University Theatre is thrilled to introduce our newest addition! Allison Bergman, Assitant Director for University Theatre. Allison's official first day is April 16. We hope you all will take the time to introduce yourself and get to know her before the semester ends! We've given you a head start...
What did you want to be when you grew up?
My father was an actor and a musician, so I never questioned that I would be in the performing arts in one capacity or another. When I was a child actor in Hollywood my mother would keep a few of my best outfits, my dance shoes, and a stack of pictures and resumes in the trunk of the car in case my agent called and we had to rush to the next audition.
What do you do for fun, when you aren’t tied up in the theatre?
Until a few years ago it would have been difficult for me to answer this question. I was all art, all the time. But lately, I have started to enjoy a more balanced lifestyle including learning to ride a bicycle and sea kayaking. My first kayaking trip was a nighttime paddle up the Hudson River. I also enjoy making a mess of my kitchen while inventing health conscious recipes.
What is your favorite form of theatre? (musicals, drama, caberet, one acts, absurdist, etc…)
Great theatre in any form has two criteria for me. It tells a good story and it is exclusively theatrical. That is, it can only be told on a stage. I love theatre that effectively engages and celebrates all the elements, advantages and limitations of a live dramatic event in new and surprising ways.
What are you most looking forward to doing with University Theatre?
I am really charged up about creating programs and events that will build bridges to the theatre for students who don’t realize there is a place for them here. It could be on stage, in production, or supporting their classmates in the audience. With Thompson reopening we have an opportunity to make a big splash and spread the word that University Theatre is available to everyone.
What class, already on the books, are you most excited about?
I’m most excited to teach the challenges and complexities of Stage Directing. It fuses the artistic elements of theatre with the diplomacy of effective leadership. You have to be well versed in acting, script analysis, design, movement, and production, in order to effectively communicate your vision and work with all of the departments. It is really a study in the mastery of collaboration.
What new classes do you hope to create and teach?
I’m developing some project-based classes that explore original material; pieces created collectively or possibly solo performance. I’m also formulating ideas for an exploration of multi-media applications in live performance.
What are you most excited to explore in North Carolina?
I have yet to visit the Blue Ridge Mountains. That’s pretty high on my list. Locally, I’m eager to visit the many small theatre companies that call Raleigh home, and learn about the new theatre voices being nurtured here. Anyone with suggestions for places to see and things to do, this Yankee would love to hear about them.
What else do you want students to know about you?
I would like the students to know that I take fun very seriously. I am in the arts to work and to play. I believe they can and should be one in the same; churning out ideas, sharing them with others, tumbling them around and creating something new. The concept of play is often dismissed as we mature into adulthood, but theatre is a place where it thrives. As an artist, an educator and a human being, I hope to bring out the ‘permission to play’ in as many people as possible. An imagination is a terrible thing to waste.
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