Back of House - Consideration

An Extraordinary Multi-artist Multi-media Space Exploration That Challenges the Limits of Movement and Space

Architectural Design: Frances Bronet, Dean of Architecture and Allied Arts at the University of Oregon

Frances was formerly Professor of Architecture at RPI. She is the former president of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture.  Her most recent publications include: “Beating a Path: Design and Movement” in Performing Nature: Explorations in Ecology and the Arts; “Quilting Space: Alternative Models for Architectural and Construction Practice” in Knowledge and Society, vol. 12, 2000 on a liberative teaching model for studio learning based on the experience of marginalized students. She was awarded the 2001 Wiley Distinguished Professor Award for excellence in teaching, research, service and contributions to the university and community. She is a recipient of 2001 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching New York Professor of the Year.

Technical Design: Sidney Fleisher, Adjunct Faculty, School of Architecture, Rensselaer

Sid has managed and directed the School of Architecture Workshop where he has taught courses in Material Exploration and Fabrication, and Furniture Design and Making for 26 years. He has been a professional woodworker since 1971, specializing in designing and building high quality furniture and the renovation and reconstruction of residential scale buildings. He has studied with the celebrated Japanese craftsman Toshio Odate and the American Windsor Chair builder, Michael Dunbar. Sid’s skill as a craftsman has won him private commissions from such well-known architects as Cesar Pelli and Ali Tyar. He maintains his own workshop, studio, and residence in a former bakery he has renovated in South Troy, NY.
Music:William Harper, Adjunct Professor, Art & Technology Studies/Sound, Art Institute of Chicago
William has written many critically acclaimed operas.  The opera “El Greco” was commissioned by INTAR (New York, 1993) and was broadcast on NPR's World of Opera program. Completed projects include “Requiem” commissioned by the family of Kenneth and Harle Montgomery and “Marlidendur,” commissioned by conductor Gudmundur Emilsson for the Latvian Radio Symphony and Choir and the Riga Dome Boys Choir.  In 2002, both works were recorded by Icelandic Skifan records and released in conjunction with an international tour of the Baltic Symphony Chamber Orchestra. “The Bacchae,” a multi-media dance/opera was commissioned by the Music Theater Group of New York and Now & Then Productions in 1997 and performed at Harvard University. Other collaborations include a musical with Ted Shank about Bessie Coleman called “Black Wings,” a musical with Fred Feirstein based on the Freedom Fighters in the Warsaw Ghetto called “Heroism” and an opera with Susan Bergman based on the novel “Mariette in Ecstasy.” “The Banjo of Death Sleeping”, an Electro-acoustic triptych, was released in 2002 on ARTCO Records, and evolved from “ Working River”, a 1999 collaboration with Ellen Sinopoli (ESDC). With a Ph.D. in music composition, Dr. Harper teaches at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and for his work in opera, film, dance and theater, Harper has received support from many foundations and groups including the National Institute for Music Theater, the Djerassi Foundation, the Yaddo Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and The MacArthur Foundation.

Video: Ralph Pascucci, President/CEO, Myriad Productions

Ralph is a four time Emmy Award winner with over twenty-five years of television experience. He has worked on the Today Show and four Summer Olympics for NBC. He has produced arts and documentary broadcasts for Public Broadcasting. For ESPN, he traveled the Formula One Grand Prix Auto Racing circuit for five years, and also worked on NCAA Basketball and Hockey, the Kentucky Derby, WTA Tennis, Major League Baseball, LPGA Golf and Sailing. Ralph is a graduate of RPI and is a licensed professional engineer in New York State. He founded Myriad Productions in 1985. He is also a guest lecturer at RPI and is currently teaching an Intermediate Video course in the EMPAC program. Ralph designed the video projection system at Saratoga Performing Arts Center and at Tanglewood and directs at events from Santana to the New York City Ballet.

Lighting Design: David Yergan, Theater Manager/Technical Director, Dept. of Theater, Skidmore College

David designs lighting and sound for many productions at Skidmore.  He is also the lighting designer and production manager for Lake George Opera Festival for whom he has designed ten operas including last summer's well-received production,Madama Butterfly.  He has designed lighting for Capital Repertory Theatre, Curtain Call Theater, Proctor's Theater, Saratoga International Theater Institute, New York State School of the Arts: School of Modern Dance, L’Ensemble, and close to a score of productions at Saratoga's Home Made Theater including recent productions of The Foreigner(sound design), Aladdin (lighting design) and Our Town (lighting design). 
Costume Design: 

Kim Vanyo, Khymanyo Studio

Kim attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC and worked as a designer for various menswear companies before opening Khymanyo Studio in upstate NY. She has been designing private label lines of clothing for boutiques and operating a custom clothing atelier since 1984. She currently collaborates with Northeast choreographers to create costume designs.
Tour Production Manager:Peter Kobor, owner of StudioArts Entertainment, is a producer of film, theatre, and music. He has directed the short film, “A Tale of Fear and Lattes,” co-produced and sound designed “Enchanted April” at Schenectady Civic Theatre (winner of 5 TANYS awards), and sound-designed “The Santaland Diaries, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” and “Into The Woods, Jr.” at Home Made Theater. He has also co-produced and directed “Tango Fusion” at the Saratoga Arts Theater, and was the executive producer for the recent Northeastern Premiere of “Ladies of Eola Heights” and for David Auburn's Pulitzer Prize-winning “Proof,” as well as bringing Eve Ensler's “The Vagina Monologues” to the stages of Saratoga for a second season.

Performers:Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company, Resident Company of The Egg ESDC, the pre-eminent modern dance company of the Capital Region, presents the provocative and richly imagined choreography of Artistic Director Ellen Sinopoli. Now in its 16th season, ESDC shares its work with diverse audiences through concerts, showcases, residencies, workshops and educational outreach, seeking to enrich our community by enhancing the appreciation, understanding and experience of contemporary performing arts. “Exuberant, serendipitous, gutsy and soaring” and “magicians in motion” are just some of the expressions used to describe ESDC dancers who delight audiences of all ages with movement that celebrates rhythm, energy and musicality. Its performances at professional, regional and college theaters include The Sage Colleges, Hudson Valley Community College, Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, The Arts Center of the Capital Region, SUNY Cobleskill, Greenville Cultural Arts Center, Old Forge Arts Guild, Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Lake Placid Center for the Arts, NYC's Mulberry Street Theater, Inside/Out Series at Jacob's Pillow, Kaatsbaan International Dance Center, Avery Fisher Hall in NYC's Lincoln Center and Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood. The company’s performances and arts-in-education programs reach more than 8,000 people each year.