After receiving his Masters from the University of Utah, Jeff was introduced to the world of professional theatre by the late Jo Mielziner, the Broadway designer who had great impact on the world of scenic design. Under his guidance, Jeff worked in his studio as an assistant on such projects as In Praise of Love with Rex Harrison and Julie Harris; Miss Moffat with Bette Davis, Dorian Harewood and Nell Carter; Don Giovanni at the Met; and the ever expansive Denver Center for the Performing Arts in Denver. It was during this time that the essence of professional behavior was engrained and the understanding the importance of education.
As a scenic designer/scenic artist, Jeff’s work has been seen on the stages of the Clarence Brown Theatre (University of Tennessee), Vermont Stage Company, Dallas Opera, Augusta Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Studio Arena (Buffalo, NY), Music Theatre of Wichita, Cleveland Playhouse, Playhouse on the Square (Memphis, TN) McCarter Playhouse (Princeton, NJ), Yale Repertory, Eastman School of Music (Rochester, NY), New York City Opera, Goodspeed Opera House, Penn State as well as Broadway, Off-Broadway, and the silver screen. Jeff has designed for Industrial projects (Jaguar, IBM, Got Milk, and Bolivia), numerous national and international tours and was one of three mural artists on The Remember the Children: Daniel’s Story exhibit for the National Holocaust Museum in Washington as well as the tour currently in its 8th year. He has been the resident designer/production coordinator at the Candlewood Playhouse in Connecticut for five years and at Theatre by the Sea in Rhode Island for the last ten. He is currently a business partner in two companies: J2 Design & Production and Scenographia with longtime friends Jon and Kevin (respectively). Most recently, Jeff has designed tours Kiss Me, Kate (Networks Tours) and Singin' in the Rain and worked on the new Showtime series The Brotherhood due out January of 2006.
Jeff has taught in a variety of circumstances: New York Consortium, CW Post College of Long Island, Western Connecticut State University, Brown University, and the University of Rhode Island. Currently chair of the Department of Theatre, Jeff sees the opportunities ahead as a shared adventure for students, faculty and staff. Proud of his association with America’s rich theatrical heritage, he believes we will forge an enlightened future in the arts for the Burlington community.
Course: THE 030:Fundamentals of Scenery, THE 130: Scene Design, THE 131: Scene Painting Concepts and Application, & THE 230: Advanced Scene Design.
Sarah E. Carleton has worked in the field of professional theater, as actor, teacher, and director, since receiving her M.F.A. in Acting from Catholic University of America in 1985. She has been a member of Actor’s Equity since 1983 with professional credits including lead roles in New York, Regional, and National Tours, with favorites being Dinner with Friends, The Importance of Being Ernest, Much Ado About Nothing, Blithe Spirit, Always…Patsy Cline, Lend Me a Tenor, Crimes of the Heart, A Phoenix Too Frequent, The Belle of Amherst, The Dining Room, A Christmas Carol, Taking Steps, The Mousetrap, Echoes for a Wooden O, Prelude to a Kiss, The Bald Soprano, A Balancing Act, and The Taming of the Shrew (directed by Maurice Daniels of the Royal Shakespeare Company). Sarah has had the distinguished opportunity to study physical theater at the Celebration Barn Theater with Tony Montanaro, a former student of Marcel Marceau, Davis Robinson, and Mark Olsen. She has also studied at the DellArte School of Physical theater in Blue Lake California.
Sarah is a certified actor combatant with the Society of American Fight Directors and has served as fight director/movement coach on productions at UVM, St. Michael’s Playhouse, and Vermont Stage Company. She has directed productions at St. Michael’s Playhouse, The Academy of Performing Arts, Adam Mickewicz Universit in Poznan, Poland, Seton Hall University, and a special theatrical presentation for the United States Information Agency in Washington, D.C. Teaching credits include Kean College, Adam Mickewicz University, and Seton Hall University. While earning her M.F.A. at Catholic University, Sarah as recipient of the G. V. Hartke Award for Best Actress and was additionally awarded a Young Artist Grant for outstanding service to the performing arts. She has also done television, film, commercial, and voice–overs. Sarah is the co-founder of Foxhill Stage, a theatrical production partnership, and a member of the Association of Theater Movement Educators, and the American Federation of Television and Radio.
