Aug 19th, 2007

"ARMENIAN DRAMATIC ARTS ALLIANCE : EXPLORING AN OVERLOOKED FRONTIER

By Appo Jabarian

Executive Publisher/Managing Editor,USA Armenian Life Magazine  

Back in the 1970's, Charles Aznavour, Cher (Cher Sarkissian), William Saroyan, Mike Connors (Krikor Ohanian), Roupen Mamoulian, Henry Verneuil, Carzou, Aram Khatchadourian, Mher Mkrtchyan, Parajanov, Buck Kartalian, Karen Kondazian, David Hedison and many others had already become household names in the United States, Europe and much of the world.
Later, several more strikingly talented Armenian artists emerged on the American artistic scene. 
It is no secret that Armenian talent is experiencing an explosive growth in the world of arts and especially in performing arts.
During the seventies, who could have imagined that the succeeding decades would usher in even a wider circle of Armenian professionals in the world of performing arts and communication?
Nowadays, even a cave man can notice this phenomena.
The new generation of Armenian talents includes among others: Producers Arthur Sarkissian (Rush Hour 1, 2, 3), and Robert Papazian; directors such as Alek Keshishian, Carla Garapedian, and emerging directors Ara Soudjian, Roger Kupelian; comedians like Kev Orkian, Pierre Shammassian, James Adomian, Ara Basil, and Ashod Ghazarian; musicians and singers like Izabel Bayrakdarian, Serj Tankian and his colleagues at the System Of A Down, and Mariette Soudjian; actors like Simon Apkarian, and many more playwrights, journalists, and TV and radio personalities.
There are literally hundreds of talented Armenians waiting for a break to penetrate the rare world of working professionals in the arts. Luckily, there now exists a network or organization that was founded for the specific purpose of helping talented artists achieve their dreams and goals.
These talents can now have solace in the existence of an organization that seems to have the stamina and the willpower to make a difference. These talents are no longer alone thanks to the inception and the existence of the Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA).
Recently, ADAA held its second annual gala in Los Angeles. Several celebrities, fans and artists were in attendance (See related article at ArmenianLife.com - site under construction- via the following link: http://www.armenianlife.com/Archive/ArchivePDF/English/ 08-29-2007.pdf). It was obvious that its support base has grown within the last few months. The motto of the event was: "Become a supporter of ADAA's mission of projecting the Armenian voice on a world stage."
As they say in the entertainment industry, "it's not what you know, it's who you know!" ADAA is geared to facilitate networking.
In addition, ADAA's mission aims to translate classical theatrical works from Armenian to English; to commission new translations of texts into English; to make plays and screenplays available online in English translation; to serve as a research tool for students and scholars; to support playwrights and screenwriters of Armenian descent through scholarships and writing awards; and to serve as a resource for theatre and film professionals.
The organization's vision is bold and unique. The drive and the spirit among its members seem to be contagious.
ADDA has certainly embarked on a groundbreaking journey to help the Armenians explore the overlooked frontier in the world of arts and entertainment.
But can ADAA succeed in its multifaceted mission? Can it also help Armenia become an oasis for the international movie industry? Can it really help project "the Armenian voice on the world stage?"
It can succeed. Together, we all can. Provided that we all cooperate. So what if some are competitors. They too can cooperate without betraying their competitive spirit.
The challenge is humongous, but the rewards are mightier.

July 29, 2006

\"THE ARMENIAN DRAMATIC ARTS ALLIANCE HOSTS LUNCHEON IN

HOLLYWOOD FOR SIMONE ABKARIAN

Hollywood, Ca. 

On Monday, July 24th, the newly formed Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA) hosted a luncheon in honor of French Armenian actor/director Simone Abkarian who was in town to direct Love's Labor's Lost, a Shakespeare play for the Actor's Gang Theater of Los Angeles. The play which has been receiving rave reviews, can be seen at the Ivy Substation in Culver City where it will run through September, 2006. It also features the wonderful music of composer and musician, Ara Dabandjian.
Mr. Abkarian, who has had a distinguished film career, most recently was in the Bahamas filming for the new James Bond film "Casino Royale" due out in November this year. 
The luncheon was attended by various Hollywood professionals as well as a host of ADAA advisory board members including screenwriter Jose Rivera, artist Vahe Berberian and journalist Joan Agajanian Quinn. Some new faces amongst the group were FOX TV correspondent, Anita Vogel, documentary film-maker Carla Garapedian and award wining producer and casting director, Valerie McCaffrey. During the course of the meal, board of directors members Karen Kondazian and Bianca Bagatourian led a discussion regarding the goals and growth of the Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance whose aim is to project the Armenian voice through the arts of stage and screen. Various artists also had a chance to talk about their particular needs and how ADAA could serve them best. Through many such events and discussions, this new non-profit organization hopes to establish specific channels through which to help Armenian artists prosper in the dramatic performing arts fields. More information and photos can be viewed at their website at: www.armeniandrama.org or write to adaa@techfusion.com

