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T H E AT E RTHEATERTheater: The Next GenerationA look at Changing Lanes Radio Theatre and T3 Triple ThreatBy Pat LaunerFrom school kids to grad students andcollege alums, a direct experience with theatercan change and enrich lives. Herewithare a couple of cases in point.Actor Keith James and sound designer AndyMuehlhausen review a Changing Lanes script.. Photo by Gaeun Kim.Mixed MediaThe best theater engages the imagination.So what happens when you take thevisual element out of the equation? What’sleft is word pictures and soundscapes,which is to say, Theater of the Mind. Anotherterm for Radio Drama.Allan Havis, Provost of Thurgood MarshallCollege at UC San Diego, took theconcept to KSDS (88.3FM), the jazz stationthat’s deeply committed to the arts.“I had very productive conversationswith the program director, Claudia Russell,”says Havis. “We decided to give it awhirl, with six hours of radio drama overthe first year, 30 minutes per show, on thelast Sunday of every month. We called it‘Changing Lanes.’”Havis contacted current and former studentsin playwriting, acting and design,who were inspired to create something newand distinctive. The university also enthusiasticallyembraced the idea.“They loved the vitality between currentstudents and alumni, not to mention theexcellent community outreach opportunity,”Havis says.UCSD’s Theatre and Dance department,where Havis teaches playwriting, was keenon the concept, too, as was the head of theMFA program in sound design, ShahrokhYadagari.So he and Havis became the faculty advisers,and they named highly regardedlocal directors (and sometime UCSD instructors)Michael Schwartz and CynthiaStokes as co-directors.“Everyone in the department reallythinks outside the box,” Stokes says. “That’swhat makes it so great. The work thus farhas spanned a huge spectrum, all of it innovative.Some of the 10-minute piecesthat make up the half-hour show are actordriven,like the hilarious telling of aChekhov story, with one man assuming 20different characters.“Then there are the playwright-drivenprojects, like ‘Frosty,’ in which a girl falls inChanging Lanes: Actors Mark Christine andLinda Libby and co-artistic director MichaelSchwartz work with sound designer AndyMuehlhausen before recording the next sequence.Photo by Gaeun Kim..love with Frosty the Snowman — and herejects her. That one, by Kristen Knight,was hysterical, sad and smart.“The third style focuses primarily onsound design. These can be soundscapes ortone poems, dark or whimsical. The arrayof work is eclectic, but all engage the listener.”This summer, “Changing Lanes” introducessomething new: a recurring character,Babette, a cranky, idiosyncratic Frenchwoman,played by Julia Fulton, Havis’ acclaimedactor-wife. Beloved localperformer/director Antonio “TJ” Johnson,next year’s Thurgood Marshall CollegeArtist-in-Residence, will present a series ofdramatic readings by and about the influentialSupreme Court Justice the college isnamed for.“Without exception,” says Stokes, “all thepieces are edgy, sassy and imaginative. Peoplehave been thrilled and surprised by thesegments.“It’s such a gift,” Stokes says, “to see the2 6S A N D I E G O M E T R O . C O M | J U LY 2 0 1 2 | 2 7 T H A N N I V E R S A R Y 1 9 8 5 - 2 0 1 2
T H E AT E RPREVIEWnext generation of creative artists — whowill take the theater to the next level —pushing the envelope, having some fun. Andbringing unique audio entertainment toradio — not just music or witty banter, butsomething new and exhilarating.”“Changing Lanes Radio Theatre” airs onKSDS radio, 88.3FM, the last Sunday of everymonth at 6:30 p.m. The show is livestreamed, and all prior programs arearchived at www.jazz88.org/programs/Changing_Lanes_Radio_Theatre/. The Universitywebpage is changlinglanes.ucsd.eduTriple WhammyIn theater, a triple-threat is a multi-talentedperformer who can act, sing anddance with proficiency. And T3 TripleThreat is a nonprofit arts and education organizationdedicated to “enriching the livesof youth in need through the arts.”Morie Williams, founder of T3 Triple ThreatYouth Mentors.The founder of T3 Triple Threat YouthMentors is Morie Williams, a triple threathimself who’s spent the last 25 years doingwhat he loves, mostly on vacation cruises.“In 2003,” Williams says, “I had just finisheda cruise-line tour of South America.And in those poor countries, I saw so manyunfortunate kids. I knew I wanted to givesomething back to the youth of my owncommunity.”He started offering free classes in jazzdance, vocal coaching and acting for students10-18 years old, but all ages are welcome.He’s been running summer programs,but hopes to expand to after-school classesfor disadvantaged kids. His home base is theNorth Park Rec Center, but since 2006,thanks to two high-energy partners, T3 hasbeen offering classes in Montreal as well.“My biggest ambition,” says Williams, “isto raise funds to pay teachers and rent.” Allseven San Diego acting, singing or dancingcoaches are working on a volunteer basis, asis Williams.“They’re all professional-level performerswho come together to give back, and toshare their passion for the arts.”Right now, Williams is selling raffle ticketsfor a Holland American cruise for two.The winner will be announced on July 28.Amazingly, at a dollar a ticket, he’s well onhis way to his goal of earning $5000, as hedid last year.