Alumni Notes readings: Red In, by Steven Leigh Morris, former theatre editor and theatre critic for LA Weekly, and Grip the Raven, by Jim Knable YC ’98, which was directed by Laura Flanagan YC ’93. After a seven-year run, Walt has moved on from Rovi Corporation. He used his newly acquired free time to create “Mind Music.” If you’re interested in a 21st-century device that can read your mind, and is NOT owned by Google, check out the Indiegogo campaign. ● Bill Purves ’71 continues as VP with HGP — Harris Goldman Productions. Based out of San Diego, the company produces corporate meetings events and videos for clients around the country. Bill enjoys running into YSD classmates and alumni from time to time, many of whom are involved in the vibrant San Diego theatre scene. ● Roy Steinberg ’78 brought Christopher Durang ’74 to his National Playwrights Symposium at Cape May Stage, where Roy is the producing artistic director. This year Roy will direct Sex with Strangers, Disgraced, Buyer & Cellar, and One Christmas Carol, starring Roger Hendricks Simon ’67. This past summer, Roy played Velaso in Barefoot in the Park. ● Andrew Carson ’79 used his education to segue into a construction career in 2001. “The great recession proved semi-fatal to that idea,” he writes. This has led to the rise of the obsessive hobby of bicycle building. “I now make over forty a year. And I ride. A lot. TransAm in 2014, again in 2017 I think, many many many comfortable miles...” ● Due to the tragic death of Tim Vasen ’93, YC ’87 (Former Faculty), Bob Sandberg ’77 served as the acting director of the Princeton University Program in Theater during the spring 2016 semester. “We honored Tim by creating an award in his name. The winner of the award was Evelyn Giovine ’19, who began the YSD acting program this fall,” writes Bob. His play Terra Incognita was produced by George Street Playhouse in association with the Center for Investigative Reporting’s Storyworks. The Judgment of Bett was published in the Kennedy Center’s anthology, New Vision/ New Voices, with Dramatic Publishing. Bob has recently directed Cloud Nine and Three 10 2
Sisters at Princeton. ● Alan Marlis’s ’70 book, FDR’s Baseball Managerial Mind, was published by McNally Jackson and is available online. ● Cosmo Catalano, Jr. ’79 retired from Williams College on July 1 after more than 30 years. He says, “I’m making some adjustments, but enjoying not having an inbox full of rehearsal/performance reports, venue and budget requests, and pleas for extensions on drafting assignments.” Cosmo is stepping up his volunteer work on the Appalachian Trail, serving both locally and on their Stewardship Council. “It’s just like theatre, but we do it outside during the daytime with multiple directors and an audience of millions of visitors—and no 10 out of 12’s.” ● Andrew Jackness ’79 has been married to Candice Donnelly ’85 for 23 years. He teaches in the film production design program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, and recently production designed the NBC series Blindspot. ● David Kranes DFA ’71 writes: “I remain busy: shaping a Playwright’s Lab at Salt Lake Acting Company—national in scope and using the model I developed at Sundance; working a recent production of my play, Nevada, in Las Vegas; mentoring writing workshops in Provence; and finishing an ever-lengthening novel, Crap Dealer. I’m still in Salt Lake City with my good wife, Carol, and loving the West.”
1980s Jane Savitt Tennen ’80 writes: “After decades of building an array of wonderful undergraduate and graduate programs in the arts, Fairleigh Dickinson University is about to consolidate them into a united FDU School of the Arts. As development director, I’m honored and excited to be dedicating my time and energy to making FDUArts a reality. We’re currently building an advisory board to help guide the formation and growth of the school and provide philanthropic support. Please reach out if you’d like more info. Here’s a link to the website for the school-to-be: http:// staging2.fdu.edu/academics/bectoncollege/arts/. ● Geoff Pierson ’80 will be
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appearing in the TV movie based on Bill O’Reilly’s book Killing Reagan, produced by Ridley Scott and directed by Rod Lurie for the National Geographic Channel. Geoff will portray Chief-of-Staff James Baker. ● Jim Gage ’80 just finished his 29th year as resident lighting designer and professor of lighting design at College Conservatory of Music at University of Cincinnati. He has recently designed in Dallas, Texas, and Tallahassee, Florida, and for the Kentucky Opera productions of Showboat and Fidelio. Jim has also done architectural theatre designs for the Cincinnati Children’s Theatre. ● John Gould Rubin ’80 writes: “I was so thrilled to direct and produce Turn Me Loose Off-Broadway, the story of Dick Gregory, with Joe Morton playing Gregory. This is the product of a great collaboration, and among the collaborators who have helped to make this show succeed are Chris Barreca ’83, Susan Hilferty ’80, and Stephen Strawbridge ’83 (Faculty).” ● “I’ll be completing the Iron Man Experience attraction at Hong Kong Disneyland in December as executive creative producer,” writes Alec Scribner ’80. From there, he will move to Tokyo DisneySea to produce Soarin’ Over The World for the 2019 opening. “For fun, I play acoustic guitar in a duet that is in its sixth year of performing. The other member of the duet is also a Yalie, hence our name, Blue 2th.” ● Ben Cameron ’81 is back in Minnesota as the president of the Jerome and Camargo Foundations. The first supports emerging artists in Minnesota and New York City in all disciplines and the second maintains a residency center for artists and scholars in Cassis, France—and yes, it’s as beautiful as one imagines it might be. ● Edward Grinnan ’82 is currently vice president and editor-in-chief of Guideposts Publications. His next book, Always by My Side: Life Lessons from Millie and the Dogs I’ve Loved, will be out in January of 2017, published by Guideposts/ Simon and Schuster. “I’m very proud to have had fellow alum Courtney B. Vance ’86 on the cover of Guideposts magazine this August,” Edward writes. “I’m sure our five million monthly readers loved his inspiring story.” Edward’s wife, Julee