Teaching Experience

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Introduction to Theatre                                                            University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                               2003, 2014, 2017-present

An introductory course designed to give students a basic understanding of the roles of the many artists who collaborate to bring a work to the stage. In addition to in-class lectures, students use their textbook and on-line sources to learn the principles of theatre, and apply this knowledge to plays that are read and discussed for class. Taught in both face-to-face and in entirely online formats.

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Beginning Acting                                                                     University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                              2014, 2017-present

An introductory level course involving individual exercises and group activities that emphasize voice, movement and relaxation through improvisations, monologue performances and presentation of two-person scenes. Includes play analysis and character analysis as students apply what they learn in class to plays that are considered for presentation.

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Playwriting.                                                                             University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2013-present

An upper-division writing intensive course cross-listed under the English and Performing Arts Departments.  Guides students through the process of writing a series of dramatic works for the stage, culminating in a one-act play that is given a staged reading.

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Acting Troupe                                                                         University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2018-present

Rehearsal and performance of works from Western literature and ethnic non-Western sources, including period drama, avant- garde theatre, and the contemporary drama of Hawai’i and the Pacific. Emphasis on ensemble performance. Refinement of individual skill and group interactions acquired in acting classes. Public performance required.

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Directing                                                                                 University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2018-present

Basic practical course in how to direct a play. Students direct one-act plays or scenes from full length plays for public performance.

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Acting Styles                                                                         University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                 2021

Advanced study for actors who have completed Beginning Acting. Concentrated scene work, script analysis, character development, and style study. Comparative exercises in acting for the stage and camera. Performance of workshop material. Students explore performance styles including: Classical Greek, Commedia dell’arte, Shakespeare, Restoration Era, the isms, Melodrama, and Theatre for Young Audiences.

                                        

Modern/Contemporary Drama                                               University of Hawai'i at Hilo                                2020

A study of works that have established or refined major traditions in modern and contemporary theatre, with some reading in critical theory. Course is conducted entirely online.

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Acting II                                                                                  University of Hawai'i at Hilo                                2020

Continuing and building upon the techniques learned in Acting I. Focus is on the ensemble, as students work intensively with upper-division directing students on scenes and one-act plays to be shared with the public.
 

Drama in Education                                                                 University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                              2019

Using a combination of “book learning” and “hands-on learning,” students explore child/youth development stages, classroom management, the multi-ethnic cultures of Hawaiʻi, curriculum standards, and how to use drama as an educational tool. They practice leading workshops in our classroom, then demonstrate their knowledge by delivering workshops for preschool through 12th grade students at local schools.

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Lyric Theatre + Lab                                                                  University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                              2019

An overview of the history, theory, and practice of American Musical Theatre. Textbook readings and viewings of selected musicals provide the basis for classroom discussions on theme and historical context. A lab component provides experience in singing techniques and a variety of musical theatre dance forms, culminating in a final performance of a song and dance from a musical play.

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Literature of Hawaiʻi                                                               University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2015-2018

An overview of selected written works by, for, and about the people of Hawaiʻi. Explores the social history of the islands through poems/mele, short stories, novels, and plays, examining how Hawaiʻiʻs literature reflects upon major social shifts since the late 1700s including the influx of western influences, 19th century resistance to colonization, the plantation era, the rise of cultural commodification, and the Hawaiian renaissance.

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Pacific Islands Literature                                                        University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2016-2018

An overview of selected written works by, for, and about the people of Oceania. Explores the social history of the Pacific islands through poems, short stories, novels, and plays, examining how the literature reflects upon major social issues such as colonization, migration, globalization, economic influences, as well as changes in education and political systems.

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Public Speaking                                                                     University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2003-2004, 2010-2017

An introductory course providing students with the skills and the confidence necessary to communicate effectively in a variety of situations.Includes practice with informative, demonstrative, impromptu, persuasive, and ceremonial speeches.