Courses: THE 010: Acting I: Introduction to Acting, THE 110: Acting II: Contemporary Scene Study, & THE 112: Acting IV: Stage Movement.
John Forbes received his B.A. in Dramatic Art from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and his M.F.A. in Theatre Lighting Design from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He has designed lighting for the Old Globe Theatre, the San Diego Repertory Company of Walnut Creek, California, the Ensemble Theatre Company of Santa Barbara, California, The Vermont Stage Company and Lost Nation Theatre in Vermont, The Arizona Theatre Company, and the Riverside Shakespeare Company in New York. In addition to his work as a lighting designer, Mr. Forbes has served as production manager at the San Diego Repertory Theatre and the Ensemble Theatre Company, technical director for the California Shakespearean Festival and the Arizona Theatre Company, as a stage carpenter at the New York Shakespeare Festival/Public Theatre and as a stage technician with IATSE Local 122 in San Diego. He has taught Lighting design at San Diego State University and design and technical theatre at the University of San Diego. At U.S.D. he also managed Shiley Theatre and in that capacity served as the technical liaison between the university and the Presidential Debate Commission for the final Presidential Debate of 1996 held there. In addition he is a member of United Scenic Artists-Local 829 and the United States Institute for Theatre Technology. His lighting design for the UVM’s production of Metamorphoses was selected for the gallery presentation at World Stage Design 2005 in Toronto
Courses: THE 020: Fundamentals of Lighting, THE 120: Lighting Design & THE 160 Stage Management
Lynne Greeley, historian and critic, has diverse interests in theatre. Her research focuses on experimental theatre of the 1960s with an emphasis on the work of feminist playwright, Martha Boesing. Her book length work, Power Femmes: Subverting Femininity in Twentieth Century American Theatre and Performance, rewrites the definition of feminism while tracing the history of women in American theatre. She also researches the avant garde, puppetry, multiculturalism, and the importance of theatre as a medium for teaching across the disciplines. Her publications cover subjects such as: teaching pedagogy for theatre; critical analyses of the acting career of Agnes Moorehead and Carson McCullers’s transition from novelist to playwright; the development of radical theatre in the 1960s in the; and the comparison of European and American women directors in theatre. Her publications appear in the scholarly journals Theatre History Studies, Theatre Survey, Text and Performance Quarterly, and Belles Lettres. She has contributed chapters to Theatre and Feminist Aesthetics, Teaching Theatre Today, Radical Collectives, circa 1968: Group Theatres and Their Legacies, and Notable Women in American Theatre. In addition to teaching the academic courses in the department (dramatic analysis and the histories), she created the course she calls Eurotheatre which includes two weeks of study in Europe during the summer. She serves as the dramaturg and student dramaturg supervisor to the department. On her own, she is a freelance writer of plays, novels, and any whimsy that crosses her keyboard. Most of all, however, she is a teacher.
Courses: THE 001: Introduction to Theatre, THE 050: Dramatic Analysis, THE 150: Theatre History I, THE 151: Theatre History II & THE 180/ENG 195: Eurotheatre
Gregory Ramos studied and taught dance before beginning his professional career as a dancer in Los Angeles, California. He danced in Television and Film as well as stage shows in Las Vegas and Tokyo. He went on to study acting at Playwrights Horizons in New York City, and privately with Ellen Burstyn. He subsequently appeared in several TV commercials and sitcoms. As a performer, he has toured the U.S and Europe appearing in West Side Story and The King and I with Yul Brynner (his first job as a member of Actor’s Equity Association). He also appeared in numerous plays along the way. He transitioned from performing to writing and directing after completing his MFA in playwriting at UCLA. His play Border Stories, based on interviews he conducted with people on the U.S. –Mexico border has been performed in Austin, Texas, and Gregory has performed a solo version of the play in Boulder, Colorado and in New York City. When he was on Faculty at The University of Texas El Paso, he created the Latino Guest Artist program and served as artistic director of The Border Public Theatre.
