Hi Everybody!

Here is a summary of what will be at the Fairmount Center's open house this Saturday, January 5 from 1 - 4pm...

- unveiling a newly renovated 200 seat theatre venue at Mayfield Village Performing Arts Center

- information about our plans for a new professional theatre, a year round youth theatre program and the '08 program for Fairmount Performing Arts Camp.

- free performances by some of Cleveland's finest actors and singers

- '08 Fairmount Performing Arts Camp students who register today will receive 5% off .

- free "sample" classes by four of Cleveland's best acting instructors

- free refreshments

We are trying to get a general sense of how many people might be coming to the Fairmount Center Open House this Saturday so we can figure out what quantity of refreshments to buy.

You can definitely make a last minute decision on whether you are coming. We don't have to know in advance.

But if you do know for sure that you are going to stop by, or even that you may stop by, let us know by replying to this email with the details - who you are and how many people you will be bringing.

Below you will find detailed up-to-date information about the performers, classes and schedule for the day.

We hope to see you there!

Warm Regards,

Fred Sternfeld & Tom Fulton

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WHO: Fairmount Center for the Arts

Tom Fulton, Executive Artistic Director

Fred Sternfeld, Director of Theatre & Fairmount Performing Arts Camp

WHAT: AN OPEN HOUSE

This new theatre venue has been renovated with lighting and sound systems, new theatre seats, an extendable stage and a box office. We are very excited about it and want to share with you our vision for the future. There will be musical and dramatic selections by some of Cleveland's finest. You will learn all about our plans for the future, which include a robust teen theatre program with productions; a professional theatrical season; writing programs; and dance programs!

WHEN: Saturday, January 5, 2008 from 1:00pm – 4:00pm

WHERE: Mayfield Village Performing Arts Center, 6622 Wilson Mills Rd., Mayfield Village, Ohio. Near the corner of Wilson Mills and Som Center Rd. just off of I-271. http://www.fairmountcenter.org/mayfield/map.htm

SCHEDULE:

1:00pm

- Tour our facilities and have refreshments. Tom Fulton, Fred Sternfeld and Carol Pribble will speak about our upcoming plans for a professional theatre, youth and teen theatre, classes and Fairmount Performing Arts Camp

2:00 – 3:00pm AND 3:00 – 4:00pm

choose between several options…

- Participate in 2 separate FREE one hour classes with Brian Zoldessy, Scott Spence, Jeff Haffner and/or Dana Hart. You can take a different class each hour.

- Q and A session about Fairmount Performing Arts Camp with Carol Pribble.

- Q and A session about all Fairmount Center programming with Tom Fulton.

- FREE performances of musical and dramatic selections ...

Maggie Floriano, George Roth, Alexis Floyd, Natalie Green, Caroline Hatch, Sandra Emerick, Chris McCarrell, Lara Mielcarek, Dani Apple, Paul Floriano, Louie Rosenbaum, Kristin Netzband, Amy Christina Hall, Brian Zoldessy, Lindsey Sandham, Aubrey Kristen Fisher, Tom Fulton, Codie Higer & Mitchell B. Fields.

Accompaniment by David Williams.

classes and performers are subject to change...

DISCOUNTS:

JANUARY 5 ONLY IN PERSON AT THE OPEN HOUSE!

CLASS DESCRIPTIONS for OPEN HOUSE - F R E E

Physical Comedy - THE RULE OF 3 - Jeff Haffner, instructor

The Rule of 3: Do you think you are funny? Do you want to be funnier? Do you want us to stop asking you these deep and difficult questions? Then come and learn about comedy’s biggest rule with Jeff Haffner, as we explore principles of physical humor in created scenes.

The Moment Before – Brian Zoldessy, instructor

The participants will learn one of the most important aspects of Audition Technique - The Moment Before.

