88.5 WFDD - UNCSA: Recent Episodes
Associated Press
UNCSA's annual "Nutcracker" ballet performance. Photograph by Peter Mueller, courtesy of UNCSA.
The University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem has just announced its upcoming performance schedule of dance, drama, music, opera, and film screenings. It's the first season in two years without COVID protocols, but the changes don’t end there.
To prepare students for professional careers in the arts, this year’s season will highlight collaborations between the drama and music departments: Stephen Sondheim’s dark comedy Sweeney Todd, Peter Shaffer’s Amadeus, and after a two-year COVID hiatus, the return of the full production of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker ballet.
With restrictions now lifted, these events will be able to accommodate capacity crowds. UNCSA Provost Patrick Sims says the pandemic has in some ways changed what it means to be a 21st century conservatory — and that means embracing a broader student perspective.
"They have another part in mind," says Simms. "So, it’s one thing to be able to master Tchaikovsky, it’s another thing to be able to take that skillset and appreciation for that particular art form and invent something new. And our students are very much toward that end of the spectrum — that they want to invent the new thing, and our industries are calling for it."
Sims says this new approach to arts education will be led by a new generation of faculty members — 18 have joined this semester, and the school is poised to add a dozen or more who will begin teaching in 2023.
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UNCSA alumnus, actor/director Matías De La Flor (standing) is a native of Lima, Peru. He leads a rehearsal of "Romeo y Julieta Limeño," his bilingual adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Image credit: Wiley Hausam.
The North Carolina Black Repertory Company presents “Shakespeare at Sunset” this weekend with a twist: Romeo and Juliet in English and Spanish.
Romeo y Julieta Limeño is the bilingual adaptation of The Bard’s immortal romantic tragedy. Limeño refers to Lima, Peru, the hometown of actor/director Matías De La Flor who graduated from the UNC School of the Arts in May. In his staged reading, De La Flor fuses Shakespeare’s Old English with the poetry of Chilean political activist Pablo Neruda, and the contemporary voice of De La Flor himself.
His interest is exploring the area between physicality and spoken word. He notes the growing Latino population in the Triad and says finding a bridge between the two worlds allows him and his actors to take audiences on a unique journey.
"My goal here is specifically for the Latin community to have a voice," says De La Flor. "We talk about representation in the arts. We talk about inclusivity and diversity, and I was like, well, what can I do? If I’m making theatre, and I’m Latin, and I’m an immigrant, and there’s people like me here, why don’t I start here? I can’t start somewhere in the future."
Romeo y Julieta Limeño begins at Bailey Park Saturday night at 7 p.m. There will be Latin food trucks including Peruvian cuisine available during the performance with music and dancing to follow.
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Dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov, right, performs with Susan Jaffe in Boston on March 28, 1988. American Ballet Theatre has named Jaffe its new artistic director (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)
American Ballet Theatre has named its first new artistic director in 30 years, and she's a former top ballerina at the company.
Susan Jaffe, who was a celebrated principal dancer at ABT for more than two decades, takes over from Kevin McKenzie in December. McKenzie announced last year that he'd be retiring in 2022 after 30 years at the helm.
The former ballerina, who has been serving as artistic director at Pittsburgh Ballet Theater since 2020, noted in a statement that this would be her seventh role at ABT, starting as a student and moving up through dancing, teaching and other roles.
“What a profound honor it is for me to come back home to lead the artistic helm of American Ballet Theatre,” Jaffe, 59, said in a statement.
In addition to her 22 years as a principal dancer at ABT — one of the top classical ballet companies in the world and, along with New York City Ballet, one of America's two leading ballet troupes — Jaffe danced as a guest with companies like the Royal Ballet, the Kirov, the Stuttgart Ballet, La Scala and many others. She left the stage in 2002.
Jaffe also served for eight years as dean of dance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
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Students gather outside the Gray Building on the campus of UNCSA. 24 former faculty members and administrators are accused of either committing sexual abuse or failing to report it. DAVID FORD/WFDD
Thirty-nine former students have filed a lawsuit against the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, alleging they were sexually abused by members of the school’s faculty and staff. The suit comes just months after seven former students made similar claims in court.
