APEX Hour at SUU

From Center Stage to Scenic Design: Guest Jo Winiarski discusses her transition from an undergraduate acting student at NYU to finding her true calling as a professional set designer and television art director. The Architecture of Repertory Theater: A deep dive into the physical mechanics of managing three distinct productions within the exact same theatrical footprint, featuring the logistical triumph of the She Loves Me turntable. The Core of Pure Creativity: A warm reflection on the internal drive to build and create, the external inspirations that spark artistic innovation, and why a simple black ink pen and a white notebook remain the ultimate creative tools. Functionality and Safety First: Why serving the structural needs of the script and ensuring physical safety on stage forms the unpretentious baseline for successful visual storytelling. Connect with SUU APEX & the Uta Shakespeare Festival: Discover upcoming speaker events at suu.edu/apex Book your tickets to the USF 65th anniversary season at bard.org ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

A Journey Built on Shared Discovery: Guest Alan Muraoka traces his roots from a Southern California latchkey kid seeking structural camaraderie to winning the historic UCLA Carol Burnett musical theater scholarship. The Invisible Engine of Musical Comedy: An inside look at balancing complex choreography and rapid character pacing under the tight engineering constraints of repertory festival tracking. Balancing Slapstick with Sincerity: How refining performance notes to track the vulnerability and heartache of historical characters like Nigel Bottom creates a deeper, more impactful audience experience. The Modern Mandate for Authentic Representation: Reflections on building spaces of profound emotional safety and introducing generation-defining milestones of intersectional visibility. Connect with SUU APEX & the Uta Shakespeare Festival: Discover upcoming speaker events at suu.edu/apex Book your tickets to the USF 65th anniversary season at bard.org ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Blending Art and Acting: Guest Bill Black shares how his background as a childhood actor, visual painter, and early sewist blended perfectly to build a lifelong career as a theatrical storyteller. The Fundamentals of Design: A breakdown of the five core skill sets required of a senior costume designer, emphasizing script comprehension, human psychology, design fundamentals, and collaboration. From Sketchbook to Flat Pattern: A look at the advanced dimensional mathematics required by drapers and hands-on production crews to translate simple lead pencil mock-ups into complex historical garments. The Invisible Support of Wardrobe: Why a highly successful costume shouldn't distract the audience, but rather quietly support the actor's vulnerability and internal journey through structural adaptation. Connect with SUU & The Festival: This episode is part of a collaboration between SUU Eccles APEX and the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Discover upcoming speaker events at suu.edu/apex Book your tickets to the 65th anniversary season at bard.org ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Learning Theater as a Trade: Guest Geoffrey Kent details his unconventional path into classical theater, acquiring his performance skills through corporate murder mysteries, renaissance faires, and high-flying stunt shows rather than a traditional classroom setting. The Architecture of Farce: An inside look at directing See How They Run and why structural choices—like compressing multiple acts together—are vital to keeping an audience completely hooked before an intermission. Safety vs. Excitement in Fight Direction: A deep dive into how a risk assessor and Society of American Fight Directors certified teacher crafts dangerous-looking combat that remains perfectly safe for actors to perform eight shows a week. The Instant Feedback of Comedy: A breakdown of how comedic timing requires an acute awareness of the audience, demanding that performers actively manage pacing without letting the room take over the production. Connect with SUU & The Festival: This episode is part of a special partnership between SUU Eccles APEX and the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Discover upcoming speaker events at suu.edu/apex Book your tickets to the 65th anniversary season at bard.org  ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

A Lifelong Theater Education: Guest Beth Lopes shares her journey growing up as a self-described "Shakespeare festival baby" and how seeing diverse, non-Western classics early on built her foundational worldview of storytelling. The Crucible of Hamlet: An inside look into directing the 65th anniversary production of Hamlet at the Engelstad Theater, focusing on authentic human choices rather than strict character archetypes. Ensemble Storytelling over Solos: Why building a deeply invested family dynamic for the Polonii and highlighting the multi-dimensional relationships of Gertrude and Ophelia makes tragedy more impactful. The Syncing Heartbeats of Live Performance: A reflection on the vital, irreplaceable nature of live theater in an increasingly digital world. Connect with SUU & The Festival: This series is produced in collaboration with SUU Eccles APEX series. Discover upcoming speaker events at suu.edu/apex Book your tickets to the 65th anniversary season at bard.org  ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Ben Homan, the properties director at the Utah Shakespeare Festival, joined us on the podcast. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Bill Heyborne, the dean of SUU's College of STEM, joined us on the podcast. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Michael Howarth event details ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

