Faculty In the News
Seth Houston Joins the Department of Music Faculty
The Music Department welcomes new faculty member Seth Houston! Professor Houston holds a DMA degree in choral music from the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music. In addition to extensive experience in choral conducting, he has published his own compositions and arrangements and has presented research papers at many academic conferences. Professor Houston will direct the Chamber Singers and Concert Choir, and will also teach courses in musicianship.
Read more about Seth Houston at his website.
With Sandra Tsing Loh back to lead the way, change is very good
by Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times
Writer-performer Sandra Tsing Loh wants the world to know that she didn't set out to become the spokesperson for menopause.
What woman would sign up to be the poster child for "old" and "dry"? she asks in her signature frisky manner, composed of equal parts exasperation and exhilaration.
The occasion for this clarification is her new solo show, "The B**** Is Back," which borrows the title of her 2011 essay in the Atlantic magazine that made her the new voice of what our grandmothers called "the change."
Sandra Tsing Loh's prose has the hyperactive energy of a performance while her performances can have the quality of an amped-up literary reading. - L.A. Times
Rather than fighting fate — professional or biological — she has decided to embrace what her editor and her body have thrust upon her. Naturally, she's talking back to the doctors, who caution her about "weight creep"; the self-help dispensers, who advise...
Costume Design Bridge Project
The Costume Design Program announces Poppy Cannon-Reese as a Guest Artist in the MFA program in Spring, 2015. Ms. Cannon-Reese is the Manager of Universal Studios Costume Department; she also has a distinguished career as a Costume Designer and Stylist for feature films and commercials.
The Costume Design Bridge Project connects current MFA students to accomplished professionals in all aspects of the entertainment industry. Each Guest Artists creates and leads a design project addressing current practices or challenges in their field.
Students learn how to use professional resources, create effective communication for a creative team and discover the high expectations of real world costume design projects. Each student receives professional level feedback modeled on contemporary designers, directors and producers. As part of the Bridge Project, students venture out of the campus environment to work in real- world locations, such as the Universal Studios back lot...
Telematics in Colombia
Michael Dessen, Associate Professor of Music, performed in and co-produced several telematic concerts this year, exploring the potentials of live performance by musicians in different geographic locations via high-speed internet. In an April 24, 2015 concert, Dessen performed on trombone in Manizales, Colombia, along with two musicians located in San Diego, UCI alum Juan Rubio (MFA, ICIT, 2014) on drums and Kyle Motl on bass. The concert was part of the International Festival of the Image in Manizales, where Dessen also lectured on telematics and performed a solo concert.
For more information click on the link below:
Molly Lynch's National Choreographers Initiative to Receive National Endowment for the Arts Grant
Through its grant-making to thousands of nonprofits each year, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) promotes opportunities for people in communities across America to experience the arts and exercise their creativity.
In the second major grant announcement of fiscal year 2015, the NEA will make a $20,000 award to Irvine Barclay Theatre in support of the National Choreographers Initiative. The NEA will make 1,023 awards totaling $74.3 million nationwide in this funding round.
NEA Chairman Jane Chu said, “The NEA is committed to advancing learning, fueling creativity, and celebrating the arts in cities and towns across the United States. Funding these new projects like the one from Irvine Barclay Theatre and the National Choreographers Initiative represents an investment in both local communities and our nation’s creative vitality.”
Molly Lynch, NCI’s founder and artistic director, commented, “It is gratifying that the NEA has recognized the National...
Flutist Nicole Mitchell looks into the future with 'Mandorla Awakening'
Everyone in jazz knows that former Chicagoan Nicole Mitchell stands among the most creative, innovative and technically accomplished flutists working today...
Jesse Colin Jackson Named Hellman Fellow
Jesse Colin Jackson was named a Hellman Fellow for 2014. Professor Jackson is one of more than 1,200 Hellman Fellows who over the last 20 years have gone on to become chairs and heads of departments, MacArthur Geniuses and faculty members with distinguished research track records.
The Hellman Fellows Program is unique in its flexibility and reach to faculty from a broad range of disciplines, supporting research in the arts, humanities, sciences, engineering, business, medicine and law.
In 1995, the founders Chris and Warren Hellman began making grants to colleges and universities in support of junior faculty research. The Hellman Fellows Program has grown to support over 100 assistant professors annually at fourteen institutions. Over 1,000 of the Hellman Fellows are from campuses of the University of California System.
2014 UC Irvine Hellman Fellows directory: http://www.hellmanfellows....
Darryl Taylor Makes History in LA Opera
Professor Darryl Taylor along with John Holiday and G. Thomas Allen make up The Three Countertenors. These gifted African-American countertenors are making their LA Opera debuts in Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas. Never before have three African-American countertenors been in one production together on an opera stage.
For more information:
http://www.laopera.org/news/blog/Dates/2014/10/Countertenors-Make-History-in-Dido--Aeneas/
Eli Simon directs the world premiere of Clovni Extraterestri (Extraterrestrial Clowns)
ELI SIMON, Chancellor's Professor of Drama, returned to the National Theater of Romania in Cluj this fall to direct the world premiere of his original production, Clovni Extraterestri (Extraterrestrial Clowns), the second installment of his War of the Clowns saga. VINCENT OLIVIERI, Associate Professor of Drama, was the composer and sound designer for this funk-infused theatrical extravaganza. Romanian folk star, Ada Milea, was featured as the narrator and singer.
Diane Diefenderfer Presented Pilates Lecture in Japan
Lecturer of Dance Diane Diefenderfer presented lectures and workshops on “Dance and Education and Pilates Method for Physical Conditioning” at the Tsukuba Summer Institute (TSI) in Ibaraki, Japan. TSI is a week-long seminar/workshop for undergraduate and graduate students in physical education and sports sciences held at the University of Tsukuba. Diane is also a Distinguished Teacher for Pilates Anytime, an online Pilates Studio offering documentaries, interviews, workshops and classes.
For more information on Diane Diefenderfer click the link below:
