Meeker arts council begins series of theater workshops

MEEKER I Professor Timothy Pinnow, chairman of the Department of Theater Arts at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, presented the first of a series of performing arts outreach workshops for drama students at Meeker High School on Saturday.
Introduction to acting and development of characters was the featured topic. It began with students practicing the walk and body language of various characters, followed by development of character voice expression techniques.
Each student was asked to emulate a character they knew or had performed in previous theater productions, which resulted in quite a variety of creativity on the part of the students, including Layton Bair, Sena Zellers, Annalise Amack and Savanna May. Directors included Laurie Zellers and Bob Amick.
At the close of the workshop, students asked Pinnow how he got his start in performing arts, and he related the story that his mother had volunteered him at age 9 for a part in a play to fill in for another student who became ill just the night before the performance. As it turned out, he performed the part very well, and developed a great enthusiasm for performing arts.
He acted in high school and majored in theater and dance in college, then entered a career as a professional actor and dancer. He has performed in a plethora of classic Shakespeare productions, Broadway musicals and plays before becoming a professor and theater arts department chair.
Pinnow has invited the drama club students to join in a workshop at Colorado Mesa University on March 1, when they will be participating in more acting training and will tour the Robinson Theater at the Moss Performing Arts Center. They will meet with cast and crew members of “Legally Blond” and then attend the performance that evening.
Meeker High School Drama Club members, International Thespian Society Troupe 1284 members and the Center Stage Youth Theatrical Group cast from the ERBM Recreation and Parks District participated in the workshop and will travel to Grand Junction on March 1.
A third performing arts outreach program later in the spring will feature a similar trip to Denver, where the students will participate in workshops and orientation sessions with cast and crew members of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts and a Buell Theatre production. Students will also visit the Denver Art Museum, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, IMAX Theater and Gates Planetarium during their trip.
The Meeker Arts and Cultural Council and the ERBM Recreation and Parks District, in cooperation with the Meeker School District, are pleased to sponsor these performing arts and cultural outreach seminars for the benefit of the youth and adults of Meeker schools and community, Amick said.