LaToya Ruby Frazier event details ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Sarah Eagle Heart event details  ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Matthew Delmont at Eccles APEX ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

In this special episode of the APEX Radio Hour, Director of APEX Ryan Paul and producer Lauren Bird welcome Irish author, historian, and founder of the 1916 Rebellion Walking Tour, Lorcan Collins, following his presentation at SUU. Drawing on his nearly 30 years of research and his bestselling books, Collins offers a deep dive into the revolutionary period of Irish history.https://events.suu.edu/event/lorcan-collins-apex-fall-2025  ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Joan & Loki Mullholland spoke at the Eccles APEX series at Southern Utah University on October 9, 2025. They then joined the APEX team for this conversation. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Michael Schmidt, the dean for SUU's College of Performing & Visual Arts, joins us in this bonus episode of the APEX podcast. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Dr. Elaine Vickers, SUU Chemistry professor and acclaimed author, joins the A.P.E.X. podcast team on this bonus episode. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

John DiAntonio from the Utah Shakespeare Festival joins the A.P.E.X. podcast team for a bonus episode. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Sibusiso Vilane is a climber and adventurer who spoke at SUU in the A.P.E.X. speaker series on February 6, 2025. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Carrie Snow joins us in this bonus episode of the APEX Radio Hour. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Dr. Crystal Koenig, SUU Assistant Professor, Anthropology *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

https://events.suu.edu/event/apex-rik-scarce ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

https://events.suu.edu/event/apex-drew-robinson  ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Dr Kevin Stein, Professor of Communication *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

https://events.suu.edu/event/apex-paisley-rekdal ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

The SUU Eccles APEX presentation on October 10 featured Journalist and Writer Lauren Markham. Her presentation was titled “The Myth of the Border”. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

