Expressions 2023

wayne state university college of fine, performing and communication arts

Letter from the Dean

Dear Alumni, Friends and Supporters,

As I approach my second year as dean of the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts, I am continuously astounded by our community and proud of the global impact we have on communication and the arts.

Home to Detroit’s aspiring artists, performers, scholars, entrepreneurs, and communication professionals, we are the college of makers, innovators, and storytellers. Our Wayne State students and alumni are agents and ambassadors of this creativity.

We had much to celebrate in 2023. We welcomed a new President to WSU, Kimberly Andrews Espy, Ph.D. We also enrolled one of our largest incoming freshman classes. And opened the highly anticipated Hilberry Gateway. Personally, I have seen almost every production performed thus far in this beautiful space. I am continually amazed each time I enter and leave. If you have the ability, I encourage all to see one of the many shows presented by our spectacular students, who now have a space that will take them even further into the future of theatre and dance production.

We look forward to opening another beautiful space on campus for the benefit of our students and community — the world-class Gretchen C. Valade Jazz Center main performance hall in the renovated Hilberry Theatre. The hall is designed specifically for jazz performances and will feature high-profile concerts, a high-tech audio system and two Steinway grand pianos.

In addition, the lower level of the former Hilberry’s Studio Theatre will be the aptly named Dee Dee Bridgewater club-style venue, which will be an intimate space for jazz performances, sessions, workshops and film screenings, as well as other cultural activities.

I extend my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you — our alumni, friends, supporters, and partners — for your unwavering commitment to our shared mission. Your generosity and enthusiasm have been instrumental in propelling us forward, and we are deeply grateful for your continued support.

Together, we will continue to build upon the legacy of excellence that defines the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts.

Hasan Elahi Dean, College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts

Expressions

College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts

Hasan Elahi, Dean

Editors: Shawn Wright ’14 ‘20, Avanti Herczeg '02

Designer: Claire D’Aoust

Contributors: Madeline Beck, Kelly Driscoll ‘10, Siobhan Gregory, April Hazamy, Avanti Herczeg '02, Alison Piech Linn, Dave Pemberton, Thomas Pyrzewski ’07, Bill Roose, Grace Serra, Shawn Wright ‘14 ‘20, Steve Zoski

On the cover: Indigo, John Egner

1980, Oil on canvas, 80x134 in. (203.2 × 340.4 cm)

Gift of the Estate of Makrtin and Irene Bader, 2021 Object Number: UAC6864

WSU Board of Governors

Shirley Stancato, chair; Bryan C. Barnhill II, vice-chair; Danielle Atkinson, Michael Busuito; Mark Gaffney; Marilyn Kelly, Anil Kumar; Terri Lynn Land; Kimberly Andrews Espy, Ph.D., ex officio

CFPCA Board of Visitors

Sharon Banks ’76, David T. Brooks, Jocelyn Coley ’08, Ray Day ’88, Ann Delisi ’95, Bud Liebler, Christina Lovio-George ’79, George N’Namdi, Robert Sestok, Paula Silver ’82, Peter Van Dyke ‘03, Elliot Wilhelm

Emeriti

Arthur Bryant ’71, Delf Dodge, Elizabeth DuMouchelle ‘91, Carole Harris ’66, Howard Hertz ‘72 ’76, Daniel Kanter, Barbara Kratchman, David Lubin, Sue Nine ’62, Phoebe Mainster ’83, Lisa Vallee-Smith ’84

in this issue

10. WDET interns, Communication grad win broadcast award for sports reporting

Ryan Schira '23 wins at the 2023 Society of Professional Journalists Detroit Excellence in Journalism Awards

14. Graduate brings together fashion, art, and healing

Mary Buchanan '23 channels her life experience into her work

16. Startup Sustainability Pitch Competition winners

Najah Thomas-Young & Brittanie Dabney work with plastic alternatives

23. University Inaugurates Hilberry Gateway with Celebratory Gala

“President’s Preview Gala” held in April 2023

24. Research Details the Benefits of Sightless Dance Instruction

Christine Colquitt Thacker rethinks traditional methods of teaching

32. Music Professor Performs on White House lawn

Brandon Waddles performs with Ledisi at Juneteenth celebration

Crafting Connections

Ray Day '88, APR, Vice Chair of Stagwell and 2025 PRSA Chair, answers five questions about his Wayne State experiences

You have had an exciting journey in public relations and communications in Detroit and nationally. Tell our alumni and friends about yourself and your connections to Wayne State. It’s been more than 35 years since graduating, and I am as excited about and proud of Wayne State today as the first day I set foot on campus. The hands-on, practical experience and training I received while at Wayne well-prepared me for the future. After graduating with a BA in mass communications, I worked as a reporter and editor in the Detroit area before landing a job as editor of Ford Motor Company’s employee newspaper. In 28 years at Ford, I served in every possible role and department in communications, including four years in Europe and 10 years as chief communications officer – leading the company’s global team of 250 external and internal communicators. After Ford, I had the honor of serving as chief communications officer for another iconic company, IBM, leading its global communications and corporate citizenship team of more than 600. Today, I am vice chair of Stagwell – a company of 72 global marketing, communications, research and digital agencies – serving as the senior communications strategist for several Fortune 100 companies and other top brands.

What made you excited to be part of Wayne State University as a student and now, as a volunteer leader on the Board of Visitors at CFPCA?

I applied to two schools and was accepted at both: Wayne State and the University of Michigan. My decision to attend Wayne was based on spending time on both campuses meeting staff and students. The difference was clear: Wayne was warm, friendly, urban, diverse and filled with professors and lecturers actually working in journalism and the communications profession. Practical knowledge coupled with theoretical was important to my higher-ed decision –and I passionately believe learning from and networking with people actively working in my career field gave me a competitive advantage.

Do you have a favorite place on campus?

I spent most of my time at Wayne in Manoogian Hall, so that building brings good memories. Yet my favorite ritual is to walk across campus in the springtime, past Fountain Court, go into the Student Center to see what remains of the paper-airplane-filled ceiling tile and then walk into Old Main and take in its rich history. I also never pass up the opportunity to step inside the historic Linsell House – and to marvel at the art collection Dean Hasan Elahi has amassed inside!

What is your advice for recent Wayne State alumni who are up and coming in their field? How can students translate their classroom experiences to their early careers?

After I left Wayne, one of the best pieces of advice I received was “remember, the half-life of a skill today is about five years – so you need to constantly reinvent yourself and continuously learn.” Deep curiosity and propensity to learn are two of the key attributes that separate successful job candidates from those who struggle. From the interview process to the job, make clear that you are a lifelong learner and someone committed to constant growth.

What is your personal advice for recent Wayne State alumni who are up and coming in their field?

Be resourceful and, when presented with opportunities, always say “yes.” When you lead with those two principles, you can navigate most situations and you open yourself up to experiences and relationships that prove valuable throughout your career. And, in the words of my mentor, the late great Bob Berg, “when you need a friend, it is too late to make one.” Relationships are paramount.

How can CFPCA alumni and friends give back and make a difference for students in the post-Covid era?

When I speak on campus, I offer 10 pieces of advice to future leaders. One of them is to “pass the baton to the next generation.” Even with a career that has taken me around the world and taught me so much, passing the baton to the next generation – through guest lecturing at several universities and mentoring students and new professionals, including at Wayne – is one of my favorite passions. I am who I am today because of strong mentors and people who opened doors for me. It’s critically important that each of us reciprocates and equips the next generation for success. •

Alumnus Rick Shaughnessy ’80 helps disadvantaged children find their poetic voice

Delicate as a butterfly, beautiful, fragile and easily crushed. There are many types of freedom; association, religion, expression and action. There ’ s freedom of thought and freedom to be alive and a song that says it’s a word for nothing left to lose.

— Maria, grade 7

So reads the first stanza of a poem written by a student at Monarch School in California, the only school in the country dedicated to serving students who have been or currently are without stable housing. And Wayne State University alumnus Rick Shaughnessy — who has volunteered for six years at this safe haven — is instrumental in the children at Monarch School’s instruction in prose and poetry. Shaughnessy, a 1980 journalism graduate of the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts, remembers his first class in World Literature and Translation as one that opened his eyes to the simple and substantiative poetic style of Pablo Neruda, which he teaches to the Monarch students. “Poetry that they can understand, as it is written in Spanish, the native language of the majority of his students,” Shaughnessy says.

He credits his Wayne State education for preparing him for success. “Wayne does not get the credit they deserve for providing a real-world education, utilizing practitioners from places like the Detroit Free Press and the Automotive News to teach night classes,” Shaughnessy says. This is where he says he really thrived, studying with a diverse group of individuals, both culturally and age-wise, and learned “how it all really works. Not just theory, but real-world skills.”

Not long after graduation, Shaughnessy’s career in journalism led him to California. There he met the love of his life, Sylvia, and eventually began his own strategic marketing and communication firm. While he has worked hard to earn the life of privilege he provides for his family, Shaughnessy says, he wasn’t going to settle back and reap the benefits. Instead, he reached out to the community just around the corner to help offer hope and opportunity to children that society struggles to embrace.

“Rick is a model of what an engaged community member can do with resources and time. He is an everyday presence on campus who treats students with dignity and respect,” says Jesus Nuñez Jr. Director of Community and Corporate Engagement for the Monarch School. “Rick is super engaged, to the point of calling in when he may be late, and keeping us apprised of his schedule. His commitment to the children is extraordinary and he deserves a statue for all that he has contributed to this school and the lives of the children.”

Without a formal teaching certificate, Shaughnessy shares his passion for poetry with students who otherwise might not be

exposed to literature. The children are comprised of a cross-section of abilities, dreams, and innate intelligence, just as one might find in any school community. However, due to their circumstances, many of them struggle with basic skills such as reading and simple arithmetic — building blocks of education.

But through poetry, the children share their innermost thoughts, hopes and experiences. The results are stunning. For example, the video above of readings that were recorded during the pandemic, when students were not able to gather for the yearly Launch Party celebrating the publication of a new book of poetry in The Odes Project.

Children flourish when they are interested and intrigued, Shaughnessy says. In addition to prose, he also shares with them his passion for photography. They learn that photography is a process of documentation, not just taking a picture on their phones. “Getting behind a lens puts them in a different space. Taking a picture is a deliberate, thoughtful act” Shaughnessy says.

In addition to teaching the art of photography, he is also the Monarch School’s official team photographer. Taking hundreds of pictures of the students engaged in sports, Shaughnessey has them made into posters that are placed around the school as a celebration of accomplishment and pride.