When a performer begins a scene or a monologue without the moment before, it usually take a while for the piece to get going. By the time the performer gets to the middle and finally feels warmed up, its too late - they have lost the attention of auditors. The Moment Before will propel the actor into a specific action and give the monologue the "kick-start" it needs to really be effective and immediately grab the attention of the auditors. You can bring a prepared monologue with you OR Brian will give you one to read.

Auditioning Do's and Don't's - Scott Spence, instructor

Join Scott Spence, artistic director of Beck Center for the Arts, for an enlightening discussion about what directors ARE looking for and ARE NOT looking for when you audition.

prepping a Shakespeare Monologue - Dana Hart, instructor

"No Fear" - Shakespeare. Learn the techniques of unlocking the character and power in Shakespeare's short dramatic monologues. These 20 line selections are perfect as audition pieces or for competition and will introduce you to some of the most moving moments in all of dramatic literature. No preparation needed.

classes are subject to change ...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

STAFF BIOGRAPHIES

Thomas Q. Fulton, Jr.
Executive Artistic Director, The Fairmount Center

Co-Artistic Director of Fairmount Center’s new professional theatre
A producer, director, actor, and teacher for the past 30 years, Tom has served as Producing Director for three professional regional theatre companies: Center Repertory Theatre, The Phoenix Theatre Ensemble, and the Cleveland Theatre Company. He spent five years as a company member of The Cleveland Play House and served as Artistic Director for Cain Park Summer Theater.

Elsewhere Mr. Fulton has performed and directed at many regional theatres in the area including Playhouse Square, The Cleveland Orchestra, Blossom Music Festival, the Cleveland Actor's Theatre Company, The Halle Theatre, and Actor's Summit Theatre. Tom grew up in Geauga County and brings a special love of Northeast Ohio to his position at The Fairmount Center. To learn more about Mr. Fulton, see his website: www.tomfulton.com

Fred Sternfeld
Director, School of Theatre

Co-Artistic Director of Fairmount Center’s new professional theatre
Director, Fairmount Performing Arts Camp
Fred recently directed Beck Center’s award-winning productions of Stephen Sondheim’s Saturday Night and Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. He is producer of the Mandel Jewish Community Center’s theatre productions, most recently directing A Shayna Maidel, Jolson and Company, Modern Orthodox, From Door to Door, South Pacific and Ragtime, the musical (Cleveland Theatre Collective ‘Critic’s Choice Awards’ – Best Local Musical & Best Director; Cleveland Scene ‘Best of Cleveland 2005’ – Best Musical). He previously served as Artistic Director at Lakewood Little Theatre - Beck Center for the Arts and the Seattle & Dallas Jewish Community Centers and is a free lance director in the Cleveland area, garnering numerous honors and awards. Selected credits: Oliver!, Fiddler on the Roof & The Sound of Music at Cain Park; The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife & The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek at Dobama Theatre; Man of La Mancha, Rags, The Twilight of the Golds, The Immigrant, Crossing Delancey, Beau Jest & Conversations With My Father at the JCC Halle Theatre; Bad Seed at Ensemble Theatre; Amadeus at Willoughby Fine Arts; Table Settings, Isn’t It Romantic, The Diary of Anne Frank & Broadway Bound at Center Stage in Seattle; Of Mice and Men, On the Town, La Cage aux Folles, Brighton Beach Memoirs, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Foxfire, Noises Off, Peter Pan, Children of a Lesser God & The Importance of Being Earnest at Beck Center, Proof at GLTG and All My Sons & Enter Laughing at the Dallas JCC. Fred's next project will be This Is How It Goes for The Bang and the Clatter Theatre Company, opening in March 2008. For more information about Fred you can visit his website at www.fredsternfeld.com.

Brian Zoldessy is Assistant Professor and Director of the Theatre Arts Department at Cuyahoga Community College, Eastern Campus. In 1995 he was the first non-tenured faculty member to receive CCC's prestigious Ralph M. Besse Award for Teaching Excellence and was honored with The Outstanding Achievement Award for Teaching by the International Conference for Teaching and Leadership, Austin, Texas.