The complaint paints a picture of systemic sexual abuse at the school over several decades. Students say they were victims of offenses ranging from sexual harassment to rape. In all, 24 former faculty members and administrators are accused of either committing that abuse or failing to report it.
Among the defendants is Stephen Shipps, a former violin professor accused of raping female students. The lawsuit alleges Shipps was allowed to leave the school without facing serious ramifications. He later was accused of sexual misconduct while teaching at the University of Michigan and pleaded guilty to a sex crime two weeks ago.
The lawsuit says students were groomed for abuse by staff members who insinuated that it was necessary in order to build a successful career in the arts.
In a statement, UNCSA officials called the allegations “deeply disturbing” and said the school now has “significant safeguards in place to protect its community against abuse of any kind.”
The plaintiffs are represented by Gloria Allred, who is known for her work on high-profile sexual abuse cases. Her clients include victims of Harvey Weinstein and R. Kelly.
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UNCSA students gather in between classes in front of the Gray Building on campus. DAVID FORD/WFDD
The University of North Carolina School of the Arts faces a lawsuit by several former students — most of whom attended in the 80s — over charges of sexual abuse. They accuse faculty and administrative staff of failing to address abuse that took place over a period of two decades.
For currently enrolled students, reaction to the news varied. Viola majorElla Paschal says upon hearing the allegations, she was filled with disbelief.
"I thought it was really crazy — just the whole lawsuit and everything — I thought it was just a crazy investigation, and I didn't expect to hear all of this stuff here," she says. "Knowing what happened to people and them having to go through it is really sad. And I hope they get the justice they deserve."
Undergraduate organ student Josh Sobel says that while he was taken aback that Larry Alan Smith, former dean of UNCSA School of Music, was among those named in the new lawsuit, the rest is nothing new.
"I can’t say that I’m entirely surprised especially given the time period," he says. "This has been a fairly widespread issue among a whole bunch of arts conservatories, not just this one."
Violinist Ruth Kelley is in her second year of UNCSA's undergraduate program. She says it was shocking to read the Winston-Salem Journal article about the allegations and lack of response from administrators, but she hopes it can lead to something positive.
"It's a necessary discussion that still needs to be had," says Kelley. "We build such emotionally intricate relationships with our teachers just because a lot goes into being an artist and it's more than just removed training. It's a full-body experience, so,I think it’s important to be having conversations about how to maintain one’s health — while studying art, while practicing art — and making sure that relationships are mentally and physically healthy between peers and between faculty members."
The plaintiffs’ case is being led by Gloria Allred, who represented several victims of R. Kelly, the R&B singer recently convicted on sex trafficking charges.
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The University of North Carolina School of the Arts faces a lawsuit by former students who say they were victims of sexual abuse. The Winston-Salem Journal reports that most of the plaintiffs were students at the school in the 1980s.
The complaint alleges that they were inappropriately touched or were groomed for sexual relations by their instructors and that nothing was done when they reported the actions to administrators.
The filing represents only the plaintiffs' side of the case.
The defendants in the lawsuit, in addition to the university, are a group of faculty and administrators. The Journal reports that most of them have died or retired in the decades since the acts are alleged to have occurred. Neither a university spokeswoman nor living defendants commented when reached by the newspaper.
In 2019 North Carolina passed the SAFE Child Act, which opened a two-year window for new lawsuits for child abuse victims who had previously been barred by the statute of limitations.
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UNCSA's ninth chancellor Brian Cole. Image credit: Wayne Reich
Brian Cole was officially installed as University of North Carolina School of the Arts' ninth chancellor Friday. Cole has been in the position since May of 2020, previously serving as interim chancellor and dean of the School of Music. Cole spoke with WFDD’s Bethany Chafin about the school’s plans for the future and what makes it so unique.
Interview Highlights On being a public arts conservatory:
It's a whole arts ecosystem. I mean, every facet of the arts and entertainment industry that's happening out there is happening right here on our about 78 acres, which is extraordinary, that it's all happening in this collaborative, interactive, very small community. Another aspect of that is that we're able to do all these things within the arts and entertainment industries, and create an experience that's the same as a lot of our peers, which are, you know, large institutions around the country, many of which are private endowment-driven institutions. But we're able to deliver that same experience, [and] we're able to do it with an entirely greater level of access for young artists that comes from us being a publicly supported institution, by the people in North Carolina.
