Rich Brown to present Turning Points lecture Oct. 19 on art of 'devising'

Rich Brown, associate professor of Theatre and Dance at Western Washington University, will present “The Transformative Power of Devising” at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday, Oct.19 in Communications Facility 115.

The event is free, open to the public and is part of WWU’s Turning Points Faculty Speaker Series, which celebrates and shares the wealth of knowledge and talent on Western’s campus.

Brown will present results from his ongoing research into the art of devising new works for the stage with undergraduate students. Devised works are those which are collaboratively created by an ensemble of artists rather than by a single playwright, and then performed by those same generative artists. This lecture-discussion will explore the challenges and benefits of embracing collective intelligence when creating new theatrical material, explain the differences between writing text and writing performance, and investigate different approaches to devising.

In his lecture, Brown will discuss the making of “cheat,” “US,” and “The American Family” – three devised works created at WWU over the past four years. “The American Family” premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland last July; “US” is currently being held for possible selection for this winter’s regional American College Theatre Festival in Fort Collins, Colo.; and Professor Brown and Professor Craig Dunn of CBE are currently co-authoring a textbook chapter for “Business Ethics and Aesthetics” titled “Cheat: Exporting Business Ethics to Theatre Arts.”

For more information about the Turning Points faculty speaker series, call (360) 650-7545.

Sponsored by the Western Washington University Foundation, the Turning Points Faculty Speaker Series celebrates the wealth of knowledge and talent on Western’s campus. The series features one-hour talks by faculty members who are experts in their fields. No tickets are required. No permit is required to park after 4:30 p.m. in the gravel lots 12A and the C lots south of the Communications Facility, near Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies. Parking meters require payment all hours.