Turbulent Architect at Art Not Shame

Julie Lyn Barber grew up in a small town near Ottawa and almost studied kinesiology at the University of Guelph. Instead, she attended the University of Western Ontario, during which time she had the opportunity to perform in productions directed by 2 influential Canadian stage directors (both former artistic directors of London’s Grand Theatre.) She played “Rapunzel” in Into the Woods, directed by Dennis Garnhum, and “Johanna” in Sweeney Todd, directed by Bernard Hopkins. Her experience with these wonderful productions led her to pursue a career in the performing arts. She moved to Vancouver, where she played “Maria” in West Side Story at Theatre Under The Stars then to the U.S. where she has continued her career as an actor, singer, director, choreographer, music director and playwright. Some of the theatres with whom she has had the privilege of working include: Portland Center Stage (Gypsy), triangle productions! (Falsettos, Blood Brothers, Nunsense Ah Men!, Angry Housewives), Actors Theatre of Indiana (Whodunit…The Musical, Titanic), Round Barn Theatre (Baker’s Wife, The Music Man, Shenandoah, Joseph…Dreamcoat, Plain and Fancy, Guys and Dolls, All Shook Up, Crazy For You), and the Richmond Shakespeare Festival (Hamlet, As You Like It). Dr. Julie Lyn Barber has also taught performing arts in higher education for 25 years and is currently Head of Musical Theatre at Purdue University Fort Wayne, in Indiana, U.S.A.

Theatre artist, scholar, and educator Dr. Michelle Dvoskin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Theatre & Dance at Western Kentucky University. Primarily a director and intimacy choreographer, she also has experience as a new works dramaturg, performer, and playwright. Some directing highlights include Stop Kiss, Crimes of the Heart, Into the Woods, These Shining Lives, Hair, and The Revolutionists. As an intimacy choreographer, she’s worked on productions including John Proctor is the Villain, Eurydice, Something Rotten, Little Women: The Broadway Musical, and various student created pieces featured in WKU’s biennial New Works Festival (for which she’s also the Artistic Director). Her love of new work has led her to develop and teach courses in solo performance, adaptation, and dramatic writing. Dvoskin is also a published scholar whose primary research interests lie at the intersections of musical theatre, queer theory and performance, and feminist theatre and performance.

Theatre artist, scholar, and educator Dr. Michelle Dvoskin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Theatre & Dance at Western Kentucky University. Primarily a director and intimacy choreographer, she also has experience as a new works dramaturg, performer, and playwright. Some directing highlights include Stop Kiss, Crimes of the Heart, Into the Woods, These Shining Lives, Hair, and The Revolutionists. As an intimacy choreographer, she’s worked on productions including John Proctor is the Villain, Eurydice, Something Rotten, Little Women: The Broadway Musical, and various student created pieces featured in WKU’s biennial New Works Festival (for which she’s also the Artistic Director). Her love of new work has led her to develop and teach courses in solo performance, adaptation, and dramatic writing. Dvoskin is also a published scholar whose primary research interests lie at the intersections of musical theatre, queer theory and performance, and feminist theatre and performance.

Originally from Carleton Place, Ontario, Canada, Dr. Julie Lyn Barber is a versatile actor, singer, director, choreographer, music director, and educator, based in Indiana, USA. Her original musicals have been produced in the U.S. and Canada including fringe festivals in Montreal, Vancouver, and Indianapolis. Some of the theatres with whom she has had the privilege of working include: Portland Center Stage (Gypsy), triangle productions! (Falsettos, Blood Brothers, Nunsense Ah Men!, Angry Housewives), Actors Theatre of Indiana (Whodunit…The Musical, Titanic), Round Barn Theatre (Baker’s Wife, The Music Man, Shenandoah, Joseph…Dreamcoat, Plain and Fancy), Richmond Shakespeare Festival (Hamlet, As You Like It), and Theatre Under the Stars, Vancouver (West Side Story). She is Assistant Professor of Acting and Musical Theatre and Head of Musical Theatre at Purdue University Fort Wayne. She regularly teaches master classes in Spolin improvisation, musical theatre techniques, and singing, and has given presentations on the importance of providing failure-training opportunities for students, the integration of singing and dancing techniques, training transgender singers, and challenging gender bias in entertainment. www.julielynbarber.net , Insta @julielynbarber, FB @julielynonstage