On what the installation means to Cole:
I don't consider that [the installation] nearly as much about me as much as it is an opportunity to really celebrate the institution. With all the amazing things that have happened just in over half a century at the school, I'm so confident in the fact that our best days are still in front of us. So this is a moment to celebrate that and celebrate our connection to the industry and celebrate helping the industry develop into an even better version of itself through our young artists.
On the pillars of the school's new five-year strategic plan:
The first one is equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging. The second is in terms of health and wellness, and well-being within our community, within the training that our students are a part of, as well as affecting the industry and health and well-being in our artistic careers. The third being a strong focus on interdisciplinary work in the arts — we double down on our role as a conservatory and refining and honing the craft that our students have, but also embracing our role as a laboratory for them, putting them in spaces, to use their craft, to develop what's next in the industry. And the intersection of all those art forms is very important, not just for their creative impulse, but for the opportunities that the industry presents now, nowadays for young artists.
The fourth being maintaining and expanding our industry relevance. That's always been a strength for UNCSA, we want to make sure that that continues to be a strength and is an even greater strength in the years to come by maintaining those connections with the leaders of the industry ... as well as making sure that the programs that we're doing continue to be very relevant to the opportunities that students have out in the industry. And the fifth one, being really a foundation for all that which is institutional sustainability — our enrollment, our financials, our investing in our people. That's really the foundation for making sure that we can continue to achieve our mission and to do all the things that we're setting out as directions in this plan. So I list that last but it's really a foundation for everything. A lot of that really just goes back to just investing in people. And our people are our greatest resource.
*Editor's Note: This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.
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The interior of the Stevens Center in Winston-Salem, NC. Photo by Jay Sinclair, courtesy of UNCSA.
Restrictions are loosening up for performance venues, but many theatres and concert halls are proceeding with caution before inviting audiences back in. The Stevens Center in downtown Winston-Salem won’t be opening its doors just yet but is still being put to good use.
It’s been just over a year since the Stevens Center hosted a live performance with a full audience. The theatre has seating for over 1,300.
The University of North Carolina School of The Arts owns the facility and oversees its operation. When the venue closed to the public, it was still used for educational purposes. Class productions were scaled-back in order to maintain social distancing, and students adapted to new ways of working safely.
Wiley Hausam is the Director of Performance Facilities at UNCSA.
“The Stevens Center is kind of perfect in that sense, 'cause the stage is so large, and the auditorium is so large, that we could kind of use the stage as a live-streaming studio, or to video record things that could be broadcast later,” he says.
He estimates it will be fall before they start bringing in small audiences.
A bipartisan bill was recently submitted in the State House, asking for $42 million to make renovations and repairs to the Stevens Center.
For the most up-to-date information on coronavirus in North Carolina, visit our Live Updates blog here. WFDD wants to hear your stories — connect with us and let us know what you’re experiencing.
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The UNC System Board of Governors appointed Cole as chancellor on May 20, 2020. He previously served as interim chancellor at UNCSA since August 2019. Image credit: Wayne Reich
The UNC School of the Arts in Winston-Salem has a new chancellor — sort of. Brian Cole was recently elevated to the permanent position after having served as interim chancellor since August of 2019. He takes over his official duties amidst a pandemic, leading an educational tradition built around artistic collaborations done in close proximity. Cole spoke with WFDD’s David Ford.
Interview Highlights On the unique challenges UNCSA faces from COVID-19:
So much of what we do in the arts is predicated on a certain proximity to each other and contact in some cases. And so, it might have been an easier transition for other kinds of institutions. For us it was a difficult one, but it's amazing how smoothly it went. Certainly I don't mean to indicate that there weren't a lot of difficulties for people and for our students in terms of not just the experience, but, you know, going back to their homes. And there's a lot of equity issues of being able to — just an Internet connection or accessing online things — so, we worked really hard. A lot of the early part of this was figuring out the difficulties that individuals had — helping students and parents deal with the very difficult sudden departure from the campus. But then once people got back, what do they need to be able to access all these things? So, in some cases, it was pushing out technology and devices to people. There's a lot of different things. And then, of course, supporting the faculty in the same way. They're creating that content and having to get that out to students.