His one-act play Reaching Mercy was performed in New York City as part of the New York Summer One-Act Play Festival and his short play Breasts was performed by The Working Group Theatre Company. Shows he has directed (and/or choreographed) include: Once on This Island, Evita, Cabaret, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Santos & Santos, Real Women Have Curves, Confessions of Women from East L.A., and Our Town. Gregory also worked in New York City as a marketing executive on Broadway shows with a special focus on diversity outreach. He was on the marketing team for The Color Purple, Brooklyn- The Musical, Avenue Q, Chita Rivera: The Dancer’s Life, and Mamma Mia! He has served on The Texas Commission on the Arts Performing Arts Panel, and has taught Chicano Theatre, playwriting, acting, and Theatre diversity courses.
Courses: THE 001: Introduction to Theatre, THE 250: Directing I, THE 251: Directing II, & THE 095/ALANA 095: Theatre Diversity.
Martin received his M.F.A. from Pennsylvania State University in 1984. Credits have included work at the Champlain Shakespeare Festival, the Theatre-by-the-Sea, Brandeis University, Rowan University, Dartmouth Summer Repertory, Stage One: The Louisville Children’s Theatre, Tri-City Opera, West Virginia Public Stage. His New York credits include millinery and crafts for the American premiere of The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, The Muppet Arena Show, Shogun: The Musical, My Favorite Year at Lincoln Center, the American revival of Hello Dolly that opened in Paris and toured internationally and the Chicago premiere of Miss Saigon. In addition to his stage credits, Professor Thaler has also styled clothing for the Maryland Public Television’s nationally syndicated Wall Street Weekly. During the summer months he can be found teaching drawing and painting to senior adults at the Rehoboth Art League in Rehoboth, DE. Professor Thaler held the position of Department Chair from 1991-2001, during which the department saw the creation of the Holiday Production for Children and the Departmental Season Subscription Series in addition to building partnership with the Vermont Stage Company and the University Resident Theatre Association. While he has often combined administrative and design responsibilities with his teaching position at UVM, he is most proud of his work in the classroom, placing many UVM students in graduate schools on full scholarships. He has just returned from his sabbatical his past fall, where he focused on working on his book Even You Can Draw! and designed the world premier of The Fabulous Fable Factory Returns for Rowan University.
Courses: THE 040: Fundamentals of Costuming, THE 041: History of Costume, THE 042: Fundamentals of Theatrical Make-up, THE 140: Costume Design, THE 141: Advanced Costume Construction: Draping and Flat Pattern, THE 142: Advanced Costume Construction: Period Undergarments, THE 143: Advanced Costume Construction: Millinery, & THE 144: Advanced Costume Construction: Tailoring.
Peter Jack Tkatch has taught, acted, stage managed, and directed in the professional theatre and in educational theatre programs since he received his M.F.A. in Acting at Temple University. He has acted and stage managed at numerous Off Broadway, Off-Off Broadway, stock and regional theatres such as the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, the American Shakespeare Festival Stratford, CT, the Kennedy Center, the Actors Theatre of Louisville, and the Vermont Stage Company.
Prior to his coming to UVM, Tkatch had taught at the Circle in the Square Professional Theatre School; the New York University, B.F.A. Acting Program; the University of Alabama, M.F.A., Acting Program at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival; Temple University, Department of Theatre; and Villanova University, Department of Speech and Communication.
In New York, Tkatch served on committees at both the Screen Actors Guild and Actors’Equity Association. At S.A.G., for his work on the Agency, Conservatory, Nominating, and VITA Committees, he received the Joseph C. Riley Service Award. At Equity he was elected to governing Council and during his term served as Vice Chair of the League of Regional Theatres, Off Broadway, and Equity Fights AIDS Committees, and on several contract negotiating teams. Prior to coming to UVM, he also served on the Board of Directors as well as the founding Steering and Program Committees of Broadway Cares.
Currently he is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Screen Actors Guild, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the Stage Managers’Association, the Voice and Speech Trainers Association, the Actors’ Fund of America, and the Drama League.
Courses: THE 010: Acting I: Introduction to Acting, THE 110: Acting II: Contemporary Scene Study, THE 111: Acting III: Voice & Speech for the Actor, & THE 210: Acting V: Advanced Scene Study.
Last modified January 28 2009 01:36 PM
