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Rick Sordelet working with the cast in the Seattle Repertory Theatre's production of THE THREE MUSKETEERS, photo by Cindy Farruggia
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Geof Alm teaches Stage Combat at Freehold. 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.
We have just begun Week 4 of rehearsal. Tech Looms!
This has been so much fun for me, and on many levels. A chance to do what I teach other people to do, and the challenges of performing fights.
Just being onstage again as an actor - I am finding I have really missed it. Being part of an ensemble working towards the same goals,
and just spending a good deal of time laughing. It is fun to watch old and new friends practicing their craft, and turning on
"the white belt mind!"
I love the chance to do something different, and to continue being a student of my craft. I am learning new things, and very
much have enjoyed working with Rick Sordelet, an old friend, an excellent fight director, who is imaginative, very skilled at choreography,
and at making us a team. We are having a blast with this new take on an old story. I love the fact that there are strong roles, and that
the fighting reflects not only D'Artagnan's story and his three buddies, but that of his sister and the evil Milady in large measure.
It also confirms how important fight experience is. Montana Von Flis-a recent graduate of the PATP at the UW, distinguished herself
from the other actors auditioning for the role of Sabine, because of her fight abilities. You never know what comes in handy!
I hope you all come see it, and regardless of what you see us do, it is such a great chance to see a huge swashbuckler on a big stage.
Come and have fun, because we sure are!
Geof will be teaching Stage Combat at Freehold this fall starting on October 11th. For more information, to go www.freeholdtheatre.org.
To see Geof in the Seattle Rep's production of The Three Musketeers, go to www.seattlerep.org.
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Staring at a (not so) Empty Page by Andy Tribolini
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I started taking the Freehold Playwriting classes several years ago when some required surgical repairs (love modern medicine)
temporarily prevented me from pursuing my first love: performance. I quickly discovered that while I had a certain facility for
funny bits, I lacked the discipline to forge a writing practice and had never completed a piece longer than 20 minutes.
I signed up for the New Play Lab class with the intention of using an externally imposed structure to compensate for my lack of discipline.
We were supposed to bring a completed piece which was to be rewritten and refined through the four weeks of the July class.
A week before the first meeting I had managed to add about 15 minutes to a story started a year before and sent an email to the instructor,
Elizabeth Heffron, confessing my sins and volunteering to drop out so someone more deserving on the waiting list could participate.
Her reply was something along the lines of "You're not going to get out of it that easy - you can do this!" With that ringing endorsement
I plunged in and had 45 minutes of material ready for the first class.
more ...
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My R&P Discoveries by Jenn Hamblin
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THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER - R&P 2008
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Admittedly, at the beginning of the summer, I had secretly hoped to be having the summer quarter off from classes;
to take a break and become a couch potato for a few months. But when I saw that George Lewis was teaching the Rehearsal and
Performance class, there was no question in my mind that I would sign up. I had taken his Accelerated Intro to Acting
class during the Fall of 2007, which had been a life changing experience for me, and I knew that this opportunity to work
with him again would breed more of the same. So I enrolled for the 6 week, 16 hours/week class, having no idea what I was getting into.
more ...
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Freehold Faculty/Alum Shows and News
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Geof Alm is appearing in The Three Musketeers at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. Geof will be teaching at the Young Actor
Institute for Seattle Children's Theatre, and this fall will be directing the Zombie violence for Night of the Living Dead at SCT,
Elektra at Seattle Opera. For more information on tickets for The Three Musketeers, go to www.seattlerep.org.
Daemond Arrindell. Every Wednesday night at Spitfire Grill in Belltown, The Seattle Poetry Slam hosts a spoken word extravaganza. 8 p.m.,
$5 cover, 21 & over IC required, go to www.seattlepoetryslam.org. Daemond also has been nominated for Poet Populist.
Here in Seattle - the people (that's you) get to decide who's voice best represents the city. The website is
www.poetpopulist.org.
Tim Hyland is in Eurydice at ACT. For more information, to go www.acttheatre.org.
Darragh Kennan, Paul Morgan Stetler and Amy Thone will be performing in The New Century Theatre Company's first show, The Adding Machine
by Elmer Rice. The show will be running November 13 through December 13 in ACT Theatre's Fall Theatre Space in the historic Kreielsheimer
building in downtown Seattle. For more information, go to: www.newcenturytheatrecompany.org
Paul Mullin play The Sequence will have it's world premire at The Theatre @ Boston Court opening October 11 on the
Main Stage at Boston Court Performing Arts Center, 70 North Mentor Avenue. Tickets can be purchased online at
www.bostoncourt.org or
by calling (626) 683-6883.
Billie Willdrick will be playing Maggie in Saint Heaven at Village Theatre running September 17 - November 23rd.
For more information, go to www.villagetheatre.org.
FREEHOLD STUDENT/ALUM NEWS
Freehold alumni and TCT members Elizabeth Deutsch, Lisa Every, Jen Rezzumna, Chris Berns, Toan Lee, Sara Rucker Thiessen,
and John Leith will be perfoming Neil LaButes Autobahn on the 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th of October at Youngstown Community Center
plus additional yet to be disclosed dates and locations around the greater Seattle area. More info and a link to tickets can be
found at www.thecommunitytheatre.org.
Michelle Flowers and Ben Cournoyer are in the Rocky Horror Show at Burien Little Theatre.
For more information, www.burienlittletheatre.com.
Irwin Galan will be in LA MAriposa with Book-It All Over.
