Cyrus Khambatta is the Artistic Director for Phffft! Dance Theatre Company. His dance theater works have been presented nationally and internationally. Cyrus has taught at Cornish College, University of Washington, Western Washington University, Seattle Theatre Group's Dance This, Velocity Dance Center and Freehold Theatre. He and Jake Perrine will be teaching a Physical Theatre Workshop at Freehold on August 18th and 19th.

What are you working on currently that is exciting to you? What about it in particular has been exciting?

One of the projects I am currently working on is a collaboration between my dance company based here in Seattle and a Dutch company based in Amsterdam. Earlier this year, the director of the Dutch company, Suzy Blok, came and worked with my company members for a week. She and the company worked together in our new studio in West Seattle (in our back yard) and at the end of the week did a small showing.

It is interesting because I have worked a good deal in Europe and Latin America and I like interacting with other cultures and staying tied into the international artistic scene. It brings fresh ideas and gives a different perspective to the work, creating dialogue that has an inherently broad world view.

What are you listening to?

Everything, all the time. Right now I am in NYC and am listening to the different accents and personages and the archetypes that get expressed through these. How language is used is very interesting to me. Each accent reveals a subtly different way of processing information and interacting with the world. This fascinates me. I also went to an Andrew Byrd concert recently. Love the theatrical use of music ... and his violin playing.

What are you reading?

Just picked up The Power of Intention by Wayne Dyer on my friend's bookshelf ... I'll let you know ...

What have you seen recently that you liked?

An amazing company based in Italy called Casina Settarte. They deconstruct text and movement in such an original and breathtaking way. It really touched me.

Jake Perrine is a founding member of the Thirteenth Tribe (nbow D13) theatre company. He has performed, composed, sound designed and directed original work in Massachusetts, Chicago, NYC and Seattle.

What are you working on currently that is exciting to you? What about it in particular has been exciting?

Recently I trained (Suzuki/Viewpoints) with a local group of friends and thespians, and we were doing viewpoints exercises with wooden frames of various sizes as our only prop. These simple wooden frames - about 1' x 2' up to 2' x 4', typically used for paintings - became fascinating windows and points of focus on whatever you put behind them. It is amazing how the simplest of props can be the most profound when used in an expressive way.

What are you listening to?

I am an audio engineer and I master CDs for a living, so I am blessed with a constant influx of what I think is some of the most amazing music in the world. I recently finished amazing CDs for Finisterra Trio, Twizzle, Vibesquad and Evan Marc (aka Bluetech).

What are you reading?

I am re-reading Tadashi Suzuki's The Way of Acting. Amazing stuff.

What have you seen recently that you liked?

WET's Iphigenia in Aulis was incredible. I don't watch TV (or even own one) but a friend lent me some West Wing DVDs and I am continually blown away with the quality of the writing, performances and directing.

	The Playwriting Road by Stasia Ward Kehoe
Last summer, after a decade writing for the book publishing industry, I felt inexplicably drawn back to my dramatic roots and began writing plays. The last time I had seen my name on a professional theatre credit was before the birth of my first child, before I had purchased a baby car seat, and before chauffeuring boys to soccer games and saxophone lessons had become a giant feature of my life. Nonetheless, I jumped in, dashed off two scripts, and then faltered. Without the easy support of a university environment, drama club, theatre professors, how did one test, develop and improve scripts? more ...

 

