Aired Monday, November 21st at 7pm on WVIA TV
How can theatre companies attract more diverse cast members and audiences? Who gets to play which roles? Why is it important? Keystone Edition: Arts will explore these questions and more with theatre companies in northeast and central Pennsylvania.
Watch the Episode:
See Extra Bonus Inverviews:
Resources:
- Howl Round - Essays on diversity, equity, and inclusion
- National Endowment for the Arts - Equity Action Plan
- PA Council on the Arts - Accessibility
- American Theatre’s BIPOC Director Database
- artEquity - Resources
- We See You W.A.T. - Principles for Building Anti-Racist Theatre Systems
ArtScene Interviews:
Panelists:
Brandon Hanks
Brandon Hanks is the Producing Artistic Director of Rebel Stages/The Rebel Initiative. His most notable productions include Romeo & Juliet, Dog Sees God, Of Mice & Men and The Secret Garden. Director/Choreographer credits include 2019's summer's production of Mamma Mia at The Shawnee Playhouse, for which he earned the Broadway World Regional theater award for Best Director, Best Choreographer and Best Production.
Other Director/Choreographer credits include Cabaret, Jesus Christ Superstar, Mary Poppins, I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change, Oliver, and Thoroughly Modern Millie (2012 NEPTA Award winner for Best Overall show, Best Choreography). Professional theatre credits as an actor, include Five Guys Named Moe (NoMax), Ain't Misbehavin (Ken), Charlie Brown (Schroeder),Angels in America: Part One (Belize), Guys & Dolls (Nathan Detroit), Music Man(Marcellus) & Spelling Bee (Mitch Mahoney).
Amy Byrne
Amy Rene Byrne is a Tennessee native and a proud Pennsylvania transplant. She earned her MFA in Acting from West Virginia University in 2012 and joined Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble as Education Director in 2015. In 2016 she also became an Affiliate Artist and in 2019 she began her candidacy for the Ensemble and became an official member in 2020 (some good things did come out of 2020). Amy has acted in Tennessee, West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. She has taught theatre at Lycoming College, Zane State College, and West Virginia University and has appeared in various television commercials and voice-over roles.
Amy's acting roles at BTE include: The Girl Who Swallowed a Cactus, Tiny Beautiful Things, Fair Food Foul Play: A BTE Murder Mystery, Miss Bennett: Christmas at Pemberley, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), The Diary of Anne Frank, The BFG, and The Nether. Her directing credits include the Theatre in the Classroom show Star Tours! and the virtual murder mystery Fair Food Foul Play.
This season you will see Amy onstage in Red Rabbit, White Rabbit, 6 Characters in Search of an Author, and Grand Horizons. She is thrilled to be directing Dragons Love Tacos.
Amy lives in the woods with her kind husband and two wonderful dogs. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, kayaking, traveling, eating, and knitting.
Scott Colin Woolnough
A journeyman of the stage for nearly 43 years, Scott has performed in amateur and professional productions across the US and in three foreign countries. Major theatrical credits include Huck Finn in a national tour of Tom Sawyer, and Rosencrantz in the off-Broadway production of Hamlet-Heart of my Mystery. Scott is now retired from professional theatre and has moved to Wilkes-Barre to be closer to his son. Since moving to the area, he has performed leading roles in most of the major area theaters (LTWB, Music Box, PTPA, The Grove, Act Out, Gaslight, Shawnee, The Sherman, EMTC, Diva, TACT and Misericordia University) and has served on three major theatrical boards, including NEPTA (the Northeast Pennsylvania Theatrical Alliance) where he is the current sitting president. Scott is currently employed at Misericordia University where he has worked as a disability services coordinator since 2009. He also directs shows and teaches theatre there from time to time.
Originally from Huntsville, AL, Scott has lived all over the US calling such cities as San Diego, CA, Yokosuka, Japan, and Tallahassee, FL home. He lived in NYC for 12 years before settling in NEPA in 2007. In 2003, he received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the City University of New York’s Hunter College, with designs on becoming a lawyer. His career path took a different turn when he was one of 100 applicants selected by the NYC Teaching Fellows. He received his master’s degree in Special Education in 2005 and taught in The Bronx for 6 years from 2003-2009. In his second year of teaching, he was hired as Dean of Discipline and Security for Grace Dodge Career and Technical High School.
A proud veteran of the United States armed forces (USN 1989-1993; USNR 1999-2003) Scott served in Operation Desert Storm aboard the USS Hewitt (DD-966) and performed two tours in Bahrain and its surrounding area supporting Operation Desert Freedom.
Last year, he married Jessica Bickel from Swiftwater, PA, and currently lives in Wilkes-Barre.