Everything Nac

The School of Art at Stephen F. Austin State University has announced that Erik Ordaz, Master of Fine Arts graduate and previous adjunct professor at SFA, is the new exhibition coordinator for The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House in downtown Nacogdoches and a visiting lecturer in the School of Art.

Ordaz will serve as a liaison between the School of Art and the East Texas community in planning and scheduling local, national and international exhibitions that will show in Cole Art Center as well as community events that will take place in SFA’s historic downtown art center. The position was made possible through community-raised financial support with SFA covering the portion related to teaching courses.

“When word got out in the community last fall that the gallery staff would be part of the reduction-in-force, cost-saving measures at the university, the response from the community was overwhelming support for the gallery and for preserving the ability to enjoy and promote the visual arts in Nacogdoches,” said Chris Talbot, director of the School of Art. “I am so glad we have so many people here in the community that love the visual arts and are willing to give of their time and means to make sure that it is something that will continue to enrich our community. So many generous donors came forward to save the day; it really makes me proud of our community and thankful for our wonderful Friends of the Visual Arts organization that coordinated the fundraising efforts.”

In addition to teaching ceramics, Ordaz teaches professional practices to studio art students. In this course, students learn how to become professional exhibiting artists. They learn how to properly hang, ship and handle artwork, and they learn how to promote themselves and deal with professional galleries.

“Having Erik teach the course allows us to use the Cole Art Center as a learning laboratory for our students to observe professional artwork up close,” Talbot said. “Students are involved in hanging the work and preparing the exhibitions. We want the gallery program to be an integral part of preparing students to be successful artists, and Erik is helping us accomplish that goal.”

Prior to coming to SFA to pursue a master’s degree in ceramics, Ordaz, who is originally from Mexico, was associated with the second-best ranked Mexican public university, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana in Mexico City, where he traveled to pottery communities throughout Mexico to help artisans incorporate design concepts that translated into better and safer production practices. In doing that, Ordaz visited the town of Casa Grandes in Chihuahua where he met SFA ceramics Professor Piero Fenci who suggested Ordaz apply to SFA to continue his ceramics studies.

“Coming to SFA was a bit of a coincidence, but as it turned out, a great and amazing coincidence,” Ordaz said.

Coming to Nacogdoches from Mexico four years ago to complete his master’s degree, Ordaz said he looked forward to living in a different culture.

“My goal was to make the best of my time in grad school,” he said. “Little did I know then that I would find such a heartwarming community and a beautiful town and school in which to develop my work. Nacogdoches now feels like home, and to me that’s a testament to the tight community we have here. Having that feeling of being in a place that has your back makes me happy, and that’s one of the things I enjoy most about being here.”

Ordaz considers himself to be “a multifaceted artist,” and he plans to put that attribute to work while fulfilling his role as exhibition coordinator.

“I have nurtured my own connections while living in this country, plus the ones I have back home in Mexico, and I plan to put those to good use,” he said. “The Cole Art Center and the Nacogdoches community can be great recruiting tools for the School of Art, and we need to take advantage of that. I hope to bring more national and international recognition to the town and to SFA.”

His new job as exhibition coordinator takes Ordaz out of his “comfort zone,” but it also brings new and exciting challenges, he said.

“Having the ability to be a link between SFA, the School of Art, our faculty and students and the community is a privilege,” Ordaz said. “Planning for events and shows to bring to Nacogdoches is incredibly exciting. The possibility to showcase artists from my home country and even Latin America, alongside great local and national artists, as has been a tradition at Cole Art Center, can be enriching for all of us.

“Being in the position where I can send the message that everyone is welcome at the Cole, just as I have been, fills my heart with hope that art can be an epicenter and a spark that brings our community closer together,” he added.

The community will have an opportunity to meet Ordaz during the Friends of the Visual Arts Annual 12 X 12 Art Scholarship Fundraiser from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 16, at Cole Art Center, 329 E. Main St. For more information, call (936) 468-5500.

The A Cappella Choir at Stephen F. Austin State University will present “Always Keep This Close” when the choral group performs at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 15, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

The concert title speaks of connections made and friendships forged when working and singing together in a choir, according to Dr. Michael Murphy, director of choral activities at SFA and the choir’s conductor.

In the lyrics: “No notes are as connected as the souls that sing them, no soul is happier than when surrounded by their friends.” The text is written by Colleen Carhuff and the composer is Zachary J. Moore, SFA graduate student in composition from Wisconsin and member of the 2021-22 A Cappella Choir.

A composer, arranger and educator, Moore graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire with a bachelor’s degree in music education and taught at Waukesha West High School before coming to SFA. Highly sought after for commissioned music, Moore’s compositions have received performances at multiple state conventions of music education and choral conductors’ associations nationwide and in prestigious concert halls, such as Carnegie Hall in 2019.

The choir will also perform music by Francis Poulenc, Josef Rheinberger, Nadia Boulanger, Brandon Waddles, Johannes Brahms, James MacMillan and others.

The A Cappella Choir has accepted a prestigious invitation to sing for the 2022 Texas Music Educators Association conference in February.

“The TMEA conference is the largest music conference in the world and is held in San Antonio each year,” Murphy said.

Concert tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. To purchase tickets, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit finearts.sfasu.edu. For additional information, contact the SFA School of Music at (936) 468-4602.

“Different lifestyles exist, and their stories should be told … even in East Texas.”

That was the response from Houston-based actor Xzavien Hollins when asked the question: Why do you think it’s important to present plays like “Bootycandy?”