Since being semi-retired, he and Sylvia plan to travel next spring. More importantly, Shaughnessy says he “plans to make the most of his years by upping his volunteer commitment” as while moving into full retirement. •

by April Hazamy

Department of Communication

Pradeep Sopory

Interim Chair, Department of Communication

We offer programs in journalism, film production, public relations, and communication studies. Our students reflect, explore, and learn to create a whole world of news stories, documentaries, films, public relations content, debating arguments, speeches, public messages, organizational communication. Students can discover their calling with us. Our renowned faculty guide graduate students in their professional and scholarly pursuits, publish high impact research, produce creative works that have a cultural saliency, and engage with the public at local, national, and international stage for positive change. The coming year is exciting as we rebuild our connections after the pandemic and work toward revisioning our programs. •

2024 Event Schedule

Central States Communication Association 2024 Annual Conference

April 6, 2024

Amway Grand Plaza / Grand Rapids, MI 49503

19th Annual Alumni and Student Recognition Breakfast

presented by the Wayne State University James S. Measell chapter of Public Relations Student Society of America and the Department of Communication

April 9, 2024 | 9-11am | invite only

Wayne State Student Center Ballroom / 5221 Gullen Mall / Detroit, MI 48202

Spirit of Diversity Awards Reception 2024

presented by The Journalism Institute for Media Diversity

April 26, 2024 | 6-8pm | Tickets $50

St. Andrew’s Hall / 5105 Anthony Wayne Drive / Detroit, MI 48202

90th Annual WSU Forensics and Debate Alumni Banquet

May 4, 2024 | 11:00am-2pm | invite only

Student Center - Hilberry A&B / 5221 Gullen Mall / Detroit, MI 48202

Shannon Cassilo

Assistant Professor, Journalism

Shannon Cassilo has a MS in Journalism from Northwestern University, and is an award-winning television anchor and multimedia journalist with over a decade of professional experience in Washington, DC, Atlanta, Cleveland, Lansing, and Detroit. Most recently Shannon was part of the faculty at Kennesaw State University.

Shannon grew up in southeast Michigan and is excited to be back home.•

Anna Lindner

Assistant Professor, Communications Studies

Anna Lindner has a MA in Media & Culture from New York University, and PhD in Communication from Wayne State. As a critical/cultural communication historian she has written about White Discourses on Black Rebellion in Spanish Colonial Cuba, and the rhetoric of nineteenth-century US, Caribbean, and Latin American newspapers, among other topics, and is a member of the Antiracist Language and Literacy Practices research group. Her papers have won awards from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, and the American Journalism Historians Association.•

Carrol Parris

Academic Advisor, Media Arts Studies and Film

Carrol Parris has a MA in Liberal Studies from University of Detroit Mercy, and also a MA in Human Resource Management from Marygrove College. She has extensive experience in student services and advising, including at University of Detroit Mercy and Oakland University, and most recently at Lawrence Technological University. She attended Detroit Public Schools and is a native Detroiter, and she enjoys traveling internationally, with her most recent trip being to Rome, Italy.•

Communication professor reflects on transformative summer visit to China

Shelly Najor ’88, MA ’92, PhD ’99 wasn’t expecting a trip to China to have such a profound impact on her.

Najor, an associate professor of teaching at Wayne State University and three-time WSU alumna, describes this season of her career as transformative. She was ready for more — something to recharge her heart and motivate her in a new and different way — what she calls a “shot in the arm!”

Luckily, the WSU Faculty Teach in China program during summer 2023 came her way. The program assists WSU China partner institutions in facilitating their summer programs, providing faculty an opportunity to take part in teaching and researching abroad during the summer semesters. Several WSU instructors, across various disciplines, including linguistics, engineering and anthropology participated. Associate Professor Rahul Mitra, also in the Department of Communication, joined Najor in the program this summer. Najor spent six weeks in China. Five of those were spent teaching at Shanghai Dianju University and Xi’an Eurasia University, public and private institutions, respectively. Additionally, she traveled in Beijing for a week.

Knowing that the subject would look vastly different in a country without a free press, Najor still planned to teach some variation of public relations. Once there, however, she opted to teach public speaking. While students knew English, they had little experience speaking it.

“Teaching and supporting students in finding and feeling comfortable with their own voices was so mutually rewarding,” she said. She found the students at both universities to be passionate, curious and welcoming. It took only a few classes before students took risks and spoke from their hearts. Before long, Najor said, they were standing up in front of the class encouraging Chinese high school graduates to travel before beginning college; how to cope with anxiety and depression; the value of pet therapy; and, their understanding of love versus their parents' understanding of love. “It was amazing to observe the topics evolve,” Najor said. “They’re change agents.”

Inside the classroom, the program helped her realize that students are students, no matter where she taught.

“They have the same dreams. You’re going to get the same ones that always sit in the front, as well as those who always sit in the back. Some never stop chatting,” said Najor, who described her students as inspired, ambitious, grateful, and hungry for “different.”

Upon entering the program, she was concerned students might not “take to her.” As it turns out, they were a bit trepidatious. During a farewell gathering at one of the universities, however, one student spoke about being very nervous and unsure coming into the program. But when Najor gave him a big smile and reassured him that, “everything’s going to be okay,” he knew it would be. He went on to report that he had so much fun and learned a lot.

Basking in the differences, Najor also noticed the similarities surrounding her. “The people are always so excited for you to share in their food and their culture — I just felt really special,” she said.

Najor experienced beautiful lunches and dinners, shared gifts, long conversations, sightseeing with tour guides, and even an unexpected connection that allowed her to attend mass at a Catholic Church.

During her final week in Beijing, she hiked the Great Wall, reflecting on the connections and friendships made, one in particular with a WSU colleague who she now considers among her inner circle.

“How would that have ever happened otherwise?” she said.

When Najor looks back on her experience in the WSU Teach in China Program, she said she becomes emotional, describing the impact as deep and wide. The changes to her daily routines, encountering a language barrier, and leaving the comforts of home created a “personal growth that was just unexpected.”

“I anticipated professional growth and hoped I would return a better teacher with more empathy, compassion and understanding,” Najor said. “But I also came back knowing Shelly a lot better. And

I thank Wayne State University for giving me that opportunity. I’d do it again.” •

by Avanti Herczeg

Created by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer through Executive Order 20-663 in 2020, the Michigan Black Leadership Advisory Council (BLAC) acts in an advisory capacity to the governor and develops, reviews and recommends policies and actions designed to eradicate and prevent discrimination and racial inequity in Michigan.

“I'm looking forward to being involved in conversations around the artistic expression of the Black experience in our state. I am impressed by this validation that journalism — the form of expression I represent — is, indeed, an art,” said Nails, a professor in the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts’ Department of Communication.

“It is an invaluable mode of capturing and communicating the lived experiences of so many who contribute to, or who are challenged by, the full range of social impacts of being Black at this time and in this place. It is an artistic form of witnessing for the culture.”

The Arts, Culture and Communications Committee is one of six committees charged with identifying and proposing policy solutions to BLAC. The other commitees are: Business Leadership, Community Safety and Justice, Education, Health, and African Diaspora. As a member of the Arts, Culture and Communications committee, Nails will play a role in shaping BLAC’s policy recommendations. The council is made up of 16 gubernatorial appointees from communities throughout Michigan and a representative from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, which is BLAC’s home in state government. •

Alicia Nails JD ’95, director of Wayne State University's Journalism Institute for Media Diversity, has been appointed to the Arts, Culture and Communications Committee of the Michigan Black Leadership Advisory Council.

WDET interns, Communication grad win BROADCAST

AWARD for Sports Reporting

Winning an award as an intern never crossed Ryan Schira's mind. And why would it? After all, as a college student, working at a radio station was more about opportunities and making connections. So, when Schira '23 found out that he and fellow WDET intern Nate Pappas took home first place in the 2023 Society of Professional Journalists Detroit Excellence in Journalism Awards, he was astonished.

“I didn’t even know our story was submitted,” said Schira, who graduated last month from Wayne State University with a bachelor of arts in journalism with a broadcast concentration. “I definitely think it was a great story, but I was shocked.”

Schira and Pappas, who attends Central Michigan University, received top honors for sports reporting in the Broadcast category. The awards were announced during a ceremony held at the San Marino Club in Troy, Michigan, on May 15.

The two interns won for their story on the rabid fans of Detroit’s newest pro sports franchise, the Detroit City Football Club (DCFC), which plays its home matches at historic Keyworth Stadium in Hamtramck. For their story, the intern duo captured the culture, passion and energy that surrounds the soccer team before, during and after each home contest.

“I thought Ryan and Nate did a great job in particular with sound,” said Diane Sanders manager of strategic initiatives at WDET. “There was a lot of noise, but they were able to provide clear audio. For both of them to be new in journalism, they managed the event and the story very well.”

A neighbor who happens to coach soccer at Rochester Adams first told Schira about the Hamtramck team. So, he attended a couple matches with his girlfriend and roommate.

“It was intense, but it just fit Detroit,” said Schira, who also called WSU baseball and softball games this season for Warrior All-Access. “It was a great atmosphere, and there’s nothing quite like it in the city. It’s just unique. When Nate and I went back to get the audio, everybody was so welcoming. The fans might get after the opposing teams and there’s really no filter on the explicit words that they use, but it’s all for the fun and the atmosphere. They’ve made it their own and it’s really evolved.”

In all, WDET received 12 awards this year for its broadcast and digital coverage, but only one first place award, thanks to two summer interns.

“The fact that two interns had the opportunity to do a story like that in their first semester at WDET was big for us,” Schira said. A change of heart led Schira to Wayne State and a journalism trajectory. He was working toward a career in special education when

he decided to shift gears at the start of the pandemic. Following his junior year at Western Michigan University, he decided to switch majors and transferred to Wayne State.

“I realized that I couldn’t see myself teaching every day,” said Schira, who graduated from Rochester Stoney Creek High School in 2017. “I love teaching and I love kids, but I decided to transfer to Wayne State when COVID hit.

“I always had a broadcast/journalism major in my mind. I liked doing it in high school when I was on the morning announcements and hosting homecoming events. Then I got injured in football my senior year, so I had to sit out basketball season. I asked my AD, Rick Jakacki, if I could do the P.A. announcing and be close to the team that way.”

Perry Farrell is an assistant professor of communications who spent more than three decades as a sportswriter with the Detroit Free Press, and he’s complimentary of Schira’s work in and out of the classroom.

“Ryan is driven to do well and has made such a great impression everywhere he goes,” Farrell said. “I am excited for Ryan and his future. He will do well in whatever endeavor he chooses. He is well deserving of the award and I’m glad I had a part in his development.”

