Bridging the Gap Between Internship and Career . . .
Sometimes helping others reach their artistic destination is not so much a matter of building a bridge, as it is being a bridge.
WHAT IT IS: The New York Arts Program is committed to the ongoing growth and development of our talented and promising students and alumni. The APACHE Project was established in 2007 by Dana Tarantino (Acting
Associate Director, New York Arts Program) and Elane Denny-Todd (Chair,
Theatre Dept. – Ohio Wesleyan University). It is part of a larger initiative called the APACHE Project (Arts Partnership and Collaboration in Higher Education.) The purpose of the Project is to provide a professional working experience and to expand
the network of support for our post-internship alumni, as well as for
our current students, in a working partnership with students at John Jay College of the City University of New York. We
achieve this mission by producing supervised professional work
experiences via partnerships with other arts organizations and
institutions of higher learning. The APACHE Project disseminates
quality practices in theatre by connecting artists, and scholars with
each other, and by providing opportunities to learn, exchange, and
expand their work and their perspectives. In addition to fully mounted professional productions, the Project includes satellite
events, such as multicultural programs, artist-in-residence programs,
guest speakers, symposia, workshops and professional development offer
our alumni and qualified current students exciting opportunities. Participation
in the APACHE Project is a capstone of the internship
experience. For students it is a defining episode in their educational
journey. It allows students and alumni to realize what skills they
could easily transfer into the professional world.
FOR THEATRE ARTISTS The APACHE experience immerses the student or recent alumni
into a professional rehearsal process and culminates in a full-scale
production. For some past participants, it has served as their first
New York City showcase. Participation is by approval only.
FUNDING: APACHE receives some funding from the New York Arts
Program, John
Jay College of the City University of New York and other participating venues, the initiative is also
supported by grants. Its sources of funding and in-kind support are as
diversified as its participants, and have included: Paul Newman, Great Lakes Colleges
Association, Ohio Wesleyan University, Barnes & Noble Bookstores,
and Actors Equity.
WHAT IT OFFERS: The APACHE Project provides a unique collaborative partnership of
artists, educators, and educational institutions and cultural arts
organizations. There is probably no better way to meet and spend
quality time with other artists than by working with them.
In providing a bridge between internship and the professional world, it gives its participants the opportunity to:
Collaborate in a professional setting and venue with a non-homogenous group of other committed artists
Develop Professional Relationships
Add new skills to add to their knowledge base
Gain confidence in their abilities in a non-academic setting
Apply ideas acquired on campus and from their internship experiences
Meet other artists and practice networking skills
Make a valuable resume and portfolio additions
Enhance graduate school applications
Market their experience in a professional manner
QUALIFICATIONS:
NYAP alumni or current NYAP intern with exceptional artistic ability
Experience and interest in the performing or visual arts
Ability to work independently as well as in a team environment
Ability to establish priorities and juggle numerous assignments at one time
Evidence of initiative, reliability, and commitment.
APPLICATION: NYAP theatre alumni and prospective NYAP students should contact Dana Tarantino: dana@nyartsprogram.org
Ohio Wesleyan students should contact Elane Denny-Todd: eedennyt@owu.edu
NYAP visual arts alumni and prospective NYAP students should contact Emilie Clark: emilie@nyartsprogram.org
I was no longer standing on the other side looking across,
but was on the bridge and walking over.
The 2010 APACHE Project – (for December 2010) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street ______________________________________________________________________________
The 2007 APACHE Project – West Side Story
Photo: Michael Portantiere
West Side Story was the flagship project of the first year of the NYAP Bridge PROJECT.
The production was a collaborative initiative between The New York Arts
Program, Ohio Wesleyan University, John Jay College, and educational
partnerships with several other colleges throughout the country – from
New York to the Midwest to Santa Fe. The Project brought together
student artists from differing academic and cultural backgrounds in
order to cultivate a cross-cultural, educational, and artistic
experience.
Students
came to this production with many different backgrounds and varying
levels of experience and talent, which they shared freely. Professors
from the participating colleges sent their very best students to NYC
for this semester’s project. The logistics of casting were somewhat
challenging, and Professors Elane Denny from Ohio Wesleyan University
and Kim Tritt from Wooster College, assisted in the remote casting
process.
Participating
students kept journals, did research, wrote papers, and attended the
Project’s symposium: “Street Organizations and West Side Story from the
Latino Perspective.”
Photo: Michael Portantiere
The
participating students also were afforded the valuable opportunity of
having Jamie Bernstein, the composer’s daughter, attend one of their
rehearsals. Ms. Bernstein spoke to the cast and staff about her
father’s creative process, his music, and its influences.
The
production had a professional orchestra, under the musical direction of
Nicholas G.M. Ross. Dana Tarantino directed the production, and James
Beaudry (NYAP and College of Wooster alum) choreographed. West Side
Story was staged on the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College.
The Theater is the second largest roadhouse in New York City.
Rehearsals took place at the Ripley Grier Studios. Audiences were
quite large and enthusiastic. Members of Leonard Bernstein’s family
were in attendance, and it was a memorable experience for all. The
production enjoyed extensive press coverage and many participants were
introduced to and acquired agents to help them in their careers.
Jamie Bernstein (left) and Dana Tarantino. Photo: Richard Moller
Our
goal was to create an educational and artistic enrichment initiative.
To this end, the 2007 West Side Story Bridge Project was an
extraordinary experience, and groundbreaking in its own way. The value
of the experience for all the involved participants was and is
immeasurable.
Photo: Richard Moller
305 West 29th Street, New York, NY 10001 Tel: 212-563-0255 Fax: 212-563-0256 The New York Arts Program is managed by Ohio Wesleyan University
