Capturing the Ephemeral

Exhibit booklet

A note from the curator:

The Fine Arts Instructional Center (FAIC) opened five years ago and was a dream come true. The determination and achievements of faculty from the Art and Art History, Music, and Theatre programs and President Elsa Núñez and her team resulted in this monumental event. Eastern’s Arts programs moved from the edge of the campus to its very heart. Besides the beautiful views of the campus and beyond, the opportunities to provide exceptional arts education to our students increased exponentially. What will the next steps be? This exhibition “Capturing The Ephemeral” is our attempt to share our vision of where the Theatre Program might go by reflecting on where we have been.

I envisioned this exhibition as a celebration of the Theatre Programs’ five years in the FAIC to be shared with students, faculty, alumni, our audiences, and countless others who have been involved with the program in numerous ways. However, the scope became much more ambitious: mainly, offering opportunities to understand our program better; experience behind-the-scenes work by magnifying the “invisible”; and introduce the faculty’s work and how our research and scholarly interests intersect with our shows and contribute to our teaching. Above all, this exhibit highlights the collaborative nature of our work— with each other and our amazingly talented students. It became clear that the best way to do this would be to reveal the unique, imaginative and sometimes intensely personal processes that lead to performance.

I would like to acknowledge the many people for their contributions to the establishment and development of the program. Through her tireless devotion to the students and belief that the performing arts are compulsory for a liberal arts institution, Ellen Faith Brodie led the program for many years until her retirement in 2019. Bob Ritz, who made stage magic with his scenic designs was Ellen’s early collaborator and set the standard for the quality of our shows in the Harry Hope Theatre. F. Chase Rozelle was not only instrumental in realizing the technical demands of our shows, but also the many challenges we faced in the new building. Guest artists and professionals like Dave Regan, Nora Cole, and James Simmons, Gerry Winters, Bob McGrath, Nichola Johnson, James Holland and others too numerous to mention, returned again and again to contribute to productions, teach classes, and mentor students. Finally, our shows would not be possible without the contributions of our staff: Technical Director Jason Wadecki, Media Specialist Travis Houldcroft, Lighting Specialist Tim Golebiewski, Costume Construction Supervisor Rebecca Welles, and Arts Administrator Sheila RuJoub.

I would also like to acknowledge those who contributed to this exhibition, especially University Photographer Tom Hurlbut, who documented the ephemeral through the lens of his camera and continued the work of Nick Lacy, whose photos are also represented here. Tom spends countless hours shooting dress rehearsals of our shows. I also thank my husband, Dr. Matvey Sokolovsky, who always finds the time to be with me in the theatre and take pictures, some of which are also on view in the exhibition. My thanks go to Julia Wintner, Director of the Art Gallery, who, with the strong support from the Board of Directors, enthusiastically scheduled the exhibition. Finally, I want to thank my colleagues in the Theatre program for contributing work and time, and the students past and present for the work represented here. I hope you enjoy what you see.

Anya Sokolovskaya
Associate Professor of Theatre /Costume Design
Spring 2022