A two-term intern at WDET, Schira began working alongside news reporters, where he learned valuable reporting skills. He also did freelance photography for SBLive.com at high school practices and games and was a contributing writer at The South End.

"During the time as a news intern, he captured photographs for his stories. He later enrolled in a photography class, knowing that those skills would help him be a more versatile journalist.

Following his first term with WDET, he applied for the opportunity to be a photojournalist intern, which led to the story about the DCFC.

“Ryan has a fantastic work ethic,” Sanders said. “He was always available to help with events at the station. He is a very polite and well-mannered young man. I'm sure he will go far.”

Though he’s currently undecided about his future, Schira hopes to eventually turn sports into a full-time career.

“I really want a sports focus and I know that’s hard as a young journalism major because you have to get your feet wet,” he said.

“But I’ve always loved sports, I’ve always played sports. I have this education background. I like being around kids. And I’m also thinking about going back to Wayne State to get a master’s in sports administration.” •

by Bill Roose

WSU SPEECH TEAM FARES WELL AT NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Small but mighty, the Wayne State University speech and debate team fared well at the 2023 National Forensic Association Championship tournament at Bradley University.

The six-member squad from the College of Fine Performing and Communication Arts battled teams with far larger rosters from 55 colleges and universities in 12 different public speaking categories. Led by senior Colin Murtagh Wayne State fought its way to a 14th-place finish in the nationwide competition held April 13-17, 2023, in central Illinois.

“This is the Super Bowl of forensic tournaments,” said coach Kevin Mardirosian ’18. The National Forensic Association (NFA) is an academic organization dedicated to providing leadership in intercollegiate speech and debate education in the U.S. Murtagh, Wayne State’s team captain, drew rave reviews for his performance that led to a third-place finish in impromptu speaking. Mardirosian said public speaking

is challenging enough, but to do so spontaneously, like Murtagh, shows talent.

“Colin kind of carried the team,” Mardirosian said. “He is such an energetic and charismatic young man. His energy was the thing that propelled us at the tournament. It was truly exciting to watch him succeed because it invigorated and inspired our students, and us as coaches, too. It was so exciting to watch him.”

Wayne State competed in 11 of the 12 categories. All six Warriors competed in prose interpretation, with senior Miranda Sadik finishing as a quarterfinalist. Freshman Leena Jandali took second place in the prose interpretation novice finals.

The NFA also recognizes octofinalists, which are the top 48 competitors in each of the categories. WSU had eight top-48 finishers.

The WSU team also featured junior Hannah D'Hondt and sophomores Jenna Alamat and Kenzie Bisdorf

Wayne State is among five Michigan public universities that offer an established speech program to its students. The WSU coaching staff — including assistant coach John Burklow and graduate coach Jessica Carpenter — would like to see more students join the team and take advantage of the program. “We get communications majors, whom you would assume, but we also get English majors and hardcore STEM majors — chem, engineering, bio, medicine,” Mardirosian said. “We also have people with theatre backgrounds, psychology and philosophy. It’s a testament to how universal the skills are for speech because every single time you go for a job interview, or you’re giving a presentation in front of an audience, those presentation skills matter and they are going to be celebrated regardless of what field you are in.” •

by Bill Roose

As many know, Paul Nine ’62, JD ’66 passed away on January 14, 2024. With sadness and reflection, we look back fondly on Paul's many accomplishments in life and law. Paul

Remembering Paul Nine

was a pillar of excellence in our Wayne State University community.

He served as the president of the Alumni Association from 1979-1980 and was devoted to the university through service to the College of Liberal Arts and Science, and support of the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts and Law School.

Paul was a prominent attorney for more than 58 years, born of parents who were of very modest means, but he had a work ethic that would be hard to duplicate by two individuals who worked regularly. Paul was a man with an incredible mind, an extraordinary sense of kindness, and a willingness to help those who could not always do for themselves.

Clients often commented that he was the most trustworthy man they had ever known.

Paul was also a highly successful national competitor in WSU's Forensics and Debate

program as an undergraduate, and he felt that training later gave him an advantage over many professionals during his business life. As a testament to this, he created the Paul Nine Endowed Scholarship in Forensics at Wayne State University, which helps with scholarships for worthy students who are members of the highly successful national debate program.

Paul also found love at WSU and would go on to marry one of his competitive debate partners, Sue, and they would have celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary. They always commented that their time together seemed like a minute, and they were well-known for working together on dozens of community projects over the years. Our thoughts and condolences are with our dear friend Sue and her family. •

Lauren Kalman

Chair, Professor, Elaine L. Jacob Endowed Chair

James Pearson Duffy Department of Art, Art History, and Design

Since it was first launched, Wayne State University’s bachelor of fine arts design degree has been a popular undergraduate major, enrolling nearly 300 design students. Which is why it was time for WSU’s art department to better reflect the current curriculum and student interest.

“Changing the name and adding ‘Design’ does a few things. First, it reflects the transformations to the structure of the department and formally recognizes in the department name the degrees offered,” said Lauren Kalman, chair of the renamed James Pearson Duffy Department of Art, Art History, and Design. “It also reflects growing design areas, which now represent the majority of our department majors.”

WSU’s Board of Governors unanimously approved adding “Design” to the department name in April 2023 during its regularly scheduled meeting. It went into effect for the fall 2023 semester.

The name change has been part of an ongoing conversation within the department and will not have a curricular impact on current students. Instead, it reinforces and formally recognizes the degree tracks they are already on. It also serves to advertise the degree offerings to more efficiently recruit students interested in design majors, minors and coursework.

Changing the name also fulfilled an outstanding goal that was first established by the department faculty in the Department of Art and Art History 2016 Academic Program Review Self-Assessment.

Located in the heart of Midtown Detroit, the James Pearson Duffy Department of Art, Art History, and Design is educating the next generation of artists, art historians and designers.

“The goal is to prepare students who will apply their skills, creatively solve complex problems, and build meaningful and successful careers in an increasingly dynamic professional landscape,” said Hasan Elahi, dean of the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts.

“The department offers a broad range of degree programs, tracks, and area concentrations to fit all students who want to develop their creativity and knowledge of art, art history, and design. This was always the case, but now the department name is a much clearer representation.”

The field of fine arts and design is constantly changing, incorporating new mediums and technology, new approaches, and theoretical perspectives. Some artists and designers specialize in specific mediums while others take a broad approach and integrate and combine a large variety of mediums. For example, one design may only work in graphic design, while another fine artist may combine sculpture, performance, and digital production.

Wayne State’s fine art and design programs emphasize exploratory and experiential learning, balancing technical training with conceptual thinking.

“Studying fine arts and design at WSU is a very hands-on and engaging experience, supported by a robust and challenging curriculum,” Kalman said. “Students from across the university are welcome to discover their creative potential through individual courses, as a minor, or through a degree program.” •

2024 Exhibition Schedule

ELAINE L. JACOB GALLERY

480 W. Hancock St. / Detroit, MI 48201

Thurs: 12-5pm | Fri: 12-7pm | Sat: 12-5pm

Works by Jefferson Pinder

February 2 - April 26, 2024

I'll Be Your Mirror

Curated by Mighty Real/Queer Detroit

May 31- June 28, 2024

ART DEPARTMENT GALLERY

150 Art Building, 5400 Gullen Mall / Detroit, MI 48202

Tues, Wed, Thurs: 12-5pm

MFA Thesis Exhibition

March 1-April 5, 2024

Undergraduate Exhibition & Graduating Seniors Exhibition

April 26 - May 10, 2024

Reception: April 26, 5-8pm

Yasemin Gencer Pre-Faculty Fellow

Yasemin Gencer is a scholar of Islamic art and civilization specializing in the history of Ottoman and modern Turkish art and print culture. She is the author of multiple articles on printing and the early Turkish Republican popular press and publishes a research and translation blog entitled Today in 1920s Turkey. Gencer is also preparing for publication her English translation of Celal Nuri's Hatem ül-Enbiya (1914), an Ottoman Turkish scholarly monograph on the life of the Prophet Muhammad to be published with Edinburgh University Press. She was an Affiliate Scholar at Indiana University’s Institute for Advanced Study (2020-2023) and founding member of Khamseen: Islamic Art History Online where she also served as Content and Captions Coordinator. Gencer has been teaching Islamic Art History courses at Wayne State University since Fall 2020 and recently received a General Education Teaching Award for her Islamic Art and Architecture course.•

Heather Mawson Assistant Professor of Teaching

Heather Mawson is an interdisciplinary artist that focuses on the transformation of everyday materials through labor and time-based processes. Whether it is through a breakdown of familiar objects, prolonged performance, or the repetition of materials, she investigates these objects and actions in order to question where the system ends and the individual begins. •

James

Wesley Taylor

Associate Professor of Graphic Design

Wesley Taylor has joined WSU from Virginia Commonwealth University. Taylor holds an MFA in 2-D Design from Cranbrook Academy of Art.

He is a graphic designer, fine artist, musician, and curator. He has spent many years "scene building" in the Detroit Hip Hop community by participating as both an emcee and graphic designer in the rap group, Athletic Mic League. He is co-founder of Emergence Media and co-founder of Talking Dolls Studio. He is a lead artist in the Complex Movements collective.

Taylor’s work revolves around the promise of the future; he imagines that “the future” is his client and he is in charge of marketing for “the future” and branding its many possibilities. •

Graduate Mary Buchanan '23 brings together fashion, art, and healing

Mary Buchanan’s path to her degree is a story of tremendous dedication. She first attended Wayne State University (WSU) in 1999 to study Fashion, before shifting to the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Francisco (FIDM), where she received her associate degree. In 2015, she would return to WSU to complete her Bachelors in Design.

As an artist living with cancer, Buchanan is creating work that addresses her bodily experience with the disease while building a legacy for her daughter, her family, and friends. “Beyond my situation with my health, I found the silver lining to be surrounded by love and support from friends and the faculty in the department. I have found allies in the department who I can share ideas that I am working on or thinking about.”

Setting her pace at WSU

When she returned to WSU, Buchanan was a new mother with a different perspective. She found the structure and sense of community to be both grounding and creatively invigorating. She says, “when I returned to Wayne, it was a different from when I was 19. I am people-oriented, so it is very challenging to work on my own. I really thrive in the classroom. My first art class back was Intro to Digital Photography. The instructor, Deb Kingery encouraged me to continue pursuing photo courses and to find the courage to exhibit my work. Soon to follow were experiments with fiber, fashion, and photo.”