The Grace A. Tanner Lecture on October 3, 2024, featured Poet Camille Dungy. Her presentation was called, “Soil, African Diaspora, and American Land”. She has taught many creative writing and poetry workshops and courses, including as a Professor of English and Director of the Creative Writing Program at Colorado State University. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Playwright Lauren Gunderson spoke as part of the Eccles A.P.E.X. series and joins us on the podcast. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Dr. Jeffrey Engel will spoke at SUU's Eccles A.P.E.X. series entitled "FDR and the Four Freedoms". *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Special episode with Shauna Mendini, SUU's Dean for the College of Performing and Visual Arts. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Susan Clayton is Whitmore-Williams Professor of Psychology and chair of Environmental Studies at the College of Wooster. Her PhD, in social psychology, is from Yale University. She has authored or edited five books, including the Oxford Handbook of Environmental and Conservation Psychology (2012), Conservation Psychology (with Gene Myers; 2nd edition in press), and Identity and the Natural Environment (2003, with Susan Opotow). She co-authored the American Psychological Association (APA) reports on “Psychology and Global Climate Change” and “Psychological Impacts of Climate Change.” Clayton is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and of the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, of which she is also president-elect. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Kevin holds a doctorate from The Ohio State University in Education, Storytelling, and Story Making and has taught storytelling at the university and secondary level. For seven years at Ohio Dominican University, he taught “Applied Storytelling” as well as other courses in the areas of children and young adult literature and folk and fairy-tales. He served as OSU’s first “Academic Storyteller in Residence” with the Multicultural Center. He developed programs using narrative to address gender, equity, diversity, and social justice. He now serves as a national/international story/storytelling consultant and is working full time as an Assistant Professor of Literacy and Education at Ohio University Lancaster. Since 2009, he has served as a Co-Director for the Columbus Area Writing Project with the OSU branch of the National Writing Project. He has told stories in over forty states, England, Scotland, Singapore, Canada, Japan and in Qatar. Kevin shares stories with a highly energetic, animated, and interactive style and is considered by many storytelling professionals as one of the most influential and dynamic storytellers and teachers today. His award-winning story work has been commissioned by The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, American Library Association, National Storytelling Network, Newsweek, and the Qatar Foundation International. He is considered one of the "nation's primary advocates for youth storytelling"! According to the National Storytelling Network, he is “the first full time high school storytelling teacher in the country”. His work has been chronicled in the book he co- authored with Judy Sima, Raising Voices: creating youth storytelling groups and troupes. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Zonnie Gorman is the daughter of the late Dr. Carl N. Gorman and his wife Mary. She is also the youngest sister to the legendary and renowned Navajo artist, the late R.C. Gorman. Zonnie has appeared in several documentaries including the History Channel documentary, In Search of History - Navajo Code Talkers; the MGM double DVD release of Windtalkers (historical documentary section); and the PBS documentary, True Whispers. Zonnie earned her M.A. in History from The University of New Mexico and her thesis, The Navajo Code Talkers of World War II: The First Twenty-Nine, included interviews with several of the First Twenty-nine Navajo Code Talkers. She is now working on her Ph.D. Zonnie is a past board member with the following organizations: Navajo Studies Conference and Eve’s Fund for Native American Health Initiatives. In addition, Zonnie is an alum of Up With People, Leadership McKinley, and Leadership New Mexico. Lastly, Zonnie is a current member of the Native American and Indigenous Studies Association (NAISA), American Historical Association (AHA), the Organization of American Historians (OAH), the Western History Association (WHA), the Society for Military History (SMH), and the Navajo Studies Conference Inc. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Meghan is a Co-Founder/CEO of Stathletes, a hockey data and analytics company. Stathletes provides industry leading hockey insights in over 22 leagues worldwide and has scaled to the highest professional levels across North America and Europe. In another industry role, Meghan is a Data Scientist in Residence at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. She was featured on the insert cover of the Hockey News’ Top 100 of power and Influence, listed at 95 overall and in the Top 10 for Hockey Business Executives. Meghan and Stathletes have also been awarded Top Young Entrepreneur of the Year for 2018/2019 by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce and Top 40 under 40 in hockey for the Athletic in 2019 & 2020. She is on the board of advisors of US Integrity in the sports betting space. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Dr. Lisa Diamond speaks as part of SUU Eccles APEX on 02/15/2024 *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

After achieving his dream of being a video gamer artist and reaching the top at Blizzard Entertainment, Josh Singh was faced with the reality of what it takes to make it: time and constantly hitting the mark. After leaving and helping make League of Legends the game it is today, Josh finds himself climbing the ladder, both up and down, eventually leading back up to the top of the industry as the Art Director for Marvel Entertainment.Josh attended BYU-Hawaii, earning an Associate of General Studies in 2001, and studied Graphic Design at Eagle Gate Technical College in Murray, UT. Since graduating, he has worked as a senior character artist at Sony Online Entertainment, Blizzard Entertainment, and Riot Games, as well as other companies. In addition to being Art Director for Marvel Entertainment, he has also been an Art Director for Wavedash Games, where he built their art department entirely from scratch, and Brazilian gaming company Wildlife Games, which taught him a working proficiency in Portuguese. He has worked on such notable projects as Titan Quest, Project Titan (the predecessor to Overwatch), League of Legends, Legends of Runeterra, and Icons: Combat Arena, and Tennis Clash. He has been with Marvel Entertainment since September 2021, where he has been an Art Director for Marvel Snap, Marvel's Midnight Suns, and Marvel's Spider-Man 2. In 2011, he was named a Master Artist by online art community CGHub (a honor with such weight that it has a history of being used to gain a US O-1B Visa, given to those who have extraordinary artistic ability) and was an instructor of a Masterclass at the Gnomon School of Visual Effects (the “MIT of VFX”) in 2013. Josh also speaks fluent Fijian.  ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

