Louis Kavouras, Director
Louis Kavouras joined the UNLV Dance Faculty in 1992. In 1994 he was elected chair of the department. Kavouras has been a principal dancer of the Erick Hawkins Dance Company and faculty member of the Erick Hawkins School of Dance since 1996. The Erick Hawkins Dance Company is a professional, New York based, modern dance company founded by modern dance pioneer, Erick Hawkins. Kavouras has studied with modern dancers Kathryn Karipides, Kelly Holt, Erick Hawkins, Betty Jones, Lucas Hoving, Donald McKayle, Peter Pucci, Gus Solomons, Jr., Rudy Perez, Claire Porter, and Clay Taliaferro. Kavouras is accomplished as a choreographer, designer, visual and graphic artist. His dances have been showcased in Nevada, Ohio, North Carolina, Texas, Hawaii, Pennsylvania, Australia, Scotland, England, China, Korea, Japan, Denmark, Russia, Nova Scotia, and Jamaica. Kavouras believes in creating dances which are uniquely his own, and range from "hilarious" to "poignant." He comes from a total theater tradition and explores all interdisciplinary avenues between the arts.
Production Team
Sylvia Lane, Director
Sylvia received training in musical theatre at the prestigious London Studio Centre. She has over 20 years’ experience as a singer, dancer and actor. Originally from Munich, Germany, her career began with the Munich National Opera. Further credits include Lead Dancer/Singer for Spirit of the Dance, in the USA including Las Vegas and Reno and tours of Australia and New Zealand; roles in A Chorus Line, Chicago, Starting Here, Starting Now, West Side Story, The American Dream, The Rake’s Progress as well as Lead Production Singer for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and Cunard. She has numerous TV, Film and Audio recordings. Recently she was awarded a Professional Graduate Certificate in Education and a Postgraduate Certificate of Professional Learning in Higher Education from Bath Spa University and has completed an advanced course in The Estill Voice Method course at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Sylvia is currently undertaking a Master’s in Professional Practice in Higher Education.
Michael Lugering, Director
Michael is a master teacher of voice, movement and acting. Mr. Lugering has spent over 15 years researching the physical, psychological, behavioral and aesthetic aspects of human expression. The Lugering Method marks a revolutionary departure from traditional methods of actor training. In this truly integrated technique the voice and body, thought and feeling, sound and movement, psyche and soma are synthesized in the practical exploration of expression action. Mr. Lugering’s new book The Expressive Actor: An Integrated Method of Voice, Movement & Actor Training is published by Heinemann Drama Books. Mr. Lugering has taught master classes in acting, voice, movement and classical text at theatre conferences and Professional Acting Training Programs throughout the United States, Korea and in the United Kingdom. Recent acting credits include JOE: performed in Las Vegas, Monaco, Scotland, Los Angeles, Liverpool, Japan and Quebec. Additionally, Mr. Lugering is a passionate director noted for his innovative approach to the classics.
Ged Stephenson, Director
Ged is the Programme Co-ordinator for the Performing Arts BA (Hons) (top-up). He graduated from Central School of Speech and Drama BEd (Hons) and is currently studying for the Master’s in Professional Practice in Higher Education. Ged was born in the North East of England. He lived and worked there and in London before moving to Somerset. He started out in the world of employment as an actor, possessing the wonderful quality of naivety. This led to many exciting and valuable experiences in theatre, which enabled him to work with a number of excellent companies and directors, and gain valuable insights into the workings of the industry. Ged has directed many productions as well as being the writer of three musicals (story, script and music). Over the years he has worked in theatre, radio, independent films and festivals. He has organised and run workshops in the UK, France, Poland and Russia, and also braved the world of stand-up comedy, both as a performer and writer.
Laurie Fruth, General Manager UNLVTV
Laurie Fruth is the general manager of UNLV TV and assistant director of the School of Journalism and Media Studies. Her responsibilities include developing and implementing a strategic plan for the continued growth of the School, overseeing the production of creative programming for UNLV TV, establishing partnerships within the campus and local community and ensuring that students, faculty and staff have the resources needed to meet their professional goals. She is a member of the Broadcast Education Association and the Association of Education in Journalism and Mass Communications.
Bernhard C. Verhoeven, Director
Bernhard is a second year MFA Theatre Performance candidate, recently appearing in Nevada Conservatory Theatre productions such as Six Characters Looking for an Author and As You Like It. Bernhard holds a BA in Theatre from Arizona State University, where the emphasis lies on new and devised work. Chief aesthetic influences include Jacques Lecoq, Pilobolus Dance Theatre, and Ariane Mnouchkine.
Jennifer Ream, Senior Producer UNLVTV
Jennifer is the senior producer at UNLV TV. She has over 11 years of experience in television and video production. She oversees the production of programs for UNLV TV's two educational cable channels, as well as videos and public service announcements for the campus community and non-profit organizations.
