George Contini
  • About George Contini
    • CV, Resume, Headshots
    • Bio
    • Philosophy and Aesthetic
  • Research
    • The Crinoline Girl-Continuing the Journey
    • Put it In the Scrapbook Research and Process
    • Scrapbook Synopsis, Videos, Selected Scenes
    • Put It in the Scrapbook Script
    • Critical Response to Put It in the Scrapbook
    • Scrapbook -Research Bibliography, Other Supporting Documentation
    • Always Knew LGBTQ Oral History Project >
      • Always Knew Article
    • Publications >
      • Theatre Journal Review
      • Chapter in "Acting Lessons for the CG Animator" on Michael Chekhov
  • Creative Activities (Professional)
    • The Explorers Club
    • Don't Dress for Dinner
    • Hidden Man
    • Assistance
    • The 39 Steps (Stage Door Players)
    • Dad's Garage Solo Performance Guest Artist
    • Theatre Emory Brave New Works Festival
    • Quick Overview of What Critics Have Said.....
  • Photo Gallery
  • Creative Activities (Academic)
    • Happy Days
    • Niagra Falls
    • Young Frankenstein
    • Detroit
    • The Skin of Our Teeth
    • The Misadventures of Uncle McBuck
    • Sweeney Todd
    • A Lesson Before Dying
    • Pride and Prejudice
    • The 39 Steps (UGA)
    • 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
    • The Grapes of Wrath
    • Dangerous Liaisons
    • Trojan Women
  • Teaching
    • Pandemic Pedagogy
    • I love Rehearsal
    • Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professorship
    • Study Abroad in London
  • Service
    • Podcast-ICE-Arts Assessment
    • Letters of Support from Students and Colleagues
  • Contact Me
  • Privacy Policies

George Contini
gcontini@uga.edu
706.202.9664
​

Represented by Jana VanDyke Agency
404-391-5722 
​janasvandyke@gmail.com

There are roads
out of secret places within us
along which we all must move
as we go to touch others.
                                ----Romare Bearden

​Thanks for dropping by!

This site focuses on my research and creative activities.  

It has samples of my work as an actor, director, playwright, scholar, and teacher.   

This first page offers a taste of my philosophy, vision, inspiration, and what you will discover as you visit.  

Check out the Promotional Trailer below for  Sweeney Todd at UGA.


Bearing Witness

I’m an actor and professor of theatre and film.  I lead students and audiences toward a stronger appreciation of theatre, arts, and culture.  The students and audiences I engage with recognize that the creative act is a necessary and important part of their lives. They take part in my classes or performances to affirm that the arts are valued and meaningful to them.  And I seek to serve as a witness to their discovery and creativity.   I hope after engaging with me that they are able to identify art and beauty in unexpected places, they will make a point of viewing art and beauty  where it is known to reside, or they will make art where it never was.   In the end, they find, seek, or make beautiful things.

Through a student’s synthesis of the many tools they have as actors I aim for them to reveal new modes and levels of critical thinking.  An ultimate aim is that my students experience the power and transformational eloquence that can occur through performance and, most importantly, deepen their understanding of what it means to be compassionately human in the 21st century.    
Picture
What Inspires Me?
 
I am open to allowing anything to inspire me. In reviewing my life and the construction of my worldview, I can recognize the following as definite points of inspiration:
 
Nancy Drew. Reading Nancy Drew books as a child developed a sense in me that everyday objects could have a mystery. The keys that unlocked adventure for Nancy included mundane things like clocks, bracelets, stairs—but there was always a deeper story to discover.
 
Lewis Carroll inspired me to always take the time to imagine the other side of the mirror or the underside of the earth—the double, where life was topsy turvy or reflected back on itself.
 
The Game of Mousetrap led me to understand that every action creates further action and that the results should be compelling, nerve wracking, unexpected, but always fun to watch.
 
Carol Burnett.  ​Every Saturday night when I was a kid she proved that the promise of laughter could bring people together.
 
Lucille Ball. Great Comedy takes bravery and is serious business.
 
Howard Finster proved that the objects we throw away can be divine.
 
Romare Bearden demonstrated that a strong narrative could be created from odds and ends cut from various ephemera.
 
Edward Hopper gave exquisite lessons in the simple crystallization of images involving people, places, and the strength of solitude.
 
Augusto Boal showed that theatre does not need to answer questions but can raise the questions and create the dialogue.
 
Derek Jarman taught me that image and text can collide in erotic and political ways.
 
Gustav Mahler let me hear that the themes in your life never disappear completely from your art. They weave about and return in your creations; allowing you to explore them all over again in different ways.
 

​