Broadway actor and singer Jake Odmark workshopped with students in the Theater and Dance (TAD) department, musical ensembles, and the film department. Odmark was at KSC from Monday, Feb. 6 to Friday, Feb. 10. Graduating with a degree in music from James Madison University, Odmark has experience working in various Broadway productions such as “Kinky Boots,” “SpiderMan: Turn Off the Dark” and “Pretty Woman: The Musical.” Odmark also worked on-screen in television and film. Theater and Dance department chair Kirstin O’Brien said that Odmark has given the students a career perspective post-graduation.
“He work[ed] with the intermediate-acting class… voice and movement class… visited for film, the senior capstone class, to talk about him being an actor in the world of film and working with screenwriters or future directors and what advice he has to prepare them for that experience,” O’Brien said.
Additionally, the cast of TAD’s spring musical “Fun Home” had the opportunity to work with Odmark, who himself was a part of the original workshop for the Broadway show. “Before anything goes to Broadway, you have to workshop it,” O’Brien said. “… Is it gonna sell tickets? Is it gonna survive? Is it gonna make money? Jake was cast in the original workshop…so he came to rehearsal and was watching and observing and people were able to ask him questions.”
O’Brien said she has been taking advantage of his expertise as well. “I’m utilizing him as well, so after rehearsal, we’ll have a chat and say, ‘What did you see? What didn’t you see? Did this remind you of something?’”
Odmark also worked with KSC’s American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) and Keene State Vocal Jazz Ensemble.
“He [attended] Vocal Jazz Ensemble and ACDA, a group of 20 music students are going to perform for him,” O’Brien said. “He’ll be able to listen, give some critique, do a little Q&A, and then he actually is going to teach them a vocal arrangement that he arranged.”
As similar to the students, Odmark has enjoyed his time working with the students at KSC, according to O’Brien. “He’s loving it, that it’s been a nice little queue out of the city and that he’s found such a charm with Keene and he’s just thoroughly felt relieved working with our students,” O’Brien said. “I’m so happy that he got to work with each of our little sections of the Redfern.”
O’Brien said that the energy Odmark puts behind his work made him the perfect role model for students looking to get in the business.
“He exudes a presence that can’t be taught but it can be absorbed by people and his drive, his work ethic…he moved to New York and he didn’t get his first Broadway gig until two years later…not giving up the work ethic it takes to work in this business,” O’Brien said. “Our students needed to hear that.”
Nicole Dumont can be contacted at
ndumont@kscequinox.com