	Freehold Faculty/Alum Shows and News
FREEHOLD FACULTY NEWS Daemond Arrindell Every Tues night at ToST in Fremont, The Seattle Poetry Slam hosts a spoken word extravaganza. Open Mic, featured poet and THE SLAM - a competitive poetry reading with equal focus placed on content, originality and performance and judges by random audience members. 8pm, $5 cover, 21 & over ID required go to http://www.poetryfestival.org Gin Hammond will be performing in The Syringa Tree at the Seattle Center House for a limited run on August 18, 19 and 20. This event serves as a fundraiser for residents of the Khayelitsha (Ky-uh-LEE-cha) Township in South Africa, and as a retroactive fundraiser for the show's musician, who paid her own way from Ireland to perform. For tickets, go to www.brownpapertickets.com Timothy Piggee will be in The Mojo and the Sayso at ACT, August 31 through September 30th, http://www.acttheatre.org/TicketsPlays/2007Season.aspx Matt Smith has an interview with John Moe (KUOW) http://www.kuow.org/defaultProgram.asp?ID=12052 (last third of program) Preview of film Outsourced with Matt Smith: http://youtube.com/watch?v=LImhTTFu4b8 Annette Toutonghi will be in The Women at ACT (October 5-November 11) http://www.acttheatre.org/TicketsPlays/2007Season.aspx Kate Wisniewski will be in Comedy of Errors on San Juan Island for Island Stage Left. The play is scheduled Thursday through Sunday on the Roche Harbor Village outdoor stage July 12 to August 5 and Thursdays through Saturday at the Wold Road outdoor stage, 1062 Wold, August 9 to 18. FREEHOLD ALUM NEWS Meredith McKown is performing in The Reluctant Dragon at Theater Schmeater, www.schmeater.org Kate Parker is performing in The Innocents at The Merc Playhouse running August 17 through September 2 - for information: http://www.mercplayhouse.org Kristin Alexander will be performing with Last Leaf Productions, playing Adriana in Comedy of Errors and Sir Andrew in Twelfth Night beginning June 16th. For information, go http://www.geocities.com/lastleaf99/ Tom Churchill has a new play Blue Virgins which was workshopped at Freehold last summer, and which, in a one-act shorter version, was one of three winners of the New Playwrights award. It opens at Whidbey Children's Theater/Martha Murphy Mainstage/ on Sept 14, six performances, two weekends, closing on the 23rd. Ben Cournoyer will be performing in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead with Ghost Light Theatricals, opening Friday, November 2nd. For information, http://www.ghostlighttheatricals.org Judah Joy Easley and Patty Pomplun will be performing in Birth, a play based on women's real birth stories, as part of BOLD (Birth On Labor Day), a global movement to raise awareness about maternity care issues. Performances are throughout the month of September, with a special performance for the inmates of the Washington Corrections Center for Women on August 22nd. For information, http://www.boldinseattle.com for dates, venues, and tickets. Brooke Hills will be performing in Two Gentlemen of Verona at part of Greenstage's summer productions. For information, http://www.greenstage.org Lee Ann Hittenberger will be costuming Wooden O's Production of Merry Wives of Windsor opens July 11 and is choreographing Meet Me in St. Louis and playing the mother role out at Snoqualmie Falls Forest Theatre, http://www.foresttheater.org Stasia Ward Kehoe's trio of three short plays will be read at the Woodinville Repertory Theatre on August 2, 3, and 4th at 7:30 pm. For information, http://www.woodinvillerep.org/ David Kubiczky will be in Lightening in a Bottle at Theatre Off Jackson (August 2-18). For information, http://www.theatreoffjackson.org/2007-2008events.html#WOB. Louise Penberthy is playing Iris in The Tempest with Auburn Regional Theater, opening Friday, September 21st, http://www.experience-art.org/ and playing Gertrude in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead with Ghost Light Theatricals, opening Friday, November 2nd, http://www.ghostlighttheatricals.org Craig Schieber is directing The Fantastiks with The Mountaineers Players in Bremerton in August at an outdoor amphitheater. No lights; shows at 2:00. Take a ferry and a picnic! The show is set in 1920s Kitsap. For information, http://www.foresttheater.com/     Freehold Theatre Guild   Freehold Theatre Guild The Theatre Guild is composed of a group of Freehold students and alumni who have shared in the unique Freehold experience. Freehold Theatre Guild's (FTG's) stated mission is "To help members of the Freehold Theatre Guild make the transition from student to active participant in the greater theater community". For those interested in joining Freehold's Theatre Guild, email Andy Tribolini at atribolini@hotmail.com with your desire to join. You will receive confirmation of membership by receiving notices about monthly meetings and activities in which you are strongly encouraged to participate. The Theatre Guild would love to have you be a part of the group!         Yahoo Your Way to Help Freehold Using www.goodsearch.com!   