The process couldn’t be rushed because Buchanan wanted to align her FIDM credit with her WSU credits in a meaningful way. This took a diligent partnership with her advisor, Avanti Herczeg “Avanti and the [Fashion] program folks were very helpful in being consistently communicative. I wouldn’t have stuck with it if I hadn’t had that support.” Setting a slower pace toward her degree turned out to be the right approach for Buchanan, and also a way to bring her life and her work together in meaningful ways. “Taking classes across a longer period of time is a way to instill what you’re learning in your life. If I was rushing through it to get done by a certain time, I don’t think I would have appreciated how each class enriched me in different ways. The time I spent allowed me to slow down if I needed, and ultimately was the best way for me to invest in myself. I’m not doing this for anyone buy myself.”

Spirit of Detroit

Buchanan describes the WSU Fashion program as having a “Detroit slant.” The city may not have a fashion industry, but “there is motivation and open-mindedness about doing your own thing” she explains, adding that studying art in Detroit is uniquely influenced by the energy of artists who have sustained a strong presence in the city, weathering its ups and downs.

She says, “It’s always been the artist community that has really survived in Detroit. I see that as such a monumental, beautiful thing about Detroit, though the city is often talked about so poorly around the world. In my experience, there has always been a community of creative and truly diverse people, rich in culture and kindness and connection. Learning from people here had really touched my soul.”

Today, interest in nurturing independent fashion designers in Detroit is growing, and the WSU faculty are bringing that message into the classroom. “When I talk to the fashion faculty at WSU,” she says, “I really hear clarity and feel the essence of Detroit. You can do it yourself, find people, and try new things. I am reminded about

the ‘Spirit of Detroit’. For me that means resilience and surviving, finding a little wiggle room to make something new. That’s something that is really special about Detroit, and I think the Art Department at Wayne really grasps that.”

Buchanan speaks of the powerful element of mutual respect between students and faculty within the WSU experience. “I felt very respected as a human being and an artist, and I saw respect and fostering going on around me with other students, which was so encouraging,” she says. This support was felt most acutely when she was working on her final project, which dealt with cancer and the body. “I knew that I could come into class and ask questions and feel supported,” she says. “Friends and family sometimes can’t always understand your visions, but there’s something pretty magical when your peers in an art community seem to understand or be able to have that conversation with you. That makes your ideas sharper. That’s pretty special.”

Her work with textiles, fabric construction, and craft led Buchanan to explore a connection with the journey of cancer and the body

through a Directed Study/Tailoring course. “I was very interested in the similarities between the impact of cancer-related surgery and tailoring itself,” she says. “Tailoring is about making bespoke garments that are fit to an individual body, well-proportioned and body-conscious. I’ve had many surgeries. My own body had been manipulated and sewn back together, and I wanted to find a way to express that experience with my handwork.”

Conceptually—and therapeutically—Buchanan is addressing expectations of her own body and image, and the persistence of these standards, in the fashion industry. She explains, “This work is also about facing how different my body is from other women my age, and feeling like my body doesn’t fit into fashion anymore. This is a difficult feeling for me as a fashion designer—I’m someone who’s been obsessed with Vogue since I was a kid! I am feeling like my body is not representative of my vision and style anymore. I feel that loss, and I am asking myself ‘What is that vision now? What is my style now?’”

Making and healing

Buchanan sees mental and physical health benefits through the process of art making. She explains, “The tactility of working with weaving and working with the concept of something that is so primitive and ancient—this took me out of myself a bit. The thinking about the making can be very scary, but that flow you get into can be soothing.”

Buchanan understands that connecting with these feelings in her work is a powerful and daunting process. “I often don’t know if I want to dig into the feelings, but the feelings are where the most special and authentic creativity is going to be,” she says. “It’s hard to put into works what I have been through. It’s hard to put into form. And the two are very different, the words and the process of creating something. But once I get going, and I know that I am going to present something meaningful to a group of people that have also shared things that are deeply meaningful, it really motivates me to create something.”

Right now, Buchanan is finding her joy in her art making and connecting with herself and her life experiences. She hopes to create a legacy of work to leave to her daughter—a combination of fashion, photography, and possibly animation. She is planning to create some new fashion pieces, 3D forms, and cyanotypes that allude to her surgeries. “I want to create something in her language. I’m finding a road to creating a body of work that will answer questions I won’t be able to answer when I’ve passed, or to give her and other people something to ponder on: Who was this person? What were they all about?” •

by Siobhan Gregory

This page: Eloise's Dream

Opposite page: The Empress

Startup Sustainability Pitch Competition winners plan to make plastic alternatives fashionable

Every minute, enough plastic to fill a garbage truck is dumped into Earth’s oceans. This statistic is one of many from a recent U.N. report that showcases the perils of plastic pollution.

This year’s Startup Sustainability Pitch Competition, hosted and supported by the Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation and Wayne State University, featured students who were inspired to develop creative solutions to the world’s plastic problem. Students from across the university were encouraged to apply for this year’s competition. Applicants from a range of academic programs were matched together into six teams and tasked with developing viable alternatives to plastic.

Teams gathered every week for three months, refining their ideas in an accelerator clinic where Detroit-based business and sustainability professionals advised them on their prototypes and plans. The program culminated with teams pitching their ideas before a Shark Tank-style panel that decided which proposals received funding.

The first-place team, BAN Lab Detroit, received a $25,000 award while the runner-up, TerraToGo, received $10,000.

In the bag

Najah Thomas-Young, an undergraduate student in fine arts and fashion design, was lamenting that less than 20% of the world’s textiles are recycled. Brittanie Dabney, a doctoral student in biological sciences and urban sustainability, was writing her dissertation on the effects of microplastic pollution on aquatic life. They had never met before the competition but started conceptualizing BAN Lab Detroit as soon as they were paired together.

They decided to work toward opening a coworking lab space where designers and researchers interested in the biomaterials industry could create bio-based products. There, they would produce a line of sustainable handbags using materials including seaweed and industrial waste.

“My favorite parts of the competition were watching how our idea really morphed into something to be proud of and how we were able to talk about it clearly and feel competent,” Thomas-Young said. The team hopes the award funds will help them procure a location for BAN Lab Detroit to call home and start serving the community.

“The $25,000 will help with physical space and equipment and with starting the process so that we can get something off the ground and start generating revenue,” Thomas-Young said. “As we’ve made partnerships throughout Detroit, it’s given us confidence that we have a great idea to move forward with and that we’re filling in an actual gap by intercepting waste streams in the city.”

“We found just from talking with people around Detroit that this is something that people actually want,” Dabney added. “The competition gave us really good experience on how to communicate with people who don't have the same background.”

This, Dabney said, applied even within their own team.

“We're meshing both our interests and our expertise. But we're still able to maintain our uniqueness,” Dabney said. “The fact that Najah has experience making these materials, but then I’m coming from a different perspective where I’m kind of looking at the data, we can bring in different communities into our space to work on this really complex yet important thing that we need to start solving, which is the plastic issue.” •

by Steve Zoski

M. Roy Wilson State Hall becomes latest canvas for University Art Collection

Grace Serra is always looking for ways to ingrain the University Art Collection into the daily lives of Wayne State University students, faculty and staff.

So, when it was first announced that the former State Hall — which opened in 1947 as the first building on campus constructed explicitly for the university — would receive a much-needed renovation and be renamed in honor of President Emeritus M. Roy Wilson Serra saw it as a big opportunity.

“Since the newly renovated M. Roy Wilson State Hall is the most-frequented building on campus, integrating the artwork into that building was a perfect way to meet our mission and more,” said Serra, curator of the University Art Collection. “The mission of the university’s collection is to use art to educate, inspire and foster creative thinking. The best way to meet this mission is to bring these works into the lives of our students daily and to meet them where they are.”

Nearly 73% of all WSU students use State Hall each semester, and more than 90% of students have at least one class in the 76-year-old facility before they graduate. All 13 schools and colleges at Wayne State have used the building, which was renamed to M. Roy Wilson State Hall with unanimous approval by WSU’s Board of Governors in June, in honor of the university’s 12th president.

The completely renovated $80-million structure officially opened its doors on Oct.

30 — with Wilson on hand for a dedication ceremony — and features new classrooms, lecture halls, meeting and lounge spaces, a reflection room, lactation room, and all-gender restrooms.

“This beautiful new facelift has provided state-of-the-art exhibition spaces for the University Art Collection, including one for the iconic work ‘Enigma’ by Gary Eleinko,” Serra said. “It was moved from the David Adamany Undergraduate Library to its beautiful new home on the third floor and is a perfect fit for this light-filled space. In the work, the text ‘Past Future/Future Past’ appears, perfectly reflecting the concept of this renovated building itself.”

Also included in this renovation project is a new sculpture, located at the building’s Cass Avenue entrance, by renowned Detroit artist Robert Sestok, titled “Triosphere.” This is the first of a series of large-scale sculptures that have been gifted to the university by the artist and his brother, Charles Sestok Robert Sestok, famed Cass Corridor artist, is perhaps best known for his sculpture work, which can be found throughout Detroit. This includes the sculpture park he founded and runs called City Sculpture. Sestok is a WSU alumnus, who studied at the College for Creative Studies from 1965-69, and later at Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1970.

The Cass Corridor art movement was a counter-culture art movement that began in the 1960s (through 1980) when young artists

— many who were WSU faculty and students — lived and worked in the Cass Corridor and created some of the most exciting and important artwork of the 20th century.

“The more than 50 works of art hanging in M. Roy Wilson State Hall represent more than Cass Corridor art. They provide a glimpse into the wider diversity of this important collection,” said Hasan Elahi dean of the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts. “It is a collection that celebrates and reveals the significant role that many of our Wayne State University alumni have played in shaping the cultural landscape of this community.” The UAC first began in 1968 with only about 100 works of art. It has since grown to more than 7,500 through gifts of art. Its primary focus is on contemporary Detroit and regional art, uniquely featuring the most comprehensive collection of the Detroit Cass Corridor Art.

“The University Art Collection strives to create an environment that is provocative, stimulating and challenges the imagination of our students, faculty, staff and visitors through the engagement with great works of art,” said Serra, “and the collection in M. Roy Wilson State Hall does just that.” •

by Shawn Wright

Kaleigh Blevins ’22 is starting to be recognized internationally as an emerging painter

by Siobhan Gregory

In August 2022, Kaleigh Blevins, who studied Painting in the James Pearson Duffy Department of Art, Art History and Design, had three of her pieces selected for the prestigious publication New American Paintings, Midwest Issue #161. She was more recently part of a two-person exhibition with Cailyn Dawson at M Contemporary Art in Ferndale, MI in June 2023.

