Director Arrives-- Auditions on Horizon

Our director has arrived in Yakima! The talented Ashley Sparks flew in
from Atlanta and will be here for the duration. She comes from several
consecutive projects after graduation from Virginia Tech this spring
with a degree in Directing and Public Dialogue. This is her second DXM production having served as the assistant director on The NewHolly Tempest It is wonderful having her here as a
collaborator/conversation partner/community engaged theater veteran.

Ashley arrived in time for the reading of the new and improved script. We
gathered with a dozen members of our three community partners and had a
good time hearing La Pastorela . The playwright seemed happy enough and the readers liked the jokes and thought it captured at least some of the Yakima Experience.

We are in the middle of getting the Spanish half of the script translated with the help of Marco Antonio Bran, a Mexican graduate student in New York. He not only translates but is able to make it sound like it really is Spanish and not just
English in Spanish. If you know what I mean.

Today also saw a spike in the PR efforts as I met with Sr. Terry Mullen who has
graciously agreed to come up with a poster design and to handle the
program needs. This is a huge help to us. She teaches art at nearby
Heritage University and we are glad to have her with us.

Finally, have found and read the new article by Robert Putnam(author of Bowling Alone, and one of the originators of the notion of Social Capitol.) This article is the fruit of extensive research on the topic of how members of a diverse community
really experience the diversity. Does it make them more open, trusting,
and happy? or might it have a reverse effect? His findings suggest that
the more diverse the community the more likely the members are to not
engage with others unlike them but also with other like themselves. At
least in the short term. And these communities lack ways to get up off
the couch, turn off the tv , and engage other people. Of course, this is
where my ears perk up and I think-- theater projects. It does not hurt
the little old Yakima was one of the 41 communities in the study.

I would supply you a handy link but the technology is beyond me right at the moment. So I suggest hunting it down on Google.

This weekend is going to be filled with auditions. Four days of being with new people wanting to be involved with the project. Bring 'em on!