On remote learning in a conservatory setting:
UNCSA Chancellor Brian Cole leads the school orchestra. Photo credit: Ken Bennett.
From a music standpoint, hooking up at a given time with cameras is one thing, but then there's also the audio. And how do you create audio connections on both sides for the teacher and the student to where you can really hear each other? And in terms of dance, which would seem to be one of the most difficult things because of the space involved, just what the dance faculty and under the leadership of Susan Jaffe have done is just extraordinary — some through video assets that teachers will record and send to students so that they at any given time kind of asynchronously can watch and take on their own. Students recording themselves and sending that to teachers. And then there's times where it's synchronous feedback, whether it's technique, classes or style or in some cases, you know, warm ups throughout the day. I think some of the most interesting examples were in things that are more asynchronous. It kind of makes you to ask the question, what are the things, the core things that we absolutely have to be together for? You know, there's no substitute for. And of course, we would like everything to be. But when you ask the question of how am I going to do this, how are we going to do this, what are the things that we absolutely have to be together for? And let's figure out a way to do that synchronously. And then what are the things that we don't have to be together for, the things that are processing information or reading or viewing media, things like that. And let's figure out a way to do that and support people.
On surpassing its $65-million capital campaign goal and future fundraising efforts:
Now we're presented with an entirely extra new set of needs related to not just the institution and resources we'll have to plan for in the fall and beyond, but the needs of students, which have changed in a lot of cases. Scholarships have always been incredibly important, but they're even more important now because the financial situation of students has changed because of what's happened to their parents potentially and their employment status. There are other technological things that we want to increase our infrastructure for the future. Once we get past this, down the road, something else that happens, you know, all of our lives are going to be different in terms of how we approach things and how we approach cleaning and sanitizing and disinfecting things, not just in terms of the pandemic, but from now on. I think we're all we look at things differently and those all have a cost, not just money, but other kinds of resources that we have to find and people and expertise to help us do it. So, we're in a good place. The campaign has helped us go a long way in addressing some of those needs and challenges. But there are more. We're going to keep going and then we're working very hard to address all these new challenges that have come up because of COVID-19.
Editor's Note: This transcript was lightly edited for clarity.
For the most up-to-date information on coronavirus in North Carolina, visit our Live Updates blog here. WFDD wants to hear your stories —connect with usand let us know what you’re experiencing.
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Photo provided by UNC School of the Arts
Triad-area educators have spent the last few weeks adjusting to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For many professors at the UNC School of the Arts, the transition has been particularly challenging.
Jared Redick, Assistant Dean of Ballet in the School of Dance, says the prospect of teaching his classes virtually was daunting in the beginning. The first hurdle was figuring out when to schedule a class for students now spread out in many different time zones. After resolving that, he developed a new routine.
“I go into the studio and I set up my laptop on the piano. I have an iPod where I stream the music from because it's adjustable speed so I can change the tempos, and then I Zoom all the kids in,” he says. “And so, I stand at a bar in the studio and I demonstrate the combinations. I give it to them a couple of times because that's one of the challenges, is for them to pick up the information quickly in that delivery system. And then I sit and we go.”
Redick says that while his students have adjusted well to the new setup, he’s limited in the kinds of exercises he can teach them.
“We can't move. We can't do things that move horizontally across the floor. So, movement, which is not all of dance, but a big part of dance, is kind of missing from that equation at the moment. And that's tough,” he says. “So we try and do everything as vertically as we can.”
UNCSA officials say each one of the school’s 1,200 spring semester courses are now being taught online. None were canceled due to the transition.
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Gerald Freedman was the Dean of the Drama School at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (1991-2012) until a stroke forced him to retire. On Tuesday he died in his home in Winston-Salem at the age of 92. Image courtesy: UNCSA
Internationally renowned stage director, Broadway veteran, and beloved University of North Carolina School of the Arts Dean Gerald Freedman has died. He passed away at his home in Winston-Salem on Tuesday. He was 92 years old.