As a professional actor, Brian has worked in New York, L.A., Chicago, and Cleveland (Modern Orthodox, ART, Crossing Delancey, Awake and Sing, Talley's Folly, Down The Road, Forty Deuce, Seedfolks, To Know Him and The Boys Next Door) and has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, in television and films, working with, Kevin Bacon, Matthew Broderick, Fisher Stevens, John Travolta, Woody Allen, Eli Wallach and the late, great, Jack Gilford. Additionally, Brian performed stand-up comedy at many of New York's famous comedy clubs, including, The Improvisation, Catch A Rising Star, and Dangerfield's (Rodney Dangerfield's Nightclub), where he also served as comedy writer/manager for Dangerfield's back-up comedian, Adam Keefe.

A winner of the Kennedy Center's Irene Ryan Acting and Directing Award, he has directed and produced over 50 productions. Favorites include, Six Degrees of Separation, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Glengarry Glen Ross, Agnes of God, The Male and Female Odd Couple, Othello, The Taming of the Shrew, Jeffrey at Beck Center, The Sunshine Boys at the JCC Halle Theatre, Hamlet ESP at the Cleveland Stage Company, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Comedy of Errors, and Coriolanus, all at The Cleveland Shakespeare Festival. He also directed the highly acclaimed Lord of the Flies at the Beck Center for the Arts. Other awards and honors include The Exemplary Professor Award from the National Conference of the American Association for Higher Education, Meritorious Performance and Professional Excellence Award from California State University, The Carleton and Winthrop Palmer Award for Outstanding Accomplishment in Theatre Arts from Long Island University, Best Actor, Supporting Actor, and Best Character Actor from Post Theatre Company, New York. Brian is also a theatre faculty member for the Special Studies Program , at the Chautauqua Institution, the Beck Center Conservatory program and the Fairmount Performing Arts Camp.

In 2005, Brian was nominated for a "Critic's Choice Award" and "Member's Choice Award" for Best Actor for To Know Him at the JCC Halle Theatre, for his work as actor, director and theatre educator by the Cleveland Theatre Collective. He was also recently awarded The Cuyahoga Community College Dean's Award of Excellence for his outstanding contributions to the college and the theatre arts department. Ohio Magazine and Crain's Cleveland Business recently selected Brian as one of Ohio's top educators. His inclusion appears in the December '05 Excellence In Education issue (Ohio Magazine) and the January '06 Crain's Higher Education issue. In addition to his classroom activities, Brian also privately coaches many Cleveland performers as well as preparing many Senior High School students for their college theatre arts auditions.

Carol Pribble’s career as a teacher and director of young actors spans thirty years. Presently she is the drama teacher/ arts chairman/ play director at University School where she has worked for the past twenty-one years. Carol has directed over eighty plays in the Cleveland area including Shaw High School, Twinsburg High School, University School, and Chagrin Valley Little Theatre.

Some of the shows she has directed at Chagrin Valley Little Theater are Over the Tavern, Laughter on the 23rd Floor, Art, Biloxi Blues and Twilight of the Golds. Over the Tavern recently won numerous OCTA awards, including best production, best direction and best ensemble.

Carol was the supervisor of the Professional Training Intensive in the inaugural summer of FPAC in 2004 and the Associate Director of FPAC in 2005. In addition, she has spent numerous summers working in camp programs teaching tennis and drama. Her skill and enthusiasm for theatre arts and summer camps combine to generate an equal enthusiasm in her students.