Dan Grimes, Instructional Production and Engineering UNLVTV
As UNLV TV’s engineer, Dan maintains the new digital media production facility in Greenspun Hall and assists faculty, staff and students with technical and operational issues. Dan also assists UNLV-TV with their production goals through various roles, especially when a challenge arises. In the past, Dan has applied his B.S.E.E.T. degree to designing high-speed, motion imaging arrays and control systems, instructional technology, analog television studios and broadband systems.
Brian Stenle, Media Network Engineer UNLVTV
Brian Steinle is the UNLV TV media network engineer. He has a diverse background ranging from multimedia, RF communications to IT working stateside and overseas. Brian has over ten year's professional experience and applies his skills to design, configure, implement, and maintain UNLV-TVs file based equipment. These include media server systems, non-linear editing applications, web streaming, audio visual database, network infrastructure and security. Brian also assists with local studio and field productions with setup and ensures uninterrupted programming.
Brackley Frayer, Lighting Designer
Brackley has taught at Dartmouth College, West Virginia University, and the University of Florida. Regional design credits include work with Seven Stages-Atlanta, the Hippodrome Theatre, The Texas Shakespeare Festival, The New York Lyric Opera Company, Texas Opera Theatre, Players Theatre Columbus and the Las Vegas Dance Company Opus. Frayer has designed for all of the Swamp Gravy productions, with performances in Colquitt, GA, the Cultural Olympiad in Atlanta, and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and Pieced Together and Cross Tides at the Yoder Barn Theater in Newport News, VA. He is a member of United Scenic Artists- Local 829. Frayer earned an MFA from the Yale School of Drama.
Adrienne Miranda, Stage Manager
Adrienne is a first year MFA candidate in Stage Management from Maryland. She received her BA from Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Her recent Stage Management credits include: Six Characters Looking for an Author (NCT), My Children! My Africa! (NCT), and Angels in America: Part 1 (Franklin and Marshall).
Heather Radovich, Stage Manager
Heather is a first year MFA candidate in Stage Management from Union City, California. She received her BA in Theatre Arts, Technical Theatre from Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, California. Her recent credits include: Production Stage Manager for Venus in Fur (NCT/Cockroach), Stage Management Intern for Michael Jackson ONE (Cirque du Soleil), and Production Stage Manager for Fiddler on the Roof (Sonoma State University).
Kasha Miller, Stage Manager
Kasha, who is currently studying at Weston College, is a second year FdA Performing Arts student from Newquay, Cornwall, United Kingdom. She has a love for all things creative by keeping herself busy with various photography projects of her own. Her recent credits include: Assistant Stage Manager for E3 Theatre Company’s production of ‘Spelling Bee’, Stage Manager for Wessex Academy of Performing Art’s ‘A Night In Vegas’ and has recently performed her devised piece ‘One Day Sale’ commenting on society’s need to consume material objects.
Peter Tyler, Stage Technician
Peter is one of the two technicians for the Wessex Academy of Performing Arts at Weston College. He looks after the day to day running of all the technical aspects for the courses on offer and also instructs on the technical theatre course. Having been involved in the theatre for most of his life either onstage, backstage or in the orchestra pit, Peter has a vast experience of theatre and can turn his hand to sound, stage management or even musical direction as well as set and prop building when the need arises. Peter has also designed the lighting for a diverse range of events including two tours of America and also at the Millennium Dome in London.
Emily Eades, Film Crew
Emily, comes from a music background then moved into film after making her own music videos. She is a first year FdA Film and Media Arts Production student at Weston College and is from Weston- super – Mare herself. Following her first short film 'Footsteps', she is currently focusing on her work with interactive media and documentaries.
Harley Sanderson, Film Crew
Harley, who is currently studying at Weston College, is a first year Film and Media Arts Production Fda student from Weston-super-Mare. She is also a musician and writes her own music in her spare time. She has recently been filming in Nantes, France for work experience and has recently produced a short film documentary called ‘Forever Young’.
Jimmy Hay, Film Crew
Jimmy is a filmmaker and lecturer at Weston College teaching the Film and Media Arts Production course. In the summer of 2013 he shot a feature film called High Tide, starring Melanie Walters (Submarine, Gavin and Stacey) and Sam Davies (Dr Who). The film was shot entirely on location in Swansea and Gower, and is due for a 2015 release.High Tide tells the story of a single day during which a mother must mend the broken relationship with her son; it is a moving, powerful and tender portrait of a vital twenty-four hours in two people’s lives.
Acknowledgements
This production is made possible by the support of:
Dean Jeffrey Koep, UNLV College of Fine Arts Dean Robert Ulmer, UNLV College of Urban Affairs
Nevada System of Higher Education Board of Regents
Kevin J. Page, Chair Rick Trachok, Vice Chair
Dr. Andrea Anderson Cedric Crear Robert Davidson Mark W. Doubrava, M.D. Jason Geddes, Ph.D. Trevor Hayes
Sam Lieberman James Dean Leavitt Kevin C. Melcher Allison Stephens Michael B. Wixom
Scott Young, Acting Chief of Staff to the Board