Peyton McCandless
Teaching Artist at Northwest Children's Theater and School- Claim this Profile
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English -
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Basic American Sign Language -
Topline Score
Bio
Credentials
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Certified Global Somatics Practitioner
Green River Dance for Global Somatics
Experience
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Northwest Children's Theater & School
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United States
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Performing Arts
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1 - 100 Employee
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Teaching Artist
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Sep 2015 - Present
I teach a class for one hour each week at the schools to which I'm assigned. At one of my schools this fall, we created a show together called "The Search for Treasure." I asked the students what they wanted to do, and they led the way in deciding to create a show. I drew on my experience writing and devising theater to guide them through a collaborative process. We brainstormed story ideas and the students voted on which one to use as we moved forward. We then broke the story into five simple scenes, and a team of two students wrote each scene. I typed everything up and added what was needed to make all the pieces fit together. We then practiced the play, and I helped the students to give truth to their performances, speak loud enough to be heard, and use their bodies and voices to create their characters. This was an incredibly rewarding experience, because the final product was a creation that belonged in an authentic way to the students themselves. I had guided and polished their work, but the work was truly their own. Show less
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Performer
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Jun 2012 - Aug 2015
Transatlantic Love Affair creates new works for the theater through a collaborative devising process. They use no props or sets. Everything is created by the barefoot members of the ensemble, who never leave the stage. They often base their work on familiar fairy tales or myths, but add their own unique interpretation to the story. I love working with Transatlantic Love Affair so much because their values as a company align with mine. They value the unique storytelling capacity in the body of the performer. They use no sets or props, conveying everything from trees to chairs to cars through their bodies. They also value the imagination and the audience. They know that when a skilled ensemble or performers use their artistry to create a tree-image with their bodies, the imaginations of the audience members will fill in that image in an amazing synergy. They also value heart. The stories they choose to tell tend to revolve around relationships, family, love, loss, heartbreak, hope, and memory. In my second piece with the company, I had the honor of playing a woman who loses track of her true love after he goes to fight in the Korean War. We see her in memories with him and when she is elderly and living in a retirement community. It was a joy to develop the story with the rest of the ensemble. I relished sharing all of our proposals together, discussing which way the story should go and what would be strongest, and working with the director to create all the images, transitions, and scenes. I also loved the heart of love and hope in the story we told, and the sincerity of it. It was wonderful to play a woman in her seventies, imagining what it will be like when I'm that age, and changing my body and movement to show the audience her age. Show less
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Office Assistant
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Nov 2011 - Aug 2015
By the time I left my wonderful job at MPUC to move across the country, the church had almost an entirely different staff from when I started. During each transition I was able to bridge the work of the previous person with the new ideas of the incoming person. I helped facilitate a complete redesign of the weekly bulletins, a shift from printed newsletters to e-newsletters, a change of database (ConnectionPower to ACS), and the addition of new initiatives such as Advent and Lenten weekly published writings from church members. I also stepped in when there were gaps during staff transitions. For one year I took on some tasks in the realm of Children's Education, including directing the Christmas Pageant. While the church looked for a new Office Administrator, I took on extra hours to cover as many of the tasks associated with that position as possible. Each week I gathered information about church news, events, and offerings from staff, members, committees, and the broader community. I communicated this information to via announcements, newsletters, Facebook, and e-blasts. I really enjoy writing, editing, and formatting, and it was a joy to put these skills to use keeping a community I loved up-to-date. It was an honor to help facilitate so many transitions. I love learning new things, creating positive change, and giving support when and where I can. It was also deeply satisfying to sit at my desk each week and complete all my tasks with a feeling of deep contentment, because I loved and appreciated everyone with whom and for whom I was working so much. I was so grateful to the many people who thanked me for my presence on the church staff. Most often these kind people described my overall positive energy and attitude as having the greatest effect on them. Sometimes it's the simplest things that matter most. Show less
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The Chameleon Theatre Circle
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Performing Arts
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Performer
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Feb 2015 - Apr 2015
I performed in Chameleon's production of Jesus Christ Superstar. It was so fun to work on a musical that I've loved for a long time. The innovative approach of this production meant that I was able to draw on my experience with chorus work and creative devising. The whole ensemble stayed onstage for the entire show, playing several characters and working with multiple layers of representation. By the end of the process I felt a deep connection to my castmates and a rewarding sense of ownership over my own performance. Show less
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Theatre Pro Rata
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Non-profit Organizations
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Performer, Music Director
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Sep 2013 - Jun 2014
I had the pleasure of working on two Pro Rata productions during one season. First I got to play multiple roles in their production of The Good Woman of Setzuan. My favorite was the clueless and terrible God 1, whose chronic avoidance of responsibility and childish temper tantrums made her very fun to play. It was also wonderful and challenging to find physical and vocal ways to make each character I played distinct and interesting. It's so rewarding to work with Theatre Pro Rata, because they dive into each show with such keen intelligence, yet also with a playful spirit of fun. I was enormously proud of my involvement in this production, thrilled to work with all of my castmates, and full of admiration and respect for director Carin Bratlie and the rest of the creative team. The second show I did with them was their traveling outdoor park production of Twelfth Night. Not only did I get to play two small roles in this one, but I was also Music Director. I composed the melodies for each song Shakespeare wrote into the play, taught each song, and facilitated the arrangement with all the singers and musicians. It was a delightful challenge unlike anything I had had the chance to do before, and I was very pleased with the results of our collaborations. Show less
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Theatre Unbound
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United States
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Performing Arts
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1 - 100 Employee
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Performer
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Feb 2014 - Apr 2014
Director Isabel Nelson brought her unique style of story-building and storytelling to Theatre Unbound to create a beautiful piece about the true story of a group of nuns in Italy in the 17th century who burned down their convent. It was a wonderful devising experience and I was so honored to be a part of the ensemble that created the piece with Isabel and playwright Anne Bertram. I got to play a young nun whose adventurous, curious spirit helped fan the flames of rebellion. Director Isabel Nelson brought her unique style of story-building and storytelling to Theatre Unbound to create a beautiful piece about the true story of a group of nuns in Italy in the 17th century who burned down their convent. It was a wonderful devising experience and I was so honored to be a part of the ensemble that created the piece with Isabel and playwright Anne Bertram. I got to play a young nun whose adventurous, curious spirit helped fan the flames of rebellion.
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Performer
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Feb 2013 - Apr 2013
It was so fun to take part in Freshwater's production of The Gifted Program. I played a very archetypal teenage role: the girl who sticks to the side of the meanest, most popular, and most powerful girl in school, protected in her shadow. It was so fun to take part in Freshwater's production of The Gifted Program. I played a very archetypal teenage role: the girl who sticks to the side of the meanest, most popular, and most powerful girl in school, protected in her shadow.
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Education
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2013 - 2015
Green River Dance for Global Somatics
Global Somatics Practitioner Certification, Global Somatics -
2007 - 2011
Macalester College
Bachelor's degree, Theatre and Music
Community