Here is a free, quick and painless way to contribute financially to Freehold! GoodSearch is a search engine (www.goodsearch.com) which donates 50-percent of its revenue to the charities and schools designated by its users. It's a simple and compelling concept. You use GoodSearch exactly as you would any other search engine. Because it's powered by Yahoo!, you get proven search results. The money GoodSearch donates to your cause comes from its advertisers - the users and the organizations do not spend a dime! To support Freehold, on the "Who do you search the web for?" type in Freehold and search away! Every time you do a search, money gets added to Freehold's account. Make "goodsearch.com" your home page and encourage your friends to do the same by going to: http://www.goodsearch.com/MakeHomepage.aspx. Thank you for your continued support!     About Freehold   A group of artists, who after years of professional work felt that the full potential of the theatrical event had yet to be realized, founded Freehold Theatre in the summer of 1991 when two prominent actor studios-the Pasqualini-Smith Studio (est. 1985) and the Mark Jenkins Actors' Workshop (est. 1985) joined forces. The founders, Robin Lynn Smith, Mark Jenkins and George Lewis, among others, are professional actors and directors whose credentials include recognized work on and off Broadway, as well as in major films, television, and regional theatre. They formulated the following mission: Freehold engages artists of all levels in training and experimentation so that they may become more innovative and heartfelt in generating theatre that has a lasting impact on the community we serve. As a center for the development and practice of theatre, Freehold Theatre is committed to art that embraces the full range of human experience and that inspires performers and audience to connect more deeply to themselves and to each other. We move toward this goal in four ways: Our Studio provides a place for actors, from inspired novices to working professionals, to train. Our Theatre Lab provides a forum for mature artists to research and develop new work and to re-interpret classics. Our Engaged Theatre Program reaches out to culturally under-served communities. Our rehearsal and performance facilities in the Oddfellows Bulding on Capitol Hill comprises of four rehearsal and performance studios, including a fully equipped 92-seat black box theatre. The facilities and equipment are available for rent at very reasonable rates. Here we strive to provide our artists with the tools necessary to make a deep and lasting impact on the community based on organic esthetics. Freehold has become an integral part of Seattle's thriving theatre community, having gained a reputation as the place for serious young artists to train and take the leap into performing and creating original work. In 2003 we developed an Engaged Theatre program in which we reach out to culturally under-served communities. The program comprises an annual tour to organizations that represent culturally under-served populations and a four-month residency at Washington Corrections Center for Women, in which the women create, rehearse and perform a theatre production. This year for the first time, George Lewis has developed a similar pilot program at the Monroe Correctional Center for Men. For more information about our programs and services see our website: www.freeholdtheatre.org.     What is the Freehold Forum?   The Freehold Forum E-Newsletter was born out of our desire to respond to requests from you, our Freehold community, to hear about the innovative and powerful work being done at Freehold Theatre by our incredibly talented and diverse faculty and alumni. The Forum will provide you with a wealth of information that will serve you in your work as an artist. The monthly Freehold Forum will include insightful interviews with talented actors, directors and playwrights, compelling articles on a wide array of topics to assist you in your artistic growth, cutting edge news on upcoming Freehold Faculty and alumni performances, highly newsworthy articles by Freehold's Theatre Guild and Freehold Calendar Highlights showcasing upcoming must-see Freehold Calendar events.     Become A Part of the Freehold Community!   Freehold is always looking for people interested in joining our team of committed and enthusiastic volunteers. Whether you have time, wisdom, strength, money, a desire to be involved in your community, or any combination thereof, we would love to have you join in our efforts. Here are some ways you can participate in our work at Freehold: Volunteer Opportunities Volunteers are highly treasured at Freehold!! We rely on and appreciate the invaluable and diverse skills our volunteers contribute which enable us to further our mission. We are currently seeking volunteers to help us with our administrative functions, staff performances and fundraising events!! If you have the desire to be part of a committed group of staff and other volunteers, please give us a call at 206-323-7499. Donations Freehold is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. We rely on