Blevins’ work “explores the certainty of life through a Black lens” and “highlights how absurd the work can feel for Black Americans.” She does this by portraying environments that traditionally feel familiar and safe, but come across as distorted through scarcely filled interiors and imposed imagery from pop culture. These elements create a feeling of “uncomfortable intimacy” between the subject and the viewer. She draws inspiration from artists “who are interested in the grounded nature of the Black figure, and in making Black look realized and human and beautiful.”

Challenging the Excellence Push

Blevins attended Cass Technical High School where she concentrated in Commercial Art. Cass Tech, a predominantly Black high school located in Detroit, has a renowned reputation for graduating successful creatives. It was there she began to realize a tension in the Black American experience related to notions of achievement. She says, “Diana Ross graduated from Cass; Big Sean, Kwame Kilpatrick. There is this push for excellence that creates extremes for Black people in terms of representation. This really means you are seen as being either destined for failure or destined for excellence. That is a narrow view and a generalization.”

While Blevins acknowledges her own success, she doesn’t want labels for herself. “People might say that I’m a symbol of excellence but I’m just me. I’m just living, “she says. “I want to do things to the best of my ability. I don’t need to be seen as excellent. I want people to like my work, but don’t want the pressure to crush my creativity.” Blevins wants an expanded representation of the Black experience and Black subjectivity, beyond one image or one type of identity. She adds that, “good representation of Black people can be empty. You get fantastical portraits or something like that, plantation and slave narratives. I really want to think about interiority—the quality of being for a person. I want to think about Black people just existing as people and what that experience is all about.”

Painting the Interior

When Blevins started at Wayne State, she was nervous about failing. She quickly learned that she thrived in an educational environment and with regular critiques from her instructors. However, it was during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown that she reached a pivotal moment with the subject matter of her work. She says, “I had just reached this point with the work where I felt like I was onto something conceptually. I had always been interested in figures, and I wanted to do something weird. I wasn’t trying to make work about different social issues or politics, because I don’t think that I am solving problems with my paintings. But I do want my work to open up more conversations about identity and about Blackness and really about Black people in America. The experience is kind of surreal. You live as a person, and you don’t exist in the

vacuum, but it is when you have these outside interactions that you understand what it really means to be Black.”

Blevins explores the tensions between the comfort and privacy of home and the voyeuristic gaze that can feel omnipresent. She describes, “I paint a lot of these interior spaces because the home space is supposed to be the safest for you and the most familiar to you. When you’re at home, you’re supposed to act naturally. But in these paintings, the view is in a voyeuristic position to ask the question ‘What if you had this invisible audience?’ Then, even when you were at home, your home [would] become an unfamiliar place to you. Everything is then unfamiliar, everything’s off and kind of wrong.”

Blevins’ breakthrough painting in expressing these ideas was her 2022 work, Under Watchful Eyes. In it, a Black woman reclines in a Venus post in a sparsely furnished living room. The woman is naked except for gloves, heels, and a ring. Her hair is styled in a 1960s bob. In the background is a white figure against a dark room—a marker of a presence that might be felt, Blevins explains. The white figure is an element that she uses in other paintings. She says, “I don’t think of them as the representations of people, but more of a conflict of not feeling natural in the position that they are in and what they are doing, knowing that they have to perform.”

In her painting Youngblood, a young man flexes a bicep in the middle of an empty room. “I was thinking a lot about the hyper masculine ideal for Black men specifically, and the kind of place that this guy might be in. I imagine the sound of white or pink noise. His body is small, he’s not very strong. His expression is not convincing.

It’s this combination of performance and vulnerability, and the vulnerability is in him performing the act of this idea of masculinity.”

WSU Experience and Beyond

Blevins enrolled in WSU with a clear idea of what she wanted to do, classes she wanted to take, and instructors whom she wanted to work with. The instructors were generous and focused on her success, she says, calling particular attention to her painting instructor Adrian Hatfield. “Adrian Hatfield is great. He’s an amazing artist, and during my time, he gave me the tools to get to where I was going, even if I wasn’t sure where I was going. I’ve gained a lot from my art classes, and also Art History and Literature classes.” At the moment, Blevins is appreciating the recognition she is receiving for her work—showing in local galleries and being included in New American Paintings. “It is great to be validated by the artists that are farther ahead of me. When they say, ‘I really like your work, and I think you’re going to be everywhere’, that level of respect is really important to me.”

Blevins future plans include attending graduate school, but she is currently taking a gap year to focus on making more artwork and a solo show. She reiterates, “In the school environment, you have the tools to direct you where you need to go, the environment and good faculty, the peers that you may gain that can show you different perspectives. I definitely think it was good for me to wait out this one year, but I also want to be moving forward into the next step.” •

Michael J. Barnes Interim Chair, Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance

We are tremendously excited to be kicking off our inaugural season in the Hilberry Gateway. We have begun with a beautiful production of Lauren Gunderson’s Silent Sky, directed by alumnus, James Kuhl '09, in The Studio. While we officially opened the space last April, we had such a whirlwind of activity—putting up six shows in five weeks—that we barely had time to breathe, let alone know what we could do in the space. Now, we are now getting to actually feel what the space is capable of in a normal sense of production. The Gateway has become a wonderful place that unifies our theatre and dance community as it provides us with the infrastructure to truly allow our student artists to blossom. As the Hilberry Theatre was built as a temporary space 60 years ago, it was a long-time dream that a new performance space would someday be supporting our students; when I think of all the students and faculty that came before who dreamed of this space, it brings joy to my heart knowing that the dream finally came to fruition. I hope that you will come to enjoy this new home to experience and explore new possibilities with our young artists. •

2024 Spring Performance Schedule

Hilberry Gateway - the STUDIO

After surviving a tragic and isolated childhood, an imaginative young Parisian named Amélie finds joy in anonymously doing good deeds for those around her. When a chance at love ends up hanging in the balance, will Amélie risk everything and speak with her heart?

Directed by Jill Dion

Friday, April 5, 2024 | 8pm

Saturday, April 6, 2024 | 2pm & 8pm

Wednesday, April 10, 2024 | 2pm

Thursday, April 11, 2024 | 7pm

Friday, April 12, 2024 | 8pm

Saturday, April 13, 2024 | 2pm & 8pm

Sunday, April 14, 2024 | 3pm

Friday, April 19, 2024 | 8pm

Saturday, April 20, 2024 | 2pm & 8pm

For tickets visit www.bit.ly/wsuamelie

Hilberry Gateway - the STAGE

Witness the wealth of talent and creativity of our students and faculty in this yearend culmination of Dance at Wayne State. Energetic and thought-provoking works developed alongside guest artists reflect the movement of today. The 95th Annual Spring Dance Concert will showcase various dance techniques developed from around the world.

Friday, April 19, 2024 | 7:30 pm

Saturday, April 20, 2024 | 7:30 pm

Sunday, Sunday, April 21, 2024 | 3 pm

For tickets visit www.bit.ly/wsuspringdanceconcert

Foster Johns Assistant Professor of Teaching

Foster Johns (He/Him) is a voice and speech practitioner as well as an actor. He has taught at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, Washtenaw Community College, Michigan State University, the University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater BFA Actor Training Program, and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music Acting Program. Foster has also had the pleasure of being a guest lecturer at the St. Paul Conservatory of the Performing Arts, the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. He is a certified teacher of KnightThompson Speechwork, holds an MFA in Voice Studies from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, a BA in Theater and English from Boston College, and is a member of the Voice and Speech Trainers Association. He was a core company member of Umbrella Collective and a resident dialect coach for the Actors Workout at the Guthrie. Foster has served as a voice and dialect coach for more than 80 productions including productions at the Guthrie Theatre, Shakespeare in Detroit, Park Square, Theater Latte Da, and many others. His past and ongoing research focuses on the ethnomethodological lens of the use of vocal perspectives to enhance the performer’s breadth of vocal expression. His research with colleague Dr. Artemis Preeshl on the “American Elizabethan” accent examined the accents of Ocracoke, Smith, and Tangier Islands and how climate change as well as exploring isolation factors in the disappearance of these accents. •

Lisa LaMarre Wilmot

Adjunct Faculty and Company One Director

Lisa LaMarre Wilmot (she/her) holds an M.A. in Dance Teaching Artistry from Wayne State University and B.A. Dance from Western Michigan University. Her expertise includes dance company artistic direction, integrated and special education dance art education curriculum, and dance for the community. Her work has been presented at conferences nationally and in Canada, and her research on “The Role of Teaching Artists in Postsecondary Education…” can be found in the Journal of Dance Education. LaMarre continues to test the boundaries of performance-based responsive artwork working to bring dance into the realm of everyday life. She has created over 100 original live art performances, 6 major dance films, and was a 2018 Kresge LiveArts Panelist. Her work has been produced for ArtPrize7, Defibrillator Gallery, DDCdances, People Dancing, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, Detroit Contemporary, Detroit Institute of Arts, N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, Detroit Music Hall, Sidewalk Detroit, ArtPeers, Multikulti, What You Will Festival, WNUR, Hatch Arts, Pubic Pool, Chicago Calling, Rapid Pulse, Access Arts, and numerous public and private spaces nationally. Lisa was a seed grant recipient for ArtPrize 7 premiering “They Were Displaced…And Again” curated by res345 at The Rumsey Street Project. Her community engagements also include work for Michigan Arts Access (formally VSA Michigan) where she shares dance making with special education classrooms. She is a member of both Michigan Dance Council and National Dance Education Organization. •

Theatre and Dance department's namesake Maggie Allesee made profound impact at Wayne State and beyond

Wayne State University mourns the passing of Margaret "Maggie" Allesee M.Ed. '84, D.H.L. '02, the namesake of the Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance. In addition to her years of support for Wayne State, Allesee donated millions to causes she cared about throughout her lifetime — a remarkable portfolio of giving and community involvement that garnered national honors.

Inspired by dance, a path to philanthropy

Allesee was a seminal arts philanthropist at Wayne State and the university's most devoted advocate for the study and performance of dance, a passion that began at age 6 when she wanted to be a ballerina. She and her late husband Bob Allesee gave more than $4 million to Wayne State, including a $2 million endowment established in 2000 to support the dance department in the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts (CFPCA). The college named the department in her honor, which later became the Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance when dance and theatre merged. It was the first department at Wayne State to bear an individual's name.

"The arts never pay for themselves,'' said Allesee when she established the endowment, which enables Wayne State to attract

dancers of national and international stature as visitors and artists in residence. An inspirational volunteer and community leader, Allesee championed every major dance initiative at Wayne State, and she invested in the excellence of the department's performances, which included the prestigious American College Dance Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. She and Bob, who passed away in 2020, rarely missed a show.

