2014 National Artist Teacher Fellows

Kathleen Irene Bawel

Music, Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School, St. Petersburg, FL Fellowship:

To attend the Rome International Choral Festival, studying conducting and composition under Z. Randall Stroope, resulting in an original choral composition to be performed in the US.

Michael Berry-Berlinski

Theater,Oakland School for the Arts, Oakland, CA Fellowship:

To study with the Solar Bear Theater Company and The Royale Conservatoire of Scotland to learn about possible influences and impacts of Visual/Deaf Theater as it pertains to training of hearing actors in mainstream theatre practices.

Tamara Conrad

Visual Arts, Northwest School of the Arts, Charlotte, NC Fellowship:

To develop technical knowledge and create new ceramic artwork through “Porcelain without Borders,” led by Susan Filley and Leah Leitson at Penland School of Crafts.

Stephanie Dorian

Theater, Orange County School of the Arts, Santa Ana, CA Fellowship:

To develop and perform in a play, inspired by a profoundly personal life experience, that explores the connection of acting and empathy under the mentorship of acclaimed actress and playwright, Anna Deavere Smith.

Paul Ferraris

Directing/Visual Arts, City Arts and Technology High School, San Francisco, CA Fellowship:

To work with Elizabeth Pepin to create a biographical documentary about Mayra Aguilar, a teacher and surfer who is breaking the molds of her small Baja peninsula town.

Shawn Hann

Theatre/Directing, Denver School of the Arts, Denver, CO Fellowship:

To train with the 15th Annual La Ma Ma International Symposium for Directors in Spoleto, Italy and grow as an artist by gaining new perspectives on socially engaged theatre, documentary style theatre, and theatre of the oppressed.

Lydia Horvath

Visual Arts, Toledo School for the Arts, Toledo, OH Fellowship:

To study at Ox Bow art school/artists’ colony and rent a visual arts studio in downtown Toledo for a year, in order to increase artistic output, evolve ideas and work towards incorporating cross-disciplinary work into her art.

Kimberly Jensen

Visual Arts, City Arts and Technology High School, San Francisco, CA Fellowship:

To study classical mosaic technique by attending two intensive courses at the Mosaic Art School in Ravenna, Italy, and gain artistic rejuvenation through a field trip to Nikki De Saint Phalle’s world-famous mosaic garden, “The Tarot Garden”.

Cava Menzies

Music, Oakland School for the Arts, Oakland, CA Fellowship:

To travel to New Orleans and study with jazz pianist and educator Victor Atkins III, jazz and gospel pianist/vocalist Matt Lemmer, and jazz history professor, Brent Rose; to immerse herself in the technique and history of jazz.

Lorie Miles

Illustration, Photography, and Mixed Media, San Diego School of Creative & Performing Arts, San Diego, CA Fellowship:

To attend a workshop taught by Mary Ellen Mark in New York City, and spend 7 additional days working independently to create a photojournalism series featuring contemporary figurative artist Hugo Crosthwaite.

Pamela Nomura

Creative Writing, Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts, Hartford, CT Fellowship:

To study with mentors Diana Ferrus in Cape Town, South Africa, and Margaret Randall in Albuquerque, New Mexico to create a body of new work.

Michael Nowicki

Theater, Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts, Hartford, CT Fellowship:

To explore new ways of devising original theater work by attending a training intensive in devised theater at Celebration Barn Theater in Maine, performances by the Punchdrunk Theater in New York City and create an original theatrical event at the historic Colt Firearms Factory in Hartford, Connecticut.

Raymond Parks

Dance, Central Visual and Performing Arts High School, St. Louis, MO Fellowship:

To study with Gerri Houlihan at the American Dance Festival and receive private coaching by St. Louis Elite Dance Company, in order to both expand his modern dance repertoire and choreograph new work.

Margaret Plaza

Dance, Dr. Sun Yat Sen M.S. 131, New York City, NY Fellowship:

To study jazz dance through its technique, stylistic expression, music, and history at the OffJazz International Summer Dance Workshop in Nice, France under the mentorship and tutelage of Mr. Gianin Loringett, artistic director and choreographer of OffJazz Dance Company, resulting in choreographing original Jazz and Cuban Jazz dance works of art that will be premiered in New York City.

Dexter Singleton

Theater, Regional Center for the Arts, Trumbull, CT Fellowship:

To study the arts of playwriting and development through participation in the Kenyon Playwrights Conference in Kenyon, OH, observing the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, OR, and developing current play Silver Bullet.

Susan Tanner

Theater, Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, Los Angeles, CA Fellowship:

To revitalize her directorial vision by traveling to Vancouver, B.C and Ashland, Ore. to see inspiring, high quality theatre and do observer-ships at Bard on the Beach and Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Conceiving and directing a production that utilizes directorial concepts inspired by new perspectives on theater after meeting with artistic staff, attending lectures by directors and dramaturgs, dialoguing with designers and seeing performances in both locations.