philanthropic donations from the community to help us continue to be a part of the theatre community and to keep the cost of our classes affordable. Donations may be sent to: Freehold Theatre, 1525 10th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98122. back to top       So You Want to be Zorro! by Geof Alm My formal training began when I attended the Drama Studio London In the late 70's. Stage Combat was a required part of the curriculum, and I was very excited. The day my teacher walked in, a dashing man with a red goatee and moustache, I was hooked! For the people who know me, at least I have the whiskers part! OK, maybe a little greyer. His name was John Waller, and he was an armourer, falconer, bowman, and choreographer of the Black Knight fight in "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." A gracious man who was very supportive of his students. My main memory of that experience was failing my fight test. We both touched each other with our blades at the same time, and that was a disqualification. I was crushed, I was going home in a week, and I had worked so hard. John was able to scramble and arrange another test, so we trooped in, and who was behind the table, one William Hobbs, choreographer of The Three Musketeers (Michael York version), and the preeminent fight director of that time. I knew who he was, and now I was really nervous. We went through with no flubs this time, and afterward were told that he couldn't pass any of us, we looked too tense and dangerous, and not in a stage combat way. He put us through some drills and ended up passing me and another guy. It was a hard, but great lesson. You must have a solid basis for your technique to be successful. I heard this great musician say that it's 80 per cent technique, and 20 per cent art, and I believe this to be true. Something that looks effortless very rarely is. My association with The Society Of American Fight Directors began when I returned home, and began to seek work as an actor. When people found out that I had some stage fighting experience, they would ask me to choreograph, and I knew I wasn't qualified to do that. I needed more training, and soon met David Boushey who was teaching some weekend workshops. David had founded the SAFD and was the top fight director in the US. He had such a love for what he was doing, which was infectious. He recommended that I participate in the National Stage Combat workshop being held that year in Memphis. I saved my pennies and went, and had a fabulous time. I couldn't believe that there was a bunch of people that did this kind of thing, and were so generous with their time and knowledge. The workshop was three weeks, and at the end I had earned my basic actor-combatant status. The next year they were offering the first teacher training workshop, which I applied for and was accepted, and became a Certified Teacher. This was 1987. Consequently I received my status as a Certified Fight Director, and one year ago, I was awarded the rank of Fight Master. Stage fighting, for me, has been my way into physical theatre. It has taught me to act with my whole body, given me a focus career wise, and connected me to so many good people. I am grateful to the teachers who mentored me, and continue to do so, the students whom I have had the pleasure to teach, and an art form that continues to nourish and excite me. I strive to be a student, teacher, and as they say in Martial arts - a white belt - one who embraces the wonder of "I don't know" And as for Zorro . . . Maybe I'm closer to Anthony Hopkins than Antonio Banderas, but it's all good! Geof Alm teaches Stage Combat at Freehold including two upcoming summer Stage Combat workshops and a Stage Combat Progression in the Fall running three quarters. Geof is a certified fight director and teacher for the Society of American Fight Directors. he has worked at the Seattle Repertory Theatre, INTIMAN Theatre, Seattle Children's Theatre, ACT, Seattle Opera, Seattle Shakespeare Company, The Group Theatre and many more. Geof teaches nationally and in the Northwest including at the University of Washington's Professional Actor Training Program. back to top         The Syringa Tree by Gin Hammond After marathon auditions, (one actress plays 24 characters), I was chosen to do the national tour of the NYC production. Knowing that I was going to spend the next few months trying to communicate as truthfully as possible something seemingly so foreign, I decided to travel to South Africa to do research. After taking out a scary loan, I flew to Africa and did my best to absorb smells, tastes, sites, sounds and feelings of the place. There was always a tape recorder in my bag in case someone was willing to let me capture their dialect, which was really what got me started dialect coaching. Two visits in particular stand out: first, visiting Pamela Gien's remarkable parents, on whom much of the play is based. I sat with them, pouring over family photo albums, startled every time I recognized elements of the play which captured them so perfectly. The other visit was to the Khyelitsha Township, where