In 2002, the Allesees gave $1.5 million to create the Bob Allesee (Allison) Endowed Chair in Media in CFPCA, which brings internationally acclaimed media professionals to campus to work with Wayne State students. The endowed chair honors the career of Maggie's husband — a Michigan radio and television veteran who worked under the broadcasting name Bob Allison and hosted the popular Bowling for Dollars TV show in the 1970s and 1980s. The couple supported many other programs and projects at CFPCA and Wayne State as well, including the theatre program, the Allesee Dance Theatre, the Hilberry Gateway Performance Complex, and the Michigan Dance Archives at the Walter P. Reuther Library of Labor and Urban Affairs. In 2011, Maggie and her daughters, Kathy Cooke and Shirley Shirock established the Rose Marie Floyd Endowed Fund in Support of Ballet with a gift of $100,000. Years earlier, when her daughters were young, the three took dance lessons together in Floyd's studio. Kathy and Shirley both went on to professional careers in dance.

Allesee inherited her wealth from her first husband, the late Howard Acheson Jr., who ran Acheson Industries, an international chemical company. She inspired giving in all her children, who follow her path in philanthropy and volunteerism. Her son, Michael Acheson, has received community leadership awards for his advocacy with Math Corps and many other Wayne State and community programs.

Renowned devotion to giving and service

Allesee was born in 1928 in St. Petersburg, Florida, and earned her undergraduate degree in English and journalism in 1949 from Florida State University, where she lettered in cheerleading. She worked as a journalist and a teacher, earning her master's degree in education and counseling from Wayne State in 1984 and a certificate in gerontology from Wayne State in 1986. She received an honorary doctorate of arts degree from Ferris State University in 2014 and an honorary doctorate from Oakland University in 2011. In addition to her giving and volunteer efforts at Wayne State, Allesee also provided support and service to dance, arts and community wellness programs in Detroit, in Michigan and nationally.

Allesee's service included her roles as a founding board member of the Metropolitan Ballet Theatre, a trustee and board member of the Detroit Opera, a co-founder of the Detroit Metropolitan Dance Project, and a member of the Board of Trustees and the Board of Governors for the Cranbrook Academy of Art and Art Museum. In 2004, she created and endowed the renowned Maggie Allesee National Center for Choreography at Florida State with a $1.5 million gift. •

Wayne State University inaugurates Hilberry Gateway with celebratory gala

When the “President’s Preview Gala” to celebrate the opening of the new Hilberry Gateway was held in April 2023, President M. Roy Wilson acknowledged the importance of its opening.

“This project started many, many years ago as the Hilberry Gateway project … I think (the name) is so fitting because it's a living acknowledgement that this building serves symbolically as the entry to the heart of Wayne State's physical campus,” said Wilson, who served as WSU’s 12th president for 10 years before stepping down in July 2023.

Wilson said he was pleased with the new level of opportunity the Gateway will offer students.

“It's been said before, but our students needed a state-of-the-art classroom because they are really talented, and to be able to have a facility that matches their creative and innovative talent. And we're here to celebrate what we have now, which is really just a fabulous facility,” Wilson said.

Carl Victory, a BA student in the theatre department and assistant director of “Cabaret,” said he was blown away by the look of the new facility.

“I'm super excited to be here. I am amazed. I've worked in quite a few theaters in my educational career, and this is by far the most beautiful space,” Victory said. “It's just super exciting for Midtown and the community and the university. I cannot wait to see the new students who enter campus use this as an art space.”

Graduate theatre student LaRaisha Dionne, who served as emcee for the evening’s address, said she is beyond grateful for the new theatre.

“I have performed in a lot of different facilities. And as I pursue this next stage in my career … I cannot express enough how important it is to us as students, (and) as artists… to have facilities that match the demand of (our) craft,” Dionne said.

Dionne said the opening of the Hilberry will put WSU students on-par with other universities across the country.

“Now we can join the ranks of our fellow colleagues in having this gorgeous state-of-the-art facility,” Dionne said. “I'm proud to represent our diverse and incredibly talented student body … They are ready for this next level.”

Rochelle Riley, Detroit’s Director of Arts and Culture, was invited to speak and touched on the legacy of WSU theatre and dance

alumni, including Ruben Santiago-Hudson Garth Fagan Sam Richardson, Sonya Tayeh, S. Epatha Merkerson and Lily Tomlin Riley said she was inspired by the leadership within Detroit and Wayne State in bringing the Gateway together.

“It's not where you start. It's where you finish,” Riley said. “When I was a little girl in North Carolina, I was in 4-H, and our motto was to make the best better. And that's what we're doing here in Detroit.”

Associate Vice President of FPM Robert Davenport said seeing the building open was rewarding.

“We're pleased that the project has concluded and we're open…The building owners have a vision and that needs to come to fruition in some way, shape or form, and so the journey getting here was just extraordinary (and) the teamwork was awesome,” Davenport said. Matt Taylor an assistant professor within the theatre department and head of lighting, said he was proud of WSU’s investment in the arts. “How exciting to see a university and a community investing in a performing arts facility like this as well. So, it's a really beautiful (facility) for WSU and for Detroit … The lighting and sound systems here are more advanced than almost any other university in the country,” Taylor said.

The reception concluded with a speech from CFPCA Dean Hasan Elahi, followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Elahi said the mission of the Gateway embodies the culture of Detroit.

“I want to make it very clear that this space is not just for Wayne State,” he said. “This is for our city … This is the city of arts and culture. This is the city that creates American culture … This is the city where our core identity is in creativity…So, really, this is what we are about.”

Elahi said he feels the Gateway is creating the future of art.

“The reason that people want to come to Detroit is because of the arts and culture,” Elahi said. “The Hilberry (Gateway) represents a deep involvement in us, and in us creating this next phase of arts and culture. We are creating that next generation of American culture.” •

This article first appeared on April 16, 2023, in The South End, Wayne State University’s student newspaper.

Changing the view: Research details the benefits of sightless dance instruction

When picturing a dance studio, one of the first things that often comes to mind is a large ceiling-to-floor mirror. As a time-honored industry staple, the mirror serves as a training tool for dancers of all ages to watch and perfect their movements during practice. For many dancers, the mirror can also reflect in potentially harmful ways, exacerbating insecurities and body dysmorphia, or encouraging an unnecessarily competitive and comparative environment. A new training method developed through research by Christine Colquitt Thacker an assistant professor of dance at Anderson University and a master’s student in Wayne State University’s College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts, seeks to change that narrative with a new method. That method — sightless somatic ballet study (SSBS) — removes the mirror, allowing dancers to become more intuitive with their bodies and their art by having them rehearse wearing a blindfold.

“As a dancer and dance educator, I’ve noticed that our field can be very rigid. There are a lot of mental and emotional health issues among my generation of dancers,” Colquitt Thacker said. “Our survival as an art form depends on the next generation, and so we owe them the tools they need to succeed. Sometimes, that means rethinking our way of doing things.”

Her research was presented at Wayne State University’s Graduate Research Symposium in March.

Perfect timing

Thacker a lifelong dancer and longtime instructor, began developing the idea for a study on SSBS around the same time that her dance classes had to relocate because of construction in the studio. She recalls dancers being relocated to lobbies and hallways – and thriving.

“The dancers did amazing in that environment; there was so much growth and joy in their movement,” she said. “We had all of these beautiful upgrades to the space and no one – not the teachers or the students – was in a hurry to return to the studio.”

Colquitt Thacker had also watched her young daughter, who is dyslexic and discalculative, and visually impaired students become frustrated in dance classes.

“For those whose working memory and learning needs are different, dance classes can become frustrating instead of joyful because an instructor will share the information quickly and students are expected to just pick it up, process it and perform immediately,” she said. “It broke my heart to watch, and it made me question how many other kids fall through the cracks.”

Together, these experiences and observations sparked an idea: “What if we remove the mirror?”

Changing the view

For her research, Colquitt Thacker did just that. In 2019, she conducted a case study in sightless ballet classes, which explored the experiences of university-level dance majors who volunteered for sessions that replicated traditional ballet classes without the use of a mirror.

While some dancers reported an initial frustration with the method, they came to appreciate it as an avenue to hone their technique while feeling more connected to their bodies and themselves as artists.

“The mirror is a valuable learning tool, but it sometimes becomes something dancers can’t live without, almost a crutch,” said Colquitt Thacker. “So, it can be disorienting when it’s removed from the rehearsal process because there’s no visual confirmation. In time, they became more in tune with their bodies, movements and energy instead of being hyper reliant on the mirror.”

She said the method also encouraged more personal focus by removing opportunities for comparison and competition.

“When you remove the mirror and that reliance, it also forces the dancer to focus completely on themselves rather than focusing on others in the room,” she said. “In doing so, dance becomes a deeply personal journey, solely in their hands, where personal observations are easier and more natural.”

The method also more closely represented a performance setting, in which there are no mirrors.

“The point of dance – and any art – is to connect with an audience and pull them into an experience,” said Colquitt Thacker. “When a dancer is more in tune with themselves emotionally and physically from the very beginning of rehearsal, it translates into a more connected and authentic performance for the audience.”

Looking ahead

Intended to supplement but not replace traditional instruction methods, Colquitt Thacker said SSBS proved to be both efficient and empowering for dancers. She’s hopeful that the method can help foster a culture of care and wellness among the next generation of dancers, while furthering the art.

“My goal is for every dancer to feel like they did when they were little kids, dancing without a care in the world. I want them to remember why they loved dancing in the first place – to feel free and powerful,” she said. “I want people to look at this opportunity and consider other somatic practices that can benefit our dancers emotionally and physically – the field should evolve so we can continue to inspire.”

•

Russell Miller Interim Chair, Department of Music

Change is inevitable. As many have noted, it appears that the only constant in this world is change.