In the history of modern theatre and film, few have had more impact than Freedman. During his half-century working in Hollywood and New York, he directed the likes of Humphrey Bogart, Joan Crawford, and countless others.
In 1991, Freedman brought those experiences to what was formerly known as School of the Arts in Winston-Salem, transforming the lives of thousands as Dean of the Drama School. One of them was Isaac Klein who calls Freedman the greatest teacher he ever had. His book The School of Doing: Lessons From Theater Master Gerald Freedman pays tribute, and in 2017 he and Freedman joined WFDD’s David Ford to speak about it. Former Freedman student and Academy Award-winning actor Kevin Kline joined the conversation.
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UNCSA 2017 Collage Concert. Photo credit: Ken Bennett.
The University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem is beginning a new chapter through a major fundraising campaign. UNCSA is the nation’s first publicarts conservatory. Since its founding in 1963, alumni from both the high school and university programs have been recognized as leaders in their respective art forms: American Ballet Theatre’s Gillian Murphy, Golden Globe, Emmy, and Tony Award-winning actress Mary-Louise Parker, and Hamilton costume designer Paul Tazewell, to name a few.
UNCSA Interim Chancellor Brian Cole. Photo Credit: Wayne Reich.
Interim Chancellor Brian Cole says, although it's grown significantly through the years, the institution itself has remained much the same since the doors were first opened over 50 years ago with a diverse and driven student body.
"There are lots of great schools around the country, and they're very expensive," says Cole. "This institution happened because the community wanted it to happen and because leaders across our state wanted it to happen in a public setting. There is more access to young artists, more access to talented minds so the future leaders of the creative industry can come here."
That’s why, he says the biggest pillar of the school's campaign — some $25 million dollars — is for student scholarships. The other four pillars are faculty professorships and professional development, support for innovative initiatives, updating campus facilities, and community engagement.
Cole says extending the university's reach beyond campus has been a big priority for him long before he stepped in as interim chancellor.
The impact of the arts on community, what it can do to build community, what it can do to impact the local economy I think is huge. There's already so many great things happening in our community in training in the arts — whether it's experiences for children, performative experience, or whether it's experience for adults, there's lots of different things happening — but in many cases these different things that are happening are a little too siloed off. And there are lots of different initiatives just within music for example, but in many cases with a community this size, it's fragmented. And so, you're competing — if that's the right word — or you're using the same resources, and in many times it's the same spaces. One of the most important resources are the teachers that are out in the community working with students and helping them grow. In many cases, in lots of different smaller organizations that provide only part-time opportunities for the most talented teachers, it's hard to retain those teachers in our area. Most of these initiatives have the same supporters and donors. I think a lot of the community engagement part is going to be finding all those stakeholders and bringing them together, and doing even more by collaborating, and pooling our resources. It's the difference between having a lot of fantastic opportunities for young people or creating something transformative.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This transcript was lightly edited for clarity.
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MIXXER Executive Director Alan Shelton removes a plywood cut out from the laser cutter. DAVID FORD/WFDD
“The City of Arts and Innovation” became Winston-Salem’s official slogan back in 2014. But what exactly does that look like for the artists, innovators, and residents who call this place home?
The inaugural ARTIVATE Summit, that recently took place at the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts and other downtown locations, set out to provide answers by connecting a diverse community of artists and entrepreneurs from across the region. The Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts at the UNC School of the Arts designed this new arts summit to complement its Creative Catalyst program which offers an online certificate program, and funds dozens of fellowships for artists to work in communities across the Southeast.
The MIXXER woodshop has an extensive array of professional tools highly maintained by Shelton and volunteers. DAVID FORD/WFDD
ARTIVATE 2019 sessions and excursions were organized into three learning tracks: leadership, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Local presenters and performers (a dancer who guides Parkinson’s patients through improvisational movements; a singer who trains artists to bring more of themselves into their work), dialogues with nationally known speakers (including Street Symphony founder Vijay Gupta, and poet and spoken word artist Donovan Livingston), and excursions to places where traditional business models are being turned on their heads, like MIXXER.
