Salem State Filmmakers Hollywood Bound!

Can you produce a film in one week, all shooting and editing done and ready for audience viewing? 100,000 students across the country used imovie and finalcut software and a handheld camera to create amazing short films of 5 minutes or less in the campusmoviefest competition. The winners from our campus include art+design majors Kevin Murphy Walunas, producer, and Jesse O. Henderson, director of the fabulous film, No More Fallen Heroes. In the film, a young soldier wrestles with PTSD symptoms after returning from war. Now they head to Hollywood for national competition and to participate in workshops (3D direction, anyone?) with industry professionals. The filmmakers, of course, will vlog their experience daily while in Los Angeles. Here's their first entry, and you can follow them on their youtube channel. Congrats to the cast and crew and we're proud to have you at Salem State!

40 years of Theatre Alumni Reunite!

Last Saturday, nearly 300 alumni from the 70's to the present joined together to celebrate the career of Professor Whitney Whizz White, retiring after 37 years, and 160+ productions.

A set and lighting designer, Whizz got his nickname for his wizardry and magic on the stage, including the rigging of a ship overhead that rotated 360 degrees that could spin, rock, and ascend over the first three rows of the audience, and for having 4000 pounds of sand delivered to the stage for an island set! His philosophy: go big or go home, never waned in 37 years.

A classic, Dean Martin style panel roast made for plenty of laughs with commentary from Bill Cunningham, Patricia Zaido, Tom Luddy, Richard Elia, and Molly McCarter, '00. It was an hour of non-stop laughter! (Stay tuned for video clips later this month...)

It was a glorious testament to the wonderful experiences had in classes, rehearsals and performances that so many returned to celebrate as a giant family. And many of those who could not make it, were busy working in the theatre industry at rehearsals and performances-- the only good excuse! Were you there? What were some of your favorite quotes from the roast?

Living the Lessons of RENT

Jonathan Larson's RENT opens tonight on the Mainstage and sure, we'll all be singing Seasons of Love as the curtains close, but there's more to RENT than uplifting songs. The musical about friendship among artists amidst 1980's greed, intolerance, the AIDS epidemic, and drugs has hit home with cast and crew. Seen here at left, David Allen George, the show's director, gave blood at the Red Cross in Danvers with nearly 20 theatre students. More students have been collecting donations for the Boston Living Center, and more will be collected at the doors. A soup supper with discussion on Creating Compassionate Communities will include a faculty panel discussing the complicated questions of homelessness, and donations will be made to Lifebridge, formerly the Salem Mission. While entertainment is important in the theatre, we always hope that an audience will leave asking questions, being challenged. We hope you'll do more than sing about Seasons of Love. Live!

From Campus to Downtown, Arts Abound

One of the great things about attending Salem State, is being a part of Salem, Massachusetts, especially if you have creative and cultural interests. In addition to the many cultural attractions and museums, including the world class Peabody Essex Museum, students can enjoy festivals celebrating all facets of artistic creation throughout the year. Coming up, March 4-10 is the Salem Film Festival at CinemaSalem, the 4th annual all documentary festival. And not only can students enjoy the many offerings of the Salem Arts Festival, but there are opportunities to perform or display artwork as many students, faculty and alumni have done in previous years. Salem Jazz and Soul Festival is a weekend party of performances in August at Salem Willows, and also a whole Summer Saturday Series in Derby Square. You can also find festivals for folk, new playwriting, open studios, and those are just the arts-themed celebrations. The list is long so venture off campus and browse downtown from local live theatre to art galleries to museums and put the Salem in your Salem State experience!

Student Profile: This one's funny. She is!

Britt Mitchell will make you laugh. Having just completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre with a minor in Creative Writing this December, she's been perfecting her comedic craft in the theatre department the last several years. Her supporting roles have delighted audiences with her truthful silliness from Red Noses to Fools to Vagina Monologues. An aspiring playwright, Britt has written ten minute plays for the Student Works Theatre project, and comedic sketches for Grandma's Third Leg, Salem State's improv troupe. She was the winner of Salem State's Laugh Off last year. This spring, she will direct for Student Theatre Ensemble, Steve Martin's The Underpants. A comedienne, yes, but she takes her work seriously and is attending the Kennedy Center American College Theatre festival nominated as a dramaturg for HurlyBurly. She also performs the role of Bridget Bishop for Cry Innocent, a re-enactment of the Salem Witch Trials in downtown Salem, and on the Salem Trolley as a guide. She's a great example of one of the many creative students at Salem State who use every resource to get a great education. She looks forward to doing more stand up comedy, publishing books and plays in the future. We're happy to have had you on campus, Britt! Keep laughing.