On Friday, 10 October 1800, a ragtag group of artists and Jacobins were arrested at the Paris Opéra, accused of plotting to stab First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte in his box. In the coming weeks the suspected ringleaders of this so-called Conspiracy of Daggers were swiftly tried, convicted, and guillotined as a warning to other would-be assassins. But how guilty were they? Although the regime prosecuted its case confidently, its critics from the beginning insisted that the accused were little more than patsies goaded into the crime by an undercover agent. Drawing on a wide range of sources—including official proceedings, firsthand accounts, architectural plans, secret British intelligence reports, as well as letters and scores in the French National Library and the Paris Opéra archives—this lecture reopens the case and argues that the “conspiracy” was likely an elaborate set-up by the authorities and that the opera performed on that fateful evening played a key role in entrapping and foiling the assassins.Douglas L. Ipson is Assistant Professor of Music History and Theory at Southern Utah University. He received a Ph.D. in music history at the University of Chicago after earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from Brigham Young University. A specialist in nineteenth-century Italian opera—especially its political aspects—he has been published in the Cambridge Opera Journal and is a contributor to The Cambridge Verdi Encyclopedia (2013). He is preparing the critical edition of the opera La battaglia di Legnano for The Works of Giuseppe Verdi, published by the University of Chicago Press and Casa Ricordi. His other areas of scholarly interest include Shakespeare and opera, the sixteenth-century Italian madrigal, and opera in revolutionary and Napoleonic France. He is also a composer and arranger whose works have performed across the United States and internationally. He is a native of St. George, Utah. ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

We are joined by the creators Gerald C. Rivers (Morehouse College Alumni) and Charles Holt (Rhodes College) on the APEX Radio Hour Podcast Hour to discuss.  ***Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Sarah Ford is a Graphic Designer, Illustrator, Photographer, Storyteller, Meditation Teacher, and Spiritual Care counselor. Sarah has extensive Hollywood, entertainment agency experience as an Art Director designing posters from start to finish for film and television such as Hidden Figures, Spider-Man Homecoming, The Martian, Orange is the New Black, and American Horror Story. A multidisciplinary artist, she addresses contemporary issues with skills ranging from Movie Poster Design to Documentary Photography. Her unique passion for spiritual care and art connects with all beings and storytelling from a compassionate perspective. As a Secular Buddhist, she engages the intersections of topics such as; identity, climate crisis, inner creativity, trauma resilience, recovery, somatic healing, mentoring, and imagination. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

A civil dialogue discussion will focus on whether or not the government should regulate artificial intelligence (AI). We have four guests who feel vastly different about regulation and AI, so it promises to be a robust and civil dialogue. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

*** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Laurel Braitman is the Director of Writing and Storytelling at the Stanford School of Medicine, as well as the New York Times bestselling author of Animal Madness and her memoir What Looks Like Bravery. In the Medicine and the Muse program at Stanford, she works with medical students and professionals to reintroduce the power of storytelling to the healthcare field. Laurel holds a Ph.D. in Science, Technology, and Society from MIT, and is a Senior TED Fellow. She’s the founder of Writing Medicine, a global community of writing healthcare professionals. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Ed Latimore is a former professional heavyweight boxer, national amateur boxing champion, competitive chess player, and bestselling author. Holds a B.A. in physics from Duquesne University and is a veteran of the United States Army. Ed’s writing focuses on self-development, realizing your potential, and sobriety — all of which he approaches from personal experience, overcoming poverty and addiction. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Cordell Taylor is a prolific assemblage artist and constructive sculptor. Recognizing a need for greater representation in the local art scene, Taylor curated exhibitions for 25 artists over four years, co-founded the Back Alley Gallery, and established the Cordell Taylor Studio/Gallery and a non-profit by the name of Surface. Taylor's philanthropic efforts include fundraisers for local charities and his active involvement with the Salt Lake Gallery Association. Currently, Taylor works to secure funding for grants and fellowships to support future generations of Utah artists while advocating for national exhibitions of local talent. His recent "DECONSTRUCTION series" transforms engineered components into dynamic compositions, inviting viewers to explore their intricacies and experience their vitality, resulting in a harmonious symphonic composition. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex

Nate Schweber is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, ProPublica, Anthony Bourdain's Explore Parts Unknown, and other media. His conservation articles won awards from the Outdoor Writers Association of America in 2015 and 2018, and in 2020, a ProPublica series he contributed to won the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting. A Montana native, he lives in Brooklyn. *** Eccles APEX Website: https://www.suu.edu/apex