MIXXER is a makerspace for technology and fabrication enthusiasts. It’s not glamorous — four painted cinder block walls, high ceilings, and lots of space — but the people who come here don’t seem to mind. They just want to build stuff. The dozen or so industrial sewing machines laid out on wooden tables beckon to be used.
But there’s something else going on here as well. Executive Director Alan Shelton says bringing people together was key.
“As soon as this building became available we jumped on it because we knew this was perfect,” says Shelton. “We’re at the intersection of the Arts District and the Innovation Quarter, so we’re literally at the intersection of arts and innovation, but we’re also at a connection point being in the Industry Hill neighborhood here as connecting to the neighborhoods of East Winston and Boston-Thurmond that don’t see a lot of the benefit from all the downtown growth and development.”
Metal casting takes place outdoors at MIXXER. DAVID FORD/WFDD
Shelton says MIXXER is positioned to make a difference there — to be a bridge-builder to African American neighborhoods long cut off by Highway 52 and other barriers. The former auto shop worker says the nonprofit attracts people of all backgrounds who pay small monthly fees to use state-of-the-art machinery for working on anything from textiles, wood, and metal, to 3D printing. Shelton says that diversity — clientele and the projects they create — has created an energized community.
“You see people having eureka moments every day — ‘I never would have thought of that,'” says Shelton. “When you have an engineer in the biomedical field come together with an engineer from the automotive industry and they suddenly realize they use the exact same tools, they’re just doing completely different things with them, they begin to start learning new ways to use those tools to create things that would never be possible otherwise.”
During the tour, ARTIVATE participants watch computer-guided lasers cutting intricate patterns out of plywood, plastic prototypes emerging from a 3D printer, and more.
Minutes away in the Hanesbrands Lobby Mezzanine, another breakout session is being led by UNCSA Assistant Dean of Student Affairs and Entrepreneurship Krisha Marcano.
UNCSA's Krisha Marcano leads a group discussion on transferable skills. DAVID FORD/WFDD
Marcano leads a workshop on artists identifying their transferable skills — like creative thinking, teamwork, attention to detail — and leveraging those skills in order to pivot to new careers. She should know. Before becoming a dean and creative career coach, Marcano was for years a professional dancer with Martha Graham, Alvin Ailey, and later on Broadway. Back then the arts community did not embrace her pivot to education. She says she lacked mentorship, and in today’s rapidly changing career landscape, that’s more important than ever.
“If we don’t start educating artists in our institutions and in our communities, our community centers, on how to run the business, how to be current, how to be balanced as an artist, what the actual artist life is — a holistic look at what it means — we will lose our talent,” says Marcano.
Nearly 200 attended the inaugural ARTIVATE summit, and for this group, messages like Marcano’s resonate.
“I’ve been so inspired today by the collection of speakers and the people I’ve met at the conference,” says UNCSA BFA acting candidate Dyer Rhoads.
Director of Wig & Makeup at UNCSA’s School of Design and Production Holland Berson enjoyed meeting with peers. “It’s been just a great opportunity to get together with a lot of other artists from here and from outside of the state and get to hear more about their process,” she says.
Photographer Owens Daniels is a Creative Catalyst Fellow. “I’m leaving very inspired,” he says. “And I’m looking forward to going into my community, and, as an artist leader, looking at what does that really mean, and how can I further lead.”
Those sentiments are music to the ears of Corey Madden. She’s the Executive Director of the Kenan Institute. Today, she sees a transition point between art and society — the days of going to “just a concert” being replaced by artists encouraging a sense of purpose, optimism, and engagement.
Kenan Institute Executive Director Corey Madden (left) and ARTIVATE guest speaker and Street Symphony founder Vijay Gupta in the Hanesbrands Gallery. Photo credit: Sunny Stewart.
“They can help build communities,” says Madden. “They can help be the voice of change in their communities. They can connect across boundaries. They can inspire. They can activate. And what we want to try and do is raise up their stories for others to hear and also connect them with each other. So, they begin to see themselves as a group of people who have a shared practice of doing this kind of work.”
Change she says takes place at the speed of trust: artists from a variety of disciplines spending time together, understanding each other’s practices, and later collaborating on revolutionary projects that inspire us all. She hopes ARTIVATE provides the spark that makes it happen.
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