Camp Director Fred Sternfeld is very enthusiastic about Carol Pribble's involvment as Associate Director of the Camp: "When Carol first expressed interest in getting involved with the camp before our first season, I was extremely excited. I have seen her high school productions -- her students are well-trained and the productions are high quality -- some of the best high school productions I have ever seen. She has dedicated her career to the education of young people - just the kind of person I was looking for to help me run the professional training at FPAC. CP is an outstanding director and teacher and has mentored many of her interested students to professional careers. Many of her students have gone on to professional careers on Broadway (Wicked, Footloose, Jesus Christ Superstar, Les Miz, Our Town, The Elephant Man, How I Learned to Drive and The Complete Wks. of Shksp), national touring companies, television, repertory theatre and film. We are extremely fortunate to have her outstanding leadership."

Dana Hart apprenticed to the Cleveland PlayHouse and has been a member of Actors Equity for over 25 years. He has performed from Alaska to Zimbabwe and in 48 of the 50 states including seasons with Alaska Repertory Theatre, Center Stage (Baltimore), Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, San Diego Repertory Theatre and Theatre West Virginia. He has appeared Off- Broadway in New York and with many Northeast Ohio theatres including The Beck Center, Ensemble, Actors' Summit, Dobama, Clague Playhouse, Great Lakes Theatre Festival and the Cleveland PlayHouse.

Mr. Hart holds degrees in both Theatre Arts and English (teaching) from the University of Alaska Fairbanks . He is currently the Upper School Drama and Speech teacher at the Laurel School in Shaker Heights and also a member of the faculty at the Beck Center for the Performing Arts. While in Alaska Mr. Hart was the co-founder of Playmaking: a theatre company doing theatre and storytelling workshops in towns and villages across Alaska . He was both a teacher and the Artistic Director of the Sitka Summer Fine Arts Camp and a teacher with both the Fairbanks Summer Fine Arts Camp and the Fairmount Performing Arts Camp at Laurel School . He has been funded by four states to conduct Artist in the Schools programs in Maryland , Washington , Alaska , and Ohio and was awarded an Ohio Arts Council travel grant to present new works at the Hararre International Festival of the Arts in 2000.

Scott Spence is the artistic director at Beck Center for the Arts. He is excited to enter into this, his 18th season, at the Beck Center. In his 18 years, Scott has produced well over 200 productions, directing over 50 himself. The list of favorites grow every season, and include Urinetown--The Musical, Parade, A Man of No Importance, Sweeney Todd, Hair, The Secret Garden, Picasso at the Lapin Agile, Greater Tuna, Reefer Madness, The Fix, Zombie Prom, Tommy, and so many more. Outside of Beck's walls, Scott's directorial assignments have included Das Barbecü at Opera Cleveland, and Noises off at both Weathervane in Akron and Berea Summer Theatre. Occasionally on the other side of the footlights, Scott has appeared in Dick Deadeye (BST), Man of La Mancha (JCC), The Secret Rapture (Dobama) and closer to home at Beck in Big River, The Boys Next Door ,and Laughter on the 23rd Floor. He also recently had the privilege of joining the cast of Passion last spring in his first onstage stint in the Studio Theatre, directed by Victoria Bussert. Scott holds an MFA degree in Directing from Western Illinois University and is a trained stage fight choreographer, having studied extensively with the SAFD. He misses every minute he's not with his two favorite people---wife, Rachel and daughter, Carleigh-- who continue to rock his world on a daily basis.

Jeff Haffner holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre from Ashland University and a Master of Fine Arts in Acting from the University of Georgia, where he studied clowning and commedia dell’arte with John Ammerman (a former student of Marcel Marceau). He has taught acting, juggling, clowning, and commedia dell’arte at Ashland University, the University of Arizona, PCPA Theaterfest, and the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. Recent credits include “The President” in Dear World (Kalliope Stage), “Harold” in Bunnicula (Magical Theatre Company), “Friar Lawrence” in Romeo and Juliet (Arizona Repertory Theatre – Tucson, AZ), “The Genie” in Disney’s Aladdin (Blue Monkey Theater – Portland, OR), and “Hennesey/The Captain” in Dames at Sea (PCPA Theaterfest – Santa Maria, CA).