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Literary Genres: Short Story & Novel                                    University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2016

A writing-intensive course providing a basis for understanding the fiction we read for entertainment and escape, as well as a        foundation for critical thinking and analytical writing about literary texts. Focuses on the genres of short stories and novels.

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English 100: Basic Composition                                            University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                2015-2016

An introductory course in expository writing offering instruction and practice in writing clear, effective university-level essays and research papers. Attention paid to all stages of the writing process: generating ideas, drafting, revising, and editing.  Classes consisted of lectures, individual and group work, discussion, and peer editing/critiques.

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Hawaiʻi on Screen                                                                   University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                               2015

A critical overview of the works that represent Hawaiʻi on television and in the movies. Explores the social history of the islands focusing on cultural, racial and

gendered representations in mainstream cinema as well as the contemporary emergence of local and indigenous filmmaking.

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Performance Education                                                           University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                               2012-2014

An upper-division course cross-listed under the Communications and Performing Arts Departments.  Guides students through the process of researching, writing, rehearsing and performing presentations for the public in a Museum Theatre setting.  Both individual and collaborative projects are involved. Previously taught as COM/DRAM 398 experimental course.

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Advanced Theatre Practicum                                                 University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo                                Spring 2011

A project-based course where students gained hands-on experience interviewing, videotaping and editing focus groups and staged scenarios to create a series of educational videos for the College of Pharmacy.

 

Introduction to Motion Pictures and Television                       Chaminade University of Honolulu                     2000-2005

An introductory course designed to give students a basic understanding of the aesthetic and technical aspects of motion pictures and television, with emphasis on the film making elements.Students viewed and critiqued films, and applied what they learned to write their own short screenplay or movie analysis.Taught entirely on-line as well as through extension courses on O‘ahu military bases.

 

Speech for Business Careers                                                Hawaiʻi Community College                                 2002-2004

An introductory course providing students with the skills and the confidence necessary to communicate effectively in a variety of situations.Included frequent practice with one-to-one, small group, and one-to-many formal and informal scenarios.

 

Survey of Dramatic Literature                                              UH Hilo College of Continuing Education & Community Service             2003

An on-line course designed to give students a broad introduction to the classic works of the theatre, from Ancient Greek times to contemporary American Theatre.Students read plays and participated in on-line discussions on themes and issues present in the plays, relating those to the societies in which the plays were written as well as our own society today.

 

Acting Workshop                                                                   Chaminade University of Honolulu                              2000

An introductory course designed to give students a basic understanding of the principles of acting through improvisation, theatrical exercises, monologues and scene work.Taught throughout the year both on-campus and through extension courses on O‘ahu military bases.

 

Theatre 101                                                                          Honolulu Community College - Hickam AFB               1997-99

A survey course providing non-majors with an introduction to the elements of theatrical production, a historical overview of Western Drama and Dance, and contemporary dramatic reactions to this.Taught through extension courses on O‘ahu military base.

 

Graduate Teaching Assistant (Theatre 101)                            University of Hawai'i at Mānoa                                    1994-96

A writing-intesive survey course intended for both majors and non-majors which emphasized production and included both Asian and Western theatre as well as Dance.

 

Acting I                                                                                      University of Hawai'i at Mānoa                                    1993

An introductory course intended for both majors and non majors, where beginning actors were familiarized with performance through improvisatory exercises, and which culminated in actors performing a memorized monologue of their choice.

 

Graduate Teaching Fellow (Acting I)                                        University of Oregon                                                    1992-93

The first in a series of performance classes in a two-year program introducing students to the art of acting.  Open to all

university students.  Utilized improvisatory exercises to familiarize actors with performance techniques, and included performances of memorized monologues and scenes.

 

Mask Acting Workshop                                                            University of Oregon                                                      1992

Taught an introduction to freeing the body and voice for effective performance with a mask.

 

Pedagogued "Acting (Period) Styles" Class                            University of Oregon                                                      1992

An introduction to the acting demands made when representing different historical periods or different cultural environments on-stage.  Included movement, voice, and work with dialects.

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