July 19, 2006

PRESS RELEASE

    "THE ARMENIAN DRAMATIC ARTS ALLIANCE LAUNCHES $10,000 SCREENWRITING & PLAYWRITING AWARD"

The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA) is thrilled to announce the inauguration of its annual contest for a play or screenplay based on Armenian themes: The deadline for submission for The Frances Paul Lyons/ Almas Paul Annual Screenwriting & Playwriting Award. is May 15, 2007, and the winning writer will be honored with a $10,000 award in the Fall of 2007.  The contest will be administered by the Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA), which will establish a panel of noted theatre and film professionals to select the winning script.  The contest rules have just been posted online at www.armeniandrama.org/contest.php.  Scripts must have an Armenian theme, but writers are not required to be of Armenian descent.

The Paul Family generously established The Frances Paul Lyons/Almas Paul Annual Screenwriting & Playwriting Award via their fund at the Western Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church of North America, under the auspices  of  Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, ensuring the continuance of this award for years to come.  Actress and ADAA Board Member Karen Kondazian, a member of the Paul Family, was honored to facilitate the creation of this award, particularly to recognize her dear father and mother, Varnum Paul and Lillian M.Paul. The ADAA appreciates the generosity of such donors and welcomes the benevolence of future donors.

The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance's mission is to make the Armenian voice heard on the world stage through the dramatic arts of theatre and film.  The organization accomplishes this mission by supporting playwrights and screenwriters and provides production opportunities, commissions, scholarships, research tools, networking resources and writing awards.

The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance is currently working on creating relationships with leading theaters in the United States to establish reading series so that the winning scripts - and other scripts by ADAA-affiliated playwrights -- will be seen and heard.  ADAA's headquarters are in Cambridge, MA with worldwide affiliates in Paris, Yerevan, Los Angeles, Boston, New York and other major cities.

For more information about Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance and how to contribute to it's important mission please visit our website at www.armeniandrama.org or call us at 617-871-6764. 

GARTAL , an Armenian literary reading series, and the Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA) a new organization focusing on dramatic works presented staged readings of two plays at the The Barrow Group (TBG) Theater Studios in New York City on Sunday, January 22, 2006. Both the matinee and evening performances were sold out. Audiences were thrilled by the spectacular results and plans are being made for next years joint event.

The two plays provided a contrast between 19 th Century and 20 th Century Armenian culture. The Bride, by Zabel Asadour, translated by Nishan Parlakian and directed by Cynthia Ohanian, reflected 19 th century social mores between a son and his conniving mother and sister when he brings home his innocent and bold new wife. Yet many in the audience remarked that the humorous and insightful play has stood the test of time remarkably. The finely tuned cast featured Siobhan Parisi, Dana Jacks, Denise Dmirjian and Peter Tedeschi.

The 20 th century then came alive with Armenian Voices, by Lisa Kirazian, and directed by Zoya Kachadurian, portraying Armenians in the homeland and in America during the 1990s, via a series of monologues unified by a female narrator seeking resolution in her own Armenian American identity. The diverse and talented cast featured Demetra Balodimas, Marika Daciuk, Frieda Lipp, Siobhan Parisi, Brett Maughan and Joyce Feurring.

The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance is an exciting new organization whose mission is to make the Armenian voice heard on the world stage through the dramatic arts of theatre and film. Based in Cambridge, MA, and founded in September 2005, ADAA's goal is to establish a presence for Armenian voices to be heard in popular culture. “We feel there is a commonality between the different disciplines of film and playwriting; they come to one point of convergence, that of story-telling." says ADAA’s president and playwright Bianca Bagatourian. The ADAA website is a much needed source for Armenian stories, old and new.  Events in Boston and the West Coast are also in the works. To access ADAA's extensive directory of artists, find out about their award program, and read plays and scripts in their archives, or to see what’s on in Armenian drama visit http://www.armeniandrama.org.

