“Our goal is to build Goliaths — actors who are powerful,
courageous, confident and whole,” Ruscella explained.
Junior acting majors Shyllene Fecteau and Matthew Miller always
knew they wanted to become professional actors.
“I wanted to study with professors who were actively working in
the field and who had good connections,” said Fecteau. “I knew
Shenandoah had a very high employment rate for its alumni, so I
came here with the hope that I would be prepared with the right
tools and connections to build a professional career in the real
world after graduation.”
“What really attracted me to Shenandoah was the environment,
how much the professors care about our success,” said Miller.
“From the upperclassmen, to the professors, to the alumni who
come back, everybody is focused on helping you to excel.”
Meet the Faculty
Each Meisner-trained member of the acting faculty brings
his or her own unique professional mastery to the program.
Ruscella, M.F.A., served for 12 years as a professor of theatre
at the University of Central Florida, where he held a joint
appointment in the School of Film and Digital Media and
co-founded the Interactive Performance Lab, pioneering the
field of live simulation. He also served as director of the New
York Film Academy’s summer acting program at Disney/MGM
Studios. Assistant Professor of Theatre Carolyn Coulson, Ph.D.,
brings expertise in medieval drama with specialization in period
styles and movement. Associate Professor of Music Theatre and
Musical Theatre Program Coordinator Jonathan Flom, M.F.A.,
brings expertise in directing and oversees the musical theatre
program. He recently published a second book on career building
for the actor. Assistant Professor of Theatre Wade Fransen,
Ph.D., brings expertise in theatre studies with a specialization in
youth theatre and physical styles. Associate Professor of Theatre
Kirsten Trump, M.F.A, specializes in voice and speech for actors.
Adjunct Theatre Instructor Sally Anderson studied with the Royal
Shakespeare Company and specializes in Shakespeare and
interactive performance. Adjunct Professor of Theatre Jason
Kaufman is a filmmaker with extensive training in Meisner
as well as movement for the actor. Also, Charles A. Levitan
Chair in Music Theatre and Professor of Composition and
Musical Theatre Direction Thomas Albert, D.M.A., brings a
contemporary and cinematic feel to all theatrical productions.
(left) Junior acting majors Matthew Miller and Shyllene
Fecteau. Right: Fecteau and Miller perform a scene in
Tennesee Williams’ “Summer and Smoke”
directed by J.J. Ruscella.
18
“One of the beautiful things about our faculty is they understand
the rigor it takes to become a master artist,” said Ruscella. “They
also possess the heart and the ability to nurture the spirit of the
young artist. Part of that is because, in addition to being master
artists themselves, they understand the spirit of the young artist
is fragile. The embers of the fire need to be stoked. Shenandoah
Conservatory has that heart and the skill to accomplish this task.
It’s not a top-down kind of teaching, like many universities. We’re
in the mud with our students.”
Shenandoah Conservatory Dean Michael Stepniak, Ed.D., applauds
Ruscella’s vision for taking the acting program in a new direction.
“J.J.’s success in working with the faculty to retool and further
shape a truly industry-leading acting curriculum builds on his
unique background: his unusual combination of broad industry
knowledge, dedication to mastery and an absolutely infectious
passion for teaching,” said Dr. Stepniak. “He has made possible
our new and emerging relationship with Larry Silverberg, arguably
the world’s leading expert on the Meisner technique, a school
of realism championed by a wide range of master actors from
Diane Keaton to James Gandolfini. I'm proud of all that the
faculty is doing to build on the great heritage of acting training at
Shenandoah, begun by our own beloved Hal Herman. They are
raising our theatre program to a more prominent national level.”
Respected Master Teacher
While co-creating the new curriculum, Ruscella and the acting
faculty aligned their new program — as well as their textbooks
— with one of the most widely published Meisner experts in the
world: internationally renowned actor, author, director and True
Acting Institute master teacher Larry Silverberg.
Last spring, Ruscella invited Silverberg to teach a masterclass with
his sophomore acting students. Silverberg returned to campus this
August as the honored guest speaker for Shenandoah
Conservatory’s Convocation.
d
ur goal is to buil
O
“
s — actors who
Goliath
s,
erful, courageou
are pow
.”
fident and whole
con
– J.J. Ruscella