“I believe in the importance of the arts,”Williams says. “The things you gain —confidence, problem-solving, teamwork, camaraderie,social skills —all can be translatedinto any career.“Theater saved me,” the tirelessteacher/performer confesses. “I grew up inSan Jose, with a single parent. At 14, Iwanted to audition for the San Jose Children’sMusical Theatre (now the San JoseMusical Theatre), but when I found outMorie Williams and crew.A Triple Threat production.there was an audition fee, I was too embarrassedto tell them I didn’t have the money.A year later, my dad was doing better and Iwas able to audition — through a paymentplan. They saw something in me, and thatpropelled me forward, and helped me getinto a Performing Arts high school.“I can’t preach enough to parents thevalue of the arts,” says Williams. “It’s helpedme travel around the world. Of course, a lotof ‘No Thank You’s’ come with the territory.I teach the kids: Prepare Yourself, KeepStriving, Don’t Quit, and Lady Luck mayshine on you. It’s a powerful journey of selfdevelopmentand self-awareness that I loveto share.”Information on T3 Triple Threat and its ‘Pay-as-You-Wish’ classes can be obtained atT3triplethreat.com or 619-SUNARTS (786-2778).Pat Launer, long known as “the voice of theaterin San Diego,” is an Emmy Award-winningarts writer and theater critic who’swritten for newspapers, magazines, radio, TVand online. Her theater reviews can beheard weekly on KSDS-FM, and she writesregularly for Patch.com.Pat has been named aLiving Legacy by theWomen’s InternationalCenter. www.patteproductions.com2 7 T H A N N I V E R S A R Y 1 9 8 5 - 2 0 1 2 | J U LY 2 0 1 2 | S A N D I E G O M E T R O . C O M2 7
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T H E AT E RTHEATERTheater: The Next GenerationA look at Changing Lanes Radio Theatre and T3 Triple ThreatBy Pat LaunerFrom school kids to grad students andcollege alums, a direct experience with theatercan change and enrich lives. Herewithare a couple of cases in point.Actor Keith James and sound designer AndyMuehlhausen review a Changing Lanes script.. Photo by Gaeun Kim.Mixed MediaThe best theater engages the imagination.So what happens when you take thevisual element out of the equation? What’sleft is word pictures and soundscapes,which is to say, Theater of the Mind. Anotherterm for Radio Drama.Allan Havis, Provost of Thurgood MarshallCollege at UC <strong>San</strong> <strong>Diego</strong>, took theconcept to KSDS (88.3FM), the jazz stationthat’s deeply committed to the arts.“I had very productive conversationswith the program director, Claudia Russell,”says Havis. “We decided to give it awhirl, with six hours of radio drama overthe first year, 30 minutes per show, on thelast Sunday of every month. We called it‘Changing Lanes.’”Havis contacted current and former studentsin playwriting, acting and design,who were inspired to create something newand distinctive. The university also enthusiasticallyembraced the idea.“They loved the vitality between currentstudents and alumni, not to mention theexcellent community outreach opportunity,”Havis says.UCSD’s Theatre and Dance department,where Havis teaches playwriting, was keenon the concept, too, as was the head of theMFA program in sound design, ShahrokhYadagari.So he and Havis became the faculty advisers,and they named highly regardedlocal directors (and sometime UCSD instructors)Michael Schwartz and CynthiaStokes as co-directors.“Everyone in the department reallythinks outside the box,” Stokes says. “That’swhat makes it so great. The work thus farhas spanned a huge spectrum, all of it innovative.Some of the 10-minute piecesthat make up the half-hour show are actordriven,like the hilarious telling of aChekhov story, with one man assuming 20different characters.“Then there are the playwright-drivenprojects, like ‘Frosty,’ in which a girl falls inChanging Lanes: Actors Mark Christine andLinda Libby and co-artistic director MichaelSchwartz work with sound designer AndyMuehlhausen before recording the next sequence.Photo by Gaeun Kim..love with Frosty the Snowman — and herejects her. That one, by Kristen Knight,was hysterical, sad and smart.“The third style focuses primarily onsound design. These can be soundscapes ortone poems, dark or whimsical. The arrayof work is eclectic, but all engage the listener.”This summer, “Changing Lanes” introducessomething new: a recurring character,Babette, a cranky, idiosyncratic Frenchwoman,played by Julia Fulton, Havis’ acclaimedactor-wife. Beloved localperformer/director Antonio “TJ” Johnson,next year’s Thurgood Marshall CollegeArtist-in-Residence, will present a series ofdramatic readings by and about the influentialSupreme Court Justice the college isnamed for.“Without exception,” says Stokes, “all thepieces are edgy, sassy and imaginative. Peoplehave been thrilled and surprised by thesegments.“It’s such a gift,” Stokes says, “to see the2 6S A N D I E G O M E T R O . C O M | J U LY 2 0 1 2 | 2 7 T H A N N I V E R S A R Y 1 9 8 5 - 2 0 1 2
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