Since December 2002, GARTAL has been an independent forum for both established and emerging writers of Armenian descent and/or writers dealing with Armenian themes to read their poetry, fiction, nonfiction and dramatic texts to the public. Coordinated by writer Nancy Agabian, GARTAL brings together, via the dual acts of reading and listening, diverse Armenian constituencies, from the progressive to the traditional. A particular effort is made to give voice to Armenian stories that haven't been widely heard, including those of mixed race, various religions, different economic backgrounds, and gay and lesbian Armenians. Their next reading in New York is May 7, 2006. Email gartalreading@yahoo.com for more information.

Cambridge, MA – January 10, 2006 –

The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA), a newly established organization dedicated to promoting theatre and film, has made its debut with a new website highlighting theatre and film artists of Armenian heritage and their achievements both past and present.  The website, www.armeniandrama.org, represents the organization’s first step toward realizing its mission to “make the Armenian voice heard on the world stage through the dramatic arts of theatre and film.”

The ADAA organization calls itself an “Alliance,” and that’s apparent in its effort to provide an umbrella for anyone interested in the dramatic arts, from the scholar to the networking professional to the theatre-lover.  Designed in contemporary shades of blue, gold and chocolate brown, the website was established with the support of the Techfusion Corporation in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where ADAA is headquartered.  Application has been made to the I.R.S. for tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

The idea of a meeting-place on the web was initially conceived by Bianca Bagatourian, Diana Hekimian and Anne Vardanian in May this year in California.  Over the summer, Bianca Bagatourian and Joyce Van Dyke, both Boston-based playwrights, created the organization and website.  ADAA now has advisors and affiliates on both coasts and abroad.

The ADAA website focuses on the work of playwrights and screenwriters of Armenian heritage and is the first site on the web to collect and make available Armenian play-texts which have been translated into English, including works by major 19th century and 20th century Armenian playwrights. ADAA also hopes to commission more such translations each year. 

Among the major 20th century writers featured on the site are playwright William Saroyan and screenwriter and filmmaker Atom Egoyan whose biographies are available on the site as well as articles and essays about their work.

On its “Spotlight” page, the website pays tribute to the notable achievements of directors, actors and other theatre and film artists: among them are Sergei Paradjanov, creator of a world-renowned film oeuvre; the late world-class stage-and-screen director Rouben Mamoulian; and acclaimed contemporary actors Arsinée Khanjian, Simon Abkarian and Karen Kondazian.  The occasional non-Armenian is also included – most notably Richard Kalinoski, whose Armenian-themed play Beast on the Moon has been produced and highly acclaimed internationally.            

Site visitors can click on “What’s on” to get information about upcoming festivals, productions and events related to Armenian film and theatre. Visitors can also find information about the history of Armenian drama as well as a rich collection of critical and scholarly essays and articles, and interviews with actors and filmmakers from Joan Agajanian Quinn’s cable TV show, “The Joan Quinn Profiles.” Other features of the website include a directory of professionals in all aspects of theatre, film and media–from boom operators and stuntmen to costume designers, directors, and studio executives. The directory currently lists over 500 professionals of Armenian heritage, and one click takes you to a Google-search of their names.

“We couldn’t have developed the website so quickly without all the help from scholars, stage and screen actors and writers, and organizations like NAASR,” says Joyce Van Dyke, ADAA co-founder and author of the play A Girl’s War, adding: “so many people in the Armenian community have responded with such enthusiasm to this project.” 
                       

One feature of the website which reaches beyond the performing arts is the oral histories of genocide survivors.  These are selections from the oral history tapes loaned to ADAA by the Armenian Library Museum of America and digitized by Techfusion.  These oral histories have never before been publicly released. The excerpts, which are in English, can be heard on the website.

Further exploration of the website uncovers historical tidbits such as the fact that playwright Levon Shant’s Ancient Gods was so successful that royalties from the 1913 production financed his move to Europe for the next five years; thus he escaped the 1915 Armenian genocide that claimed the life of many of his colleagues. Site visitors can click on the text of Shant’s Ancient Gods, or dive into other plays including those in two recent collections: Contemporary Armenian American Drama, edited by Nishan Parlakian, and Modern Armenian Drama, edited by S. Peter Cowe and Nishan Parlakian, both members of ADAA’s Honorary Board along with Saroyan expert Dickran Kouymjian and Lifetime Obie Award winning playwright Mac Wellman.  

Says playwright Bianca Bagatourian, ADAA’s President and co-founder: “The reason for the website is to connect us to one another and to our cultural heritage so that we can tell our stories. We believe this is something long past due.  It’s time our stories were told.”

For further information on the Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA), contact the Alliance at adaa@techfusion.com or 617-871-6764. We are currently looking for volunteers and offer internship opportunities.