Mari Geasair will be appearing as Minka Lupino in Murderers at Vintage Theatre in Denver, Colorado October 2nd-November 2nd.
For more information, www.vintagetheatre.com. Mari will also be performing with
Phillip Mitchell in the same production of Three Viewings here in Seattle with Cheshire Cat Theatre Company (Performances at Stone Soup)
from January 16th - February 7th. For more information, www.cheshirecattheatre.weebly.com.
David Kubiczky is appearing in Art at Odd Duck Theatre. The following review was listed on the Seattle Weekly website:
www.seattleweekly.com noting "David Kubiczky's portrayal of Yvan, the neurotic, indecisive fiance,
is probably worth a Tony in and of itself ... ." Congratulations, David! Thursday - Saturday plus 2 p.m. Sun., Sept. 28. Ends Sept. 28.
Chris MacDonald is in The White Devil at Theater Schmeater. For more information, go to www.schmeater.org.
Kirsten McCory will be in The Fifteen Minute Hamlet at Stone Soup Theatre.
For more information, go to www.stonesouptheatre.com.
Louise Penberthy is playing Terent'evna in the radio play Diary of a Superfluous Man with The McCroskey Memorial Internet Playhouse.
For more information, www.theinternetplayhouse.com. Louise will also be having a reading of her play
In the Spirits of our God at 7:00 on Sunday, October 12th. The play is about an hour and 15 minutes long, and then there is the talkback session
afterwards. Stone Soup Theater is at 4035 Stone Way North, in Wallingford. There are directions at
www.stonesouptheatre.com.
Vera Werre will be in Not Now Darling with the Community Valley Players. For more details, directions and to purchase
tickets go to: www.valleycommunityplayers.org.
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Freehold Theatre Guild
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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!
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About Freehold
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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 located in Belltown comprises of three rehearsal and
performance studios, including a fully equipped 49-seat black box theatre.
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.
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What is the Freehold Forum?
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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.
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Become A Part of the Freehold Community!
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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, 2222 2nd Floor, Suite 200, Seattle, WA 98121.
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My R & P Discoveries by Jenn Hamblin
The first class I took with George, I went in with no expectations and had decided from the get-go that I would just do everything
he told me to do, and then wait and see what happens. I still believe today that's the best way to work in his classes.
Of course always follow your own impulses and instincts, but be open and willing to try what he asks of you, because he has
incredible intuition and he will always see things in you that you aren't seeing in yourself. The thing about working with
George is that he expects a LOT. A LOT. It doesn't matter what level you are at, he will push you beyond what you think you
are capable of doing, only for you to discover that you are in fact capable of so much more. If that sounds scary, you're right
because it usually is. But it is also completely awesome on every level, and you always know deep down that you are safe to explore
in your work with him. George has this uncanny ability to see the creative spirit and capability in people, even when they can't
always see it in themselves, and to not only bring it out of people, but to also teach them to allow it to flow out of themselves.
He is able to do this is because as much as he expects of his students, he gives 1000 times of himself in return.
So coming into this class, knowing what I know about George, I was fully prepared and excited to do that kind of work.
I expected to be challenged beyond my current self imposed limitations, as well as to work on things like improving my own personal
process, deeper character development, technical work in the rehearsal process, etc. And all of these expectations were definitely met.
However, what I did not expect from the class was a lesson on life.
True to his nature, George picked an extremely challenging play: The Man Who Came to Dinner-- a three act screwball comedy by
George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. And yet, somehow, we -- 9 acting students (most of who had never performed on stage before-EVER),
one incredibly dedicated and selfless assistant director (Jeff Woodbridge), and our extremely ambitious and determined teacher/director,
George Lewis - in just 6 weeks pulled it off. The thing is, it's not really "somehow," though ... every single person came to each rehearsal
with such dedication, such willingness to work through the frustrations, willing to find the fun (because if we can't find the fun, why
are we doing it), willing to be so giving, so daring, to push themselves more and more and more and more. Week after week, for 16+ hours
(not to mention countless hours out of class), everyone brought everything they had to the table, ending with an intense 36 hours during
the final week.
It was during that final week, and particularly on our final night of performance (as the 6 weeks of our collective blood and sweat
came together), that I really "got it" ... what this work is really all about. George had asked the question in class once,
"Do you have the courage to be living-loving-on stage?" That's what George gave to us, and that's so completely what it became
about for all of us: how much could we love each other, as an ensemble, by giving as much as we could - of our presence,
of our energy, of our creative spirits, of our truths. And in that giving to each other, we were able to give even more to the
audience, who in return gave even more back to us. For us, particularly on that Saturday night, the room because this huge ball of
energy of connection, love, playfulness and fun. Maybe it sounds corny, but the morning after our final performance, as I sat in
the realization of this experience and what we had all created together, the world looked different to me. I had come to realize
through this class that what acting and theatre is all about is the experiencing of the generosity of the human spirit, and that
when you find the courage to live/love fully in your work, you are lifted up a million times higher than if you had tried with
all of your might to lift yourself up on your own.
I used to think acting was a lot about bringing what you've learned in your life experiences to your work-and certainly there is
truth in that. But I think what is an even truer statement is that through acting, you learn a lot about life-how to be a better person
and live fuller and love more; how to live more truthfully. That is what the Rehearsal and Performance class experience did for me.
And to think, I was going to spend the summer vegging out on my couch.
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10 Responses to the Personal Clown Question: Why for Actors? by George Lewis