I met Joyce, a domestic worker, and her family. While sitting in their tiny, mud floored home, drinking tea very properly out of sawed-off tin cans, they helped me learn songs that I sing in the play, and understand more about how they came to be there. I felt prepared to handle any of the stories they might have told me, until the simplest one of all knocked me off my feet. A friend of theirs asked Joyce why her three boys were at home and not at school. Joyce said that their school clothes, which had been hung out to dry, (their only clothes aside from the ones they were wearing), were rained on. Not wanting them to get sick, Joyce had to keep them home. Those were their only options. I will be performing The Syringa Tree for the last time August 18th, 19th and 20th at the Center House Theatre. A percentage of the proceeds will go to Joyce and her family, not only because they helped me prepare for the role, but because both Joyce's mother and her husband recently passed away (her husband died of the chicken pox). Beginning at 6:30pm, prior to the 7:30pm show, is a youth marimba concert and a South African photography exhibit, by renowned local photographer Chris Bennion, courtesy of the Gates Foundation. Joining me onstage will be Rosalynn de Roos, of Quartetto De Roos, who plays both African and European instruments, which highlight the individuality of each character. The play is emotionally transforming because of the sheer courage of the individuals caught up in history. Even though they breathed fear every second, the father of the Grace Family says, 'We change things, each of us in our own way, we change them.' Tickets are $20 at the door, or www.brownpapertickets.com or call (800) 838-3006. Buses are #5 from downtown and #8 from Capitol Hill. Gin Hammond is a Freehold Faculty member teaching Voice and will be teaching a Voice Intensive at Freehold this September. Gin received her MFA from the American Repertory Theatre Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University/Moscow Art Theatre School. A native of San Diego, she has worked steadily across the country at theatres such as The Guthrie, Arena Stage, The Longwharf Theatre, ACT, The Pasadena Playhouse, ART, The Berkshire Theatre Festival and The Studio Theatre. Gin will also be appearing on radio stations as part of Imagination Theatre. More information about Gin can be found at her website: http://www.ginhammond.com. back to top       The Playwriting Road by Stasia Ward Kehoe Luck was with me in the form of Freehold, where Elizabeth Heffron and a talented group of playwriting classmates encouraged and advised as I wrote and revised throughout the spring. Courage and techniques gleaned from the class were in my mind as I continued to write into the summer. More luck came embodied in Woodinville Repertory Theatre's Marsha Stueckle, who acted in my final Freehold class reading and, as a result, thought of me when her company sought to produce the work of a new playwright. And that special, vital opportunity for a playwright to see her work read onstage complete with a cast of seven actors presented itself. I set to work choosing the right play for the time frame and venue. Car ... travel ... directions ... these are omnipresent features of modern life. Driving and mapping terminology has even made its way into the vocabulary of science. These images, this language, guided me as I shaped the three short driving-related dramas that comprise Three For the Road. Two of the pieces had had their beginnings at Freehold. The third was brand-new. Would they work together? I knew that the staged reading process was meant to show the playwright what was working in a script and what ought to be left behind. Still, I did not fully realize its value until the readings were presented August 2, 3 and 4, followed each night by a playwright chat. Moderated by thoughtful director Marty Mackenzie, the chats were (practically) fun! The audience offered reactions, posed questions, and made me think hard. After each performance, I went back to my computer to hone the script. The actors gamely accepted changes every night. And I was delighted to find that, in my opinion, the final show was the best of the three. The process had actually moved my work forward in ways perhaps unachievable through solitary computer editing. This experience helped me realize how much the playwright can learn and grow from the staged reading process and made me want more. As a result, I am working to develop a playwrights' collective on the eastside, dedicated to facilitating staged readings of member works. The ongoing support of my Freehold classmates was another delightful gift and I look forward to future playwriting classes, both for their instructive value and the wonderful creative community they provide. My return to playwriting feels like the beginning of an incredible journey and I look forward to the road ahead. Stasia Ward Kehoe is a freelance writer, choreographer and author of nonfiction books for young readers. Visit her online at http://www.writerontheside.blogspot.com/. back to top