Theatre students go tropical

For three performers from UB's theatre department, being chosen to act and teach in Costa Rica later this month is an honor few students even have the chance to share.

From only eight U.S. universities that are invited to take part at an annual cultural event in Central America, Thomas DeTrinis, Bethany Moore and Harold Lewter have been selected to participate.

The North American Cultural Center of Costa Rica, or Centro Cultural Costarricense-Norteamericano in Spanish, hosts the event each year to celebrate "Promising Artists of the 21st Century."

"They're fitting for the title, 'Promising Artists of the 21st Century,' " said Maria Horne, theatre professor and program director for the International Artistic and Cultural Exchange Program. "It is a pleasure to work with them because I know what they're capable of. I have no doubt that the three of them will make UB very proud. We will be ecstatic to say, 'Hey, those are our alumni!' "

DeTrinis, a senior musical theater major, said the group was given three guidelines in preparation for the event in Costa Rica.

"One, that the show has a New York theme. Two, that it be no more than one hour long. And three, it has to encompass all that musical theater encompasses: acting, singing, dancing, technical design and media design," he said.

Along with the three students attending the event, Horne stressed that there are over 25 people - faculty, staff and students, working their best to make this happen.

"I want to showcase, I want to let people know that the IACE is not only a program that contributes to international exchanges but we also are a creative research lab," she said.

Not only are the students performing their piece "Coming, Staying, Leaving," but they will also be teaching master classes on movement, voice for the actor and musical theater dance. The group is excited to be involved in the international affair, which will be taking place Feb. 20 to 27.

"I feel like a superstar," said Lewter, a senior theater major. "It's truly an honor to be able to represent not only the school, but also the state of New York and the country, really."

"It certainly makes you become more aware because you have to cater to an international audience," DeTrinis said. "What they don't understand in English they will understand in your body language."

According to Lewter, the group has been researching material since October and gathering information on music, dance, writing and acting that would fit their New York-themed piece. All songs included in the performance originated from students at UB, who were invited to submit monologues, scenes and poetry.

"We thought it would be a great idea to not only bring ourselves to this piece, but to also showcase the other promising artists from the University at Buffalo who were not able to be present in Costa Rica," Lewter said. "We received submissions from eight student playwrights and are pleased to say that we have included all of the pieces in this show."

"I've realized how much goes into putting on a show and how hard it is to build a show from the ground up," said Moore, a junior for musical theater. "This show has stretched and tested our abilities mentally, physically and emotionally as creative researches and as performers."

The students will be provided with round-trip plane tickets, housing, meals, tours, and press releases by North America Cultural Center.

Colleges solicited to perform in the past include the Boston Conservatory, Florida State University, Julliard, New York University and the University of California at San Diego, according to Horne.

"The University of California at San Diego is among the top five programs for theatre in the nation," Horne said. "So for UB to be among the top ranked universities in the area of performing arts in the United States is quite an honor, and I think well deserved because the quality of the work we produce here (and) the quality of the research we conduct here is quite wonderful."