Congratulations to Norah Duncan IV! Norah has stepped down as the Music Department Chair after serving two full terms as well as serving as Interim Chair and Associate Chair. His dedication to the department is unmatched and his service and leadership kept the department moving forward, especially during some recent unprecedented times. Norah will be taking a well-deserved administrative leave and plans on returning to regular faculty after his respite. During the Music Department’s search for a new chair, I will be serving as Interim Chair. I'm delighted to take on the challenge and will work hard to ensure that the excellence in teaching we're accustomed to, the collegiality of our colleagues that we enjoy, and the smooth operation of the department we expect will continue. I truly appreciate the support of my colleagues and our students. The department has approved a new 5-year strategic plan and as a result, faculty and staff are reinvigorated and we have planned many exciting events for the 23-24 academic year. In addition to our full calendar of student performances, there are events tailored to the needs of high school and middle school students including Guitar Day, Brass Day, Saxophone Day, Voice Day, Honors Band, Honors Orchestra, and faculty and guest performances. 2023-2024 promises to be an active year in the Department of Music! •

Department of Music

2024 Performance Calendar

April

April 1, 20247:30pm Vocal Student Recital: Timiesha Knowles

April 2, 20246:00pm Student Recital: Kavon Williams

April 3, 20247:30pm Student Jr Cello Recital: John Pablo Rojas

April 4, 20247:30pm Jazz Guitar Ensembles

April 5, 202411:30am Faculty Recital II, Dr. Lasch and Qui

5:00pm Vocal Student Recital: Putice Daniels

7:00pm Voice Grad Student Recital: Andrew Montano

April 8, 20247:30pm Wind Symphony, Concert Band, & Campus Band

Max M. Fisher Music Center: The Cube

3711 Woodward, Detroit

7:30pm Student Junior Voice Recital: Olivia Johnston

April 9, 20247:30pm Percussion Ensemble Recital

April 11, 20247:30pm Voice Student Recital: Jenna Dell

April 14, 20245:00pm Detroit Jazz Preservation Concert Series

April 15, 20246:00pm Salute to Detroit at the DSO

Max M. Fisher Music Center: The Cube

3711 Woodward, Detroit

April 16, 20247:30pm Chamber Music Recital

April 17, 20247:30pm Combos and Jazztet Day 1

April 18, 20247:30pm Student Junior Harp Recital: Lauren Ulrich

April 19, 202411:30am George Shirley 90th Birthday Celebration

April 22, 20247:30pm Combos and Jazztet Day 2

Vincent Chandler Assistant ProfessorTenure Track, Teaching in Jazz Studies

Our Assistant Professor of Teaching in Jazz Studies, Vincent Chandler has been promoted to Assistant Professor – Tenure Track. Congratulations Professor Chandler! Vincent Chandler is a native Detroiter and protégé of one of the strongest eras of the Detroit jazz scene, having studied and/or performed with local heroes such as Donald Walden, Kenn Cox, Harold McKinney, Teddy Harris, Marcus Belgrave, Matt Michaels, Francisco Mora, Eddie Nuccilli, Wendall Harrison, Spencer Barefield, Ronald Kischuk, James Carter, Marion Hayden, Regina Carter, and Rodney Whitaker. He has also performed internationally with jazz legends such as Herbie Hancock, Marcus Miller, Joe Henderson, Clark Terry, JALC feat. Wynton Marsalis, Oliver Lake, Bobby Watson, Geri Allen, Roy Hargrove, Ravi Coltrane, JD Allen, Marcus Strickland, Wycliff Gordon, Walter Smith III, Robert Hurst, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Russell Malone, Randy Brecker and Ambrose Akinmusire. He is a featured soloist on “Requiem,” from Roy Hargrove’s only Big Band CD called “Emergence,” James Carter’s “At the Crossroads,” and Rodney Whitaker/Carl Allen’s “Work to Do.” In 2014 he released his first CD as a bandleader, called Vincent Chandler “Embraceable,” including Robert Hurst on Bass.

Mr. Chandler earned his Bachelors of Fine Arts in Music and a Masters of Music in Improvisation from the University of Michigan. He was a Graduate Student Instructor and eventually a Lecturer of Jazz Studies at the University of Michigan. He was an Instructor of Jazz Trombone and Jazz Octets at Michigan State University. He was an Instructor, Director of Jazz Studies at Claflin University, and an Applied Low Brass Instructor at South Carolina State University. Mr. Chandler has a reputation for being a uniquely expressive trombone soloist, a versatile sideman, innovative composer and arranger, a crowd-pleasing scat singer, an experienced bandleader of various group sizes and a natural teacher of beginner to advanced students.•

Garrett Gaina Facilities Manager

May 12, 20245:00pm Detroit Jazz Preservation Concert Series

May Notes

All performances will take place at the Schaever Music Recital Hall (480 Hancock, Detroit) unless otherwise indicated.

Dates, times, venues and artists are subject to change. Visit music.wayne.edu for most current information.

Our new ASO II hire, Garrett Gaina joins the department staff as our Facilities Manager. Welcome aboard, Garrett! Garrett Gaina has performed as a baritone saxophonist with a wide variety of groups throughout the United States and Central America while also working as a live audio engineer throughout Detroit, including mixing for Joey DeFrancesco, James Carter, Ghost Note, and political events for Bernie Sanders and Nancy Pelosi. He is an alumnus of the Wayne State University Department of Music, completing his Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies in 2017 and his Master of Music in Jazz Performance in 2019. Garrett went on to earn a second graduate degree, completing a Master of Library and Information Science in the WSU School of Information Science in 2022. Prior to his appointment as the Facilities Manager, Garrett was a Librarian and Archivist for the City of Sterling Heights. As the Facilities Manager, Garrett supervises security access to Department of Music areas, facilitates equipment checkout and maintenance, schedules rehearsals and concerts, and building maintenance coordination. When away from WSU, Garrett performs actively throughout the metro area, primarily with his group Strictly Fine.•

Wayne State remembers Gretchen Valade and her commitment to jazz

Wayne State University mourns the passing of Gretchen Valade D.H.L. '16, Detroit’s devoted jazz advocate and philanthropist, who made gifts totaling $9.5 million to jazz studies and performance at Wayne State, funding the Gretchen Valade Jazz Center (GVJC) main hall and its intimate Jazz Underground club-style venue as part of renovations to the Hilberry Gateway integrated performing arts complex for theatre, music and dance.

“We are all so very grateful to Gretchen Valade for her enormous generosity,” said Wayne State University President M. Roy Wilson. “Gretchen’s gifts expanded Wayne State’s commitment to excellence in the arts and humanities. She will be greatly missed, but her commitment to jazz lives

on at Wayne State through the Gretchen Valade Jazz Center."

The granddaughter of work clothing magnate Hamilton Carhartt, Valade spent much of her free time cultivating her love for jazz as she raised a family with her late husband Robert Valade. Her lifelong passion for the music grew into an enormous investment in the city’s jazz culture.

In 2005, Valade reinvigorated the ailing Detroit Jazz Festival by establishing a $10 million endowment. She was also the owner of Grosse Pointe’s Dirty Dog Jazz Cafe and founder of the Mack Avenue Music Group record label. Throughout each, Valade promoted the musical careers of many Detroit and international jazz musicians.

Years after completing classes, music student Linda Ignagni receives degree

It was a moment Linda Ignagni had anticipated for more than 50 years. She was about to walk across the stage at Wayne State University’s May 2023 commencement ceremony to get the degree she began working on more than 50 years ago. But after all that time, Ignagni admitted she was “close to chickening out.”

“It’s much easier to perform with my violin on stage than it is to walk on stage without my violin in my hand,” said Ignagni, who earned a bachelor’s in music with a concentration in violin performance.

“I felt like I was going to die. I didn’t know what to do. They were so kind to me, it was surreal. It was beautiful and I appreciated the applause and everything. I don’t really know how to say thank you.”

Ignagni began attending WSU in 1971 and took classes while also raising her two young sons, Joseph and Dan. She thought she completed her degree in 1989, but returned home from a music tour in Czechoslovakia to learn she hadn’t passed the required written English proficiency test and would not receive her degree until she did.

She suffered from dyslexia and was unable to pass the timed test. She took English classes hoping they would help, but eventually gave up and accepted she wouldn’t get her degree. Despite this, Ignagni had a successful career as a violinist, music teacher and personnel manager, and continues to perform.

It may have remained the case, if not for Ignagni’s best friend, Sarah Fogel. The pair met while attending Wayne State. Fogel, who recently retired, decided to see what could be done.

Valade’s philanthropic contributions to Wayne State included two additional gifts that foster a continued appreciation of jazz education and performance. The Gretchen Valade Endowed Chair serves as the artistic director of the GVJC, and the Gretchen Valade Endowed Scholarship in Jazz Studies funds a graduate assistantship that supports the endowed chair role.

“Due to her singular commitment to jazz, Gretchen was dubbed the ‘Angel of Jazz’ by the global jazz community,” said Professor Chris Collins, the inaugural Gretchen Valade Endowed Chair in Jazz and artistic director of the Detroit Jazz Festival. “Her passion, commitment and vision were a legacy in itself.” •

WSU Registrar Kurt Kruschinska received Fogel’s letter. But the university no longer had the written exam requirement. He sent Ignagni’s transcript to College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts Academic Advisor Dan Hanrath to confirm whether Ignagni had met all the requirements for her degree. “After we went through,” Hanrath said, “we determined she had completed her degree.” Kruschniska emailed Fogel the good news. By happenstance, Fogel and Ignagni were driving in the car at the time.

“She told me to pull over,” Ignagni said. “I was in the far-left lane and thought maybe something was wrong, so I pulled over and had my foot on the brake. She said, ‘Put it in park,’ so I put it in park. She handed me her phone and I started to read it and I saw Wayne State and I just lost it. I started to cry. I was overwhelmed.”

Fogel didn’t tell Ignagni she was writing on her behalf and was elated to share the moment with Ignagni and her two granddaughters, who were in the backseat of the car at the time.

“I was so happy for her,” Fogel said. “I believe she’s very deserving of a degree. I'm extremely proud of Wayne State for making this right and doing more than I ever anticipated or even thought to ask, making her feel like the queen for the day. It was great.”

Fogel sat with Ignagni’s sons during commencement and cheered as she walked across the stage.

“It was amazing,” Fogel said of seeing Ignagni walk across the stage. “The best part was I was sitting with her sons, who were so proud. They're grown men now, but to me they're still 7 and 9.” She’s thankful her sons were able to see her earn her degree and joked they deserve part of the degree for all the classes and rehearsals they sat through. Just as much, she’s thankful for her lifetime friend Fogel.

“What can you possibly say to your best friend for doing something like that,” Ignagni said. “We met at Wayne State and have been best friends ever since. When I found out, I couldn’t say anything, I was so emotional. I didn’t know what to say. It was a wonderful gift and something she knew I always wanted.”

•

by Dave Pemberton

Super Mario Bros. is one of the most popular video game franchises of all time. It revolutionized the gaming world in the 1980s and the most recent movie adaptation was a box office hit. The world of Mario makes people feel a variety of emotions, but Wayne State graduate student Andrew Montano wanted to specifically study the impact of its music.

Using music from the 1985 version of Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Montano created his presentation, “Super Mario Bros.: A musical and psychological analysis,” which recently won first place during the spring 2023 Wayne State Graduate Research Symposium.

