Mike Wamser OU MFA '01

Mike Wamser OU MFA '01
nytheatre.com review David Fuller ·

October 17, 2007

"You should go. You will laugh, you will smile constantly, and you will consistently wonder at how in heck they are able to pull off Shakespeare's complete comedy with just four actors... All four ensemble members are equally wonderful in their multiple roles... these are skilled comedians...I was happy to have discovered this performance space and this company, and left with a broad smile, yes maybe even a silly grin, for what I had just experienced. Bravos to all involved!"

Full text:
www.nytheatre.com/nytheatre/come5814.htm

Chantal Bilodeau

Chantal reports:

I've been living in New York for the last five years and I've become a core member of the Lark Play Development Center. In February, my play PLEASURE & PAIN was produced at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco. A few months later, in May, it was produced again in a Spanish translation in Mexico City and I am now in the process of translating it into French. Other than that, I'm working on a new musical about fairies with lyricist Mindi Dickstein and composer Lisa DeSpain and I'm translating a play from French-Canadian playwright Catherine Léger into English. At the end of November, I will be a guest at the International Translation Seminar of the CEAD in Montreal. And if the funding comes through, I will be working on all kinds of interesting projects next year, which I will have to report on in my next entry.

Eric Coble's The Giver at DePaul

Eric Coble's adaptation of Louis Lowry's The Giver will be performed at DePaul University in Chicago. Details are here.

Congratulations Eric!

Melissa Gawlowski @ Lincoln Center

More info from Melissa:

Recently started working at Lincoln Center Institute. I have health insurance now! I'm the Education Assistant for Teaching Artists and Strategic Alliances. Yep. I help hire/assign TAs, which is an opportunity for peeps-- they hire actors, directors, and playwrights, as well as musicians, dancers, and visual artists.

When I left my old job at Premiere Stages in Jersey, I was placed on the Advisory Board (I was formerly the lit manager). They do all new works, so that's a good connection for playwrights who live in the northeast. I'm probably also going to be a panelist for their selection this year, so there's that. And, I am proud to say, I got paying gigs for Four OU alums in my two years there! Hope to keep that goin'.

Last thing: I'm lit manager for City Attic Theatre, an off-off-Broadway company, and we periodically do a call for plays, which can come from anywhere. Last year Justin Boyd was selected as a Finalist in our playwriting competition, and he received a staged reading.

Ryan Crowder looking for material from OU Alums

Ryan Crowder here (07 MFA acting). I’m enjoying all the news from OU Nation, and it got me to thinking… I’m in Austin, TX with a team opening a new professional theatre. There’s a Fringe Festival coming up this winter, and I’d love to produce something written by one of our fellow alums.

As far as actors go, we’ve got three male 20-somethings already. Finding a fourth or a woman wouldn’t be too much of a challenge, but if I can avoid an all out audition process, that’d help our schedule. The Fringe’s website is http://www.fronterafest.org/site/index.html. You’ll see there’s a place for short plays (25 min and down), as well as full length. I’d love to chat w/ anyone who’s interested. ryan.crowder.mail@gmail.com

Justin Boyd - Playwright

Justin reports:

Kathy and I live in Brooklyn, and we see fellow OU playwrights Chantal Bilodeau and Melissa Gawlowski fairly often. I’ve been keeping busy with writing and applying/submitting for EVERYTHING. Most recently, my play, Copy Man, was produced in August in Columbia, SC by Trustus Theater. It was a short run, but the play was well-received. In other playwriting news, I’m a 2007-2008 Dramatists Guild Fellow, which is a bi-weekly writers workshop, plus mentoring by, and occasional sessions with, theater bigwigs.

I’m also doing some theater journalism. I co-edit the Theater section of the Brooklyn Rail(www.brooklynrail.org). We cover mainly downtown and outer-borough artists and productions, a lot of stuff you don’t see in the Times or even the Village Voice. I’ve got an article in our October issue on Jason Grote’s excellent new play 1001, which is having its NYC premiere this month. I’m also an Affiliated Writer this year with American Theater magazine, which is a year-long association through which I’ll write three feature-length stories. My first – a profile of the director Anne Kauffman – was published in the October issue.

OU Emmy

Christopher De Paola is now... an EMMY AWARD NOMINATED ACTOR!!!

The good news was delivered yesterday. Judged by the New York chapter, I was nominated for my role on WCIU-TV's show "Green Screen Adventures." The official name of the category is:

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT FOR INDIVIDUAL EXCELLENCE ON CAMERA: PROGRAMMING - PERFORMER

The Emmy Award winners will be announced at a ceremony here in Chicago in November.