"Beautiful!"
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Leese Walker
- Female
- Weehawken, NJ
- United States
Leese Walker's Page
Latest Activity
Leese Walker commented on the blog post 'Faces of New York: A Minute With..... Musician Siobhan O'Malley'Leese Walker replied to the discussion 'Bali's national traffic ensemble' in the group Ensemble Theatre"I know exactly what you mean....it always amazed me how you would be driving down the wrong side of the road and see a car coming directly at you and then magically somehow, all traffic just kind of bends just enough so that everyone makes it…"
Leese Walker commented on the group 'Ensemble Theatre'"Hi Joan! Your name came up tonight at the Irondale Benefit. I was talking to Steve Cross who mentioned that the first time he met you was at the NET gathering at Winnebago. It was then that he learned about Dell Arte. HOpe you are well and loving…"
Leese Walker joined a group
Ensemble Theatre
Are you part of an ensemble theatre anywhere in the world? in some countries, you are called 'grupo' or by other names that mean THEATRE artists who work TOGETHER over TIME ...
Leese Walker commented on Leese Walker's photo
Emiko Susilo (left) and Slamet Gundono (playing) - "Ghatotkacha" project
"it was beuatiful....the whole experience was beautiful. A magical time!"
Fito Oddone commented on Leese Walker's photoEmiko Susilo (left) and Slamet Gundono (playing) - "Ghatotkacha" project
"I love to know how it sound"
Leese Walker left a comment for 'Joan Schirle'"Xantolo sounds so rich. What a special meeting. Hope to have a chance to sit with you in person and hear how that went. Hope things are well. Peace, Leese"
Profile Information
- My Role
- Theatre Artist, Producer, Artist
- My Discipline(s)
- Theater
- My Specialties
- Improvisation, Interdisciplinary Performance and Shakespeare
- About Me And My Work
- Leese Walker is the Artistic/Producing Director of the Strike Anywhere Performance Ensemble in NYC. She founded the theatre in 1997 to promote empathy, free-thinking and greater social awareness through provocative theatre and educational outreach. The permanent ensemble is comprised of world-class musicians, dancers, visual artists and actors. Performers collaborate through an ensemble-based, improvisational process to create politically-charged, original works that address socially relevant issues. In 2004, Leese represented Strike Anywhere in Bali, Indonesia. Leese was awarded the prestigious APPEX (Asia Pacific Performer Exchange) fellowship which allowed her to join 16 artists from around the world in a 6 week artistic exchange in Ubud, Bali. Leese is a Dartmouth grad who began her professional career as a member of the Irondale Ensemble, NYC. She was profoundly influenced by the improvisational methods and ensemble-based approach to developing material at Irondale. While with Irondale, she played Antigone in Antigone, Didi in Waiting For Godot, and St. Juste in Danton’s Death. Leese has worked with master puppeteer Ralph Lee as a member of the Mettawee Theater Company and she performed extensively with the Judith Shakespeare Company playing roles as varied as Richard II, Cressida, Dromio of Ephesus and Helena. She has danced, acted and played Lakota flute with the Wendy Osserman Dance Company (Dance Theater Workshop, UBU Rep, Union Square Park), and has been soundpainting as a core improvising actor with the Walter Thompson Orchestra since 1997, (Lincoln Center, NYC Jazz Vision Festival, HERE, Bard College, Knitting Factory). As a co-director/performer, Leese has collaborated with Ariel Dance Theatre in Austin, Texas, Oregon’s Sojourn Theatre and on numerous projects with NACL Theatre including 10 Brecht Poems, her critically-acclaimed 2 woman show which has toured to over 40 venues nationally and has been featured on numerous radio and television programs. In addition to all of her performance and directing work, Leese freelances as a teaching-artist with over half a dozen NYC theatre companies including: the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Roundabout Theatre Company. She offers master classes in ensemble technique, Soundpainting, inter-disciplinary improvisation and teaching-artist training at theatres and universities nationwide. Leese also served on the board of directors for the Network of Ensemble Theatres from 2003-2008.
- Artistic Experiences I Have Had On My Travels
- Was part of the APPEX program in Bali, Indonesia in 2004 with 15 other artists for 6 weeks where we traded ideas, techniques and stories. It was idyllic thanks to Judy Mitoma who designed the fabulous program.
- Art Forms And Cultures I Would Like To Engage With
- One of my dream artistic experiences is to return to a project that I began in Bali with Emiko Susilo(singer/dancer - Bali), Anurupa Roy (puppeteer-India), Slamet Gundono (puppeteer - Java) and Gretchen Van Lente (puppeteer - USA). It used the story of Ghatotkacha from the Mahābhārata and wove it together with a story taken from my mother's life in a Japanese Internment camp during WWII in Indonesia. We had been invited to develop the work in an artist retreat in the Himalayas in India but were unable to raise the funds to produce the project. I hope to return to it someday in the not too distant future.
- My Creative Influences & Favorite Artists
- Anna Teresa De Keersmaeker, Theatre de Complicite, Keith Jarrett, John Coltrane, Peter Brook, Salvador Dali, Big Mama Thornton, Pete Seeger, Fiona Shaw, John Kani & Winston Ntshona, Ian McKellen, Led Zeppelin.
- My Artistic Affiliations
- Network of Ensemble Theaters, The Brecht Forum, Irondale Center.
- My Web link
- http://www.strikeanywhere.info
Leese Walker's Images
Comment Wall (8 comments)
- At 5:40pm on December 5, 2010,
Hratch Israelian said… - Great Images
- At 8:01pm on July 21, 2009,
Robert E. Bowen III said… - Hey Leese ! .. yeah that workshop was so awesome ! .. missed seeing Dandelion's shows though ...
Let's talk sometime soon about SA and what i can do ..
xoxo ~ boB
- At 1:48pm on May 13, 2009,
liza gregory bass said… - are you coming west anytime soon ? i need a big ole infusion!!! as for my desire to be in a piece of yours, you know that comes out of my committment to get outside my comfort zone this year. there is nothing more terrifying to me than the idea of being on stage...
- At 3:53pm on April 15, 2009, Elisa De Gregorio said…
- Hi Leese,
Thanks for the invite. Hope you are well.
Elisa
- At 1:45pm on April 13, 2009,
lirak celaj said… - Hi Leese. It is very nice to see you here too. I think it is very good place to meet :). Yes it was fan chating with you. Lets keep in touch and ofcourse we will talk about jazz festival and maybe you will be one of guests in our theatre.
- At 10:00am on April 9, 2009,
Steve said…
- Hey Leese - Great to see you too! I can't make the 27th, maybe NetNite and julia and jen will be in CA (I am going to be at the TCG conf.) - xo steve
- At 9:53am on April 9, 2009,
Randi Berry said… - also looking forward to the 27th!! it always feels great to get into a room together and hash things out. i have been able to rest a bit and get myself organized which has been nice.
speaking of NICE - who did the masks and puppets in a bunch of your photos? they are incredible
- At 8:57pm on March 9, 2009,
Nico Daswani said… - The one and only LAW-- or is it Didi? Everyone except Slamet from the Ghatotkacha project are here on Create Culture too! Thanks for posting such a beatiful profile and such wonderful photos. Hope you let others know more about soundpaiting and of course post your workshops. Are you over on this side anytime soon?
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