“I’ve always been a Super Mario fan,” Montano said. “The whole reason I did this topic was I didn’t want to do anything that I wouldn’t enjoy. I want to have fun while I’m doing research, and not have it feel like a chore. So, I thought, ‘How do I make this exciting, but

also educational?’ I thought, ‘What about Super Mario?’ I decided to research Super Mario and see what happened. It ended up being one of the most exciting and eye-opening experiences.” Montano examined the compositional style and construction of the soundtrack of Super Mario Bros., connecting musical details with theories in psychology to explain the emotional impact the music has on players.

“The talk was eye-opening for a lot of people because it’s like, ‘Oh, there’s actual science and music theory behind this,’” Montano said. “It’s not just the visuals that make the game; it’s also the audio. A lot of people don’t realize audio can have just as much of an impact as the visuals. The video game scores can trigger certain emotions.

“When you first start the game, the music is very bouncy and lighthearted, which compliments Mario’s movements as he’s jumping and dashing around. The other example I gave is what’s called the

‘hurry-up sequence,’ where, essentially, you’re playing a level, the time strikes 100 seconds and it plays a little sequence. What that indicates to the player is that something different is going on; you have 100 seconds left to beat the level or Mario is going to die.”

Montano said the tempo change brings out a sense of urgency in players.

“It went from 100 beats per minute to 150 beats per minute, which, based off the studies I did, anything that’s a lot higher tempo will bring what was once positive arousal and positive valence to positive arousal and negative valence. Now you’re no longer in that happy state,” Montano said. “The composer, Koji Kondo was a genius. There’s so much in the game — I wasn’t able to get to it all in my seven-minute presentation — there’s themes for Bowser’s castle, the underground and the underwater worlds.”

Montano is currently working on his master of arts in music with a focus on vocal performance in the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts. He earned a bachelor of arts in music with a focus on vocal performance from Wayne State's Department of Music in 2022.

Montano didn’t plan to pursue a master’s until he was encouraged to do so by Assistant Professor Jonathan Lasch who teaches voice in the Department of Music.

“Originally, I was like, ‘I’m all set, I’m finally out of college,’” Montano said. “’Maybe after a year or something, I might consider graduate school.’ Then my mentor and primary voice coach, Jonathan Lasch, told me he thought I would be a really good candidate for the graduate program. He gave me a lot of the materials over the summer, and I saw it was a two-year program, not four years like undergrad, so I was in. The amount of opportunities I’ve received so far is just insane.”

Montano competed in a concerto competition and won the opportunity to sing with the university orchestra. He also went to the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) quarterfinals competition in Indiana and won first place in his category.

“I’m getting more exposure than I thought I would. It's a good feeling because I worked so hard as an undergrad and now I’m finally being recognized for what I’m capable of,” Montano said. “I’m making connections and other people are making recommendations, ‘You need a vocalist? Well, he just graduated and is in the grad program, maybe reach out to him.’ It’s really eye opening. I was hesitant to start the grad program at first because I felt like I might be repeating some of the same stuff. But then all these different events in one semester alone, so it made me very glad I went with this choice.”

Montano is wrapping the second of his four semesters in the master’s program and said he’s excited about the possibilities awaiting after graduation.

“I would probably enjoy having a private studio where I can not only showcase what I’ve learned in college, but also help people who may not have had the financial ability to attend college,” Montano said. “Help incoming artists and see what they’ve been working on and how we might be able to improve it. I’d also like to showcase myself beyond Michigan, maybe all over the country or even the world. That would be a lot of fun.

“Something outside of music that I've always wanted to try and experiment with is voice acting. A lot of the elements in music also go into voice acting, where you’re trying to convey emotions and you’re trying to portray a character. I’ve always been intrigued by that. Starting a studio, showcasing myself and voice acting, those are probably my top three goals.”

by Dave Pemberton

WSU music professor performs on White House lawn during Juneteenth, Black Music Month celebration

Brandon Waddles remembers where he was when he got the call.

“I happened to be in California,” said the Wayne State University Department of Music assistant professor in teaching, choral conducting and music education. “Ledisi’s management reached out that President Biden wanted to put on a Juneteenth and Black Music Month celebration and asked if I wanted to help prepare a performance.”

The request didn’t come from out of the blue. Waddles and the Grammy-nominated recording artist Ledisi’s musical relationship goes back to summer 2019. Shortly before he came to teach at Wayne State, Ledisi brought him in as a music director for some of her Nina Simone-flavored shows, “Nina & Me,” in which she paid tribute to the legendary singer-songwriter. Since then, the pair have worked on numerous symphonic collaborations and smaller band dates, with Waddles serving as the music director. Which is why it wasn’t a surprise that she chose Waddles to perform with her at the White House with other talented performers such as Jennifer Hudson, Audra McDonald, Method Man, the Tennessee State University Marching Band, Step Afrika!, Hampton University Concert Choir and more. “You had a little bit of everybody there,” Waddles said. “It was wonderful to see and a beautiful celebration.”

The first-ever Juneteenth concert — held June 13 on the White House’s South Lawn — also celebrated the official proclamation by the Biden-Harris Administration for Black Music Month, to be celebrated every June to uplift art forms that sing to the soul of the American experience.

But first, Waddles and Ledisi had to not only find a song but also create the arrangement — in less than two weeks. After mulling over a few choices, they selected Tina Turner’s cover of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” to pay tribute to the former’s recent passing. “We figured that would be a wonderful conjunction of tribute and universalism in Black culture. So, we came up with this arrangement to make that happen,” Waddles said. “Thankfully, we also had the collaboration of Hampton University’s choir, which was directed by my dear friend, Omar Dickenson.”

In a serendipitous moment a week before the event, the two friends ran into each other at a convention, both soon realizing they had been asked to be at the White House with their respective ensemble artists.

“I’ve known him for years, so it was good to be able to send over a vocal part that our dear friend Sarah Williams put together,” Waddles said. “Part of my job is to be in communication with both ends, making sure the arrangement is working for both sides and serve as point of rehearsal with the U.S. Marine Band, even before Miss Ledisi arrives to make sure her vision is brought to fruition. There's a lot of moving parts. It is a process and a labor of love.”

In addition to Ledisi, Waddles has worked with a diverse array of artists. At the heart of his work is an unwavering passion for Black

sacred music, instilled within him at a very young age by his father, Alvin Waddles, one of Detroit’s most beloved musicians. His areas of research focus are on Negro spirituals, the evolution of contemporary gospel music, and the life and work of Thomas Whitfield. As a composer, conductor, educator and music director, Waddles continues to enjoy a multifaceted career spanning the musical gamut. His choral compositions and arrangements have been published and performed by choral ensembles around the world, including the Morehouse College and University of Michigan Glee Clubs, among others.

“And I’ve been very fortunate to have gone a little bit of everywhere with Miss Ledisi — from the Hollywood Bowl to Carnegie Hall to concert houses in Stockholm and the Kennedy Center,” Waddles said. “But the White House is a different level. I’ve been to DC many times. When I get there, I like to bike around places such as the National Mall or the monuments. But never have I been to the White House. And never like that.”

And while he didn’t have time to take a tour of the presidential residence, Waddles still soaked in the momentous occasion.

“By the time we got out for the performance, it was dark. I couldn’t see anything but what was on stage. And it's funny, as people are recording the performance from the audience, I can then see that President Biden was literally on the side where I was playing,” Waddles said. “To see it from that vantage point, even though I couldn't tell who was out there, is quite something. I’m just very grateful for the opportunity. I don’t take it lightly.” •

LASTING IMPACT:

Alumnus Bob Giles reflects on TV and radio career, Wayne State's role in success

From humble beginnings holding cue cards for Milky the Clown on WDIV-TV Channel 4 to becoming one of Michigan’s first television news producers, Bob Giles ’68 will always point to one place that started it all.

“Wayne State set me on a career path that has been exceptional, it has been an institution I can always count on,” said Giles, who earned his bachelor’s degree in radio and television. This sentiment is repeated in a myriad of ways as he speaks about his education and continued relationship with Wayne State University.

A recipient of the prestigious Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame award, Giles was the first person in his immediate family to attend college. His experience at WSU contrasted greatly with his conservative upbringing and impacted his ability to work with people across the spectrum. “I owe a lot of the successes I had in my career to the education and support that I received at Wayne State University,” he said, and that it was a “terrific experience and a wonderful mixing place.”

As Giles recalls the lifelong friendships that began with his time on campus, the conversation is sprinkled with references to influencers and important people. However, they are not mentioned in a grandiose way. Instead, the focus is always on how Giles’ experiences relate back to his alma mater,

and how it affected his life and career. In his words, “the most amazing things happened because of Wayne State.”

One thing that becomes crystal clear when speaking with Giles is that he values all he gained through his relationship with the university — most importantly his wife of 55 years, Louise who also happened to work for Channel 4. “If Wayne had not sent me there, I would not have met her,” he said. In turn, Bob and Louise have had a lasting impact on WSU's students by providing an endowment and personal mentoring.

In 2018, the Giles’ started an endowment for journalism students and continue to make regular contributions to the award. In addition to the generous financial support the endowment provides, Bob Giles meets with the awardees and gently mentors them.

“I don’t like to meddle too much, but you want to make sure you are there if they need the help.” One of the ways he helps students is to inform them of internships they might interview for. “Internships are invaluable because sometimes they may help you to realize that broadcast journalism is not where you want to be at all because it is a tough business,” Giles said.

He also encourages everyone who can to consider supporting scholarships saying, “you guys (at Wayne State) make it easy and friendly,” and the scholarship “is a living

thing, not a piece of paper, it’s an ongoing relationship between us and WSU.”

Kimmerly Piper-Aiken, associate professor of teaching and journalism area head, helps to award the Giles Scholarship and puts the importance of the award into perspective.

“The Robert and Louise Giles Endowment is extremely beneficial to students studying multi-platform journalism, which includes news reporting and producing, with a focus on audio and video storytelling,” she said.

“This scholarship is the only journalism scholarship that recognizes students who choose broadcasting as a career, so it is invaluable to these students.”

Giles came up when television was in its infancy, during “an era that discovered and defined the threshold of television news.”

And while he looks back with fondness on the past, he acknowledges and appreciates how technology has changed the face of journalism and that education must keep up.

“Wayne has been very good keeping up with technology by having an active and working newsroom and production facility,” he said. “This has been super important.”

But acknowledges that the expense of keeping up with technology is prohibitive and is another reason to encourage others to support scholarships. •

by April Hazamy

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