Hands basting and tacking our places.

Hands guiding our stitches away from raw edges; hands darning the worn areas.

We are all seamstresses in this darkness waiting for our needle and thread.