From the fall of 2013 to the Spring of 2014 I was invited to lead a Solo Performance Artist Residency with Dad’s Garage, a professional improvisational theatre in Atlanta. Founded in 1995, Dad's Garage Theatre produces innovative, scripted and improvised works that are recognized locally, nationally and internationally. They entertain roughly 30,000 people each year at their residence in Atlanta, at public events across the continent, and at festivals across the globe with innovative world premiere plays created by the Dad's Garage company. Over eight months I led a weekly workshop with the ten core company members in writing, developing, and directing stage readings of their original solo pieces. Two of those pieces, Amber Nash’s What’s Wrong with You? and Mark Kendall’s The Magic Negro have gone on to be performed at International Fringe Festivals, win grants and awards, and be performed at regional theatres, including Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre.
The weekly 3 hr sessions included writing exercises, theatre games, script readings, feedback/critical response, and one on one workshopping with me. It was an incredibly satisfying experience to lead this troupe of highly skilled performers through the process of finding their solo voice. It allowed them to ask deeper questions of themselves regarding the role and purpose of the artist, their relationship with the audience, and the intricacies of content, form, and function in performance.
The weekly 3 hr sessions included writing exercises, theatre games, script readings, feedback/critical response, and one on one workshopping with me. It was an incredibly satisfying experience to lead this troupe of highly skilled performers through the process of finding their solo voice. It allowed them to ask deeper questions of themselves regarding the role and purpose of the artist, their relationship with the audience, and the intricacies of content, form, and function in performance.