The School of Theatre at Stephen F. Austin State University will present Robert O’Hara’s play “Bootycandy” at 7:30 nightly Oct. 12 through 16 in Kennedy Auditorium on the SFA campus. The hilariously funny and provocative story presents a satiric portrait of American life told through the lens of Sutter, a gay black man on an outrageous odyssey through his childhood home, his church, dive bars, motel rooms and even nursing homes. Based on O’Hara’s own experiences, “Bootycandy” weaves together scenes, sermons, sketches and daring meta-theatrics to create a colorful portrayal of growing up gay and black.

It’s a story of which Hollins easily relates; it’s a character he’s portrayed; it’s a play that deeply moved him and motivated him to start writing his own work and begin reading and researching works not widely produced.

At the beginning of 2019, The Catastrophic Theatre in Houston produced “Bootycandy,” and Hollins, a 2010 SFA theatre alumnus, was cast as Sutter, the protagonist of the comedic coming-of-age play that “explores issues most would consider taboo,” he said. Because of Hollins’ extensive on-stage experience, and specifically for his portrayal of Sutter, School of Theatre Director Cleo House Jr. invited Hollins to share his valuable insight into the play with the SFA cast of “Bootycandy” during a recent Zoom session.

“When I first read the play, I cried, and I and cherished the idea that I would portray someone that was so close to my life,” Hollins said. “O’Hara beautifully writes a contemporary story lived by so many of us but never actually seen on stage. It made me think of how many stories we are missing out on as a community, and how many of our audiences are suffering at the hands of an unwilling administration?

“I can honestly say audiences love this play because it’s the perfect ‘dramady’ – part drama, part comedy,” he said. “It’s about everyone’s insecurities and how quickly we can forget about those insecurities to achieve a goal. My experience performing in this play caused me to begin writing my own work and reading and researching works not widely produced. We need more stories about our community. I urge theatre students to start writing, even if it’s horrible. Trust me, the world needs the content.”

Hollins has more than 25 years of theatre experience with 11 of those spent on Houston-area stages. Among his credits are “Bootycandy,” “Speeding Motorcycle,” “Toast,” “Snow White,” “Middletown” and “Fleaven,” as well as seven Tamarie Cooper (actor, playwright, director, choreographer) productions, with The Catastrophic Theatre; “Well” with Mildred’s Umbrella Theatre; “Swann” with Stingaree performance art theatre; “The Government Inspector,” “The Tempest,” “White Snake” and “The Triumph of Love” with Classical Theatre Company; “Julius Caesar,” “Aida” and “Fidelio” with Houston Grand Opera; “Radio Gold,” “A Christmas Carol,” “The Government Inspector” and “7 Keys to Slaughter Peak” with Milwaukee Repertory Theatre; “Slammed” with Milwaukee Repertory Education Department; “Hay Fever” and “The Play’s The Thing” with Ten Chimney’s Foundation; “Among The Thugs” and “Essential Self Defense” with Horse Head Theatre Company; “The Redemption Series” with The Landing Theatre; “Our House” with Black Lab Theatre; “God and Death” with Back Porch Players; and “A Soulstice Event” with Houston Arts Alliance. He is also a Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) Tommy Tune mentor to high school musical theatre students in the Houston area.

Hollins recalls his time at SFA as “jammed packed with happiness and strong life lessons that I will never forget,” he said.

“I had a very diverse group of friends,” he said. “When I think back, I’m actually surprised by the amount of diversity I encountered. Unfortunately, the programming wasn’t as inclusive as I would have liked it to be.”

Most plays presented on the SFA Mainstage Series followed the idea that a minority’s “place” in theatre is to be lumped in with servants, maids and butlers, and that a minority’s culture didn’t exist or wasn’t to be explored in depth on the Mainstage, he said. “It was as if black box theatre, which was spear-headed by students, was the only place to explore our cultural differences and nuances, which is why producing a coming-of-age play about a queer black male on the SFA Mainstage is so important. I want to thank the School of Theatre for taking steps toward a more inclusive environment.”

Since his time as a theatre student, Hollins said he has learned that people are capable of being successful in professions one might never have thought possible – an observation he shared with the current SFA “Bootycandy” cast.

“After graduating, you’ll discover the roommate who had all the leading roles might be a lawyer in 10 years, or the techie in the shadows developed himself into a leader at a major shipping company,” Hollins said. “One of my best friends graduated pre-law before completing a nursing degree for good measure. So when I get asked how SFA School of Theatre prepared me for a career in acting/theatre, I say: I learned to expect the unexpected, because you will always be looking for that next job. And that’s okay, because a majority of people are doing the same. Get comfortable being uncomfortable.”

“Bootycandy” contains mature themes and language that may be triggering for some viewers.

General ticket prices are: $15, adult; $10, senior (62+); $7.50, SFA faculty/staff; $7.50, youth; $5, student. Purchase tickets at boxoffice.sfasu.edu or call (936) 468-6407. For questions about the play, contact the School of Theatre at (936) 468-4003.

The Sylvans team, comprising 17 SFA students, competed in seven different physical

events against the University of Arkansas at Monticello and Louisiana Tech University.

The Sylvans placed first in the women’s bowsaw and Jack and Jill crosscut; second in

the single buck crosscut, axe throw and men’s bowsaw; and third in the double-buck

crosscut and underhand chop.

Additionally, Tyler Jones, Sylvans team member and current holder of the Southern

Forestry Conclave axe-throwing record, took fifth place in the professional division of the axe-throwing competition.

Ken Bragg, SFA alumnus, past Sylvans president and member of the Arkansas State

House of Representatives, officiated the competition. The event also was organized by

SFA alumnus Karl Hansen, among others.

Story by Sarah Fuller, outreach coordinator for Stephen F. Austin State University’s

Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture. Contact information: (936) 468-1185

or fullersa@sfasu.edu.