100 Colorado Creatives: Terry Dodd

#37: Terry Dodd

Terry Dodd has been entrenched in local theater as a director and playwright for more than thirty years, garnering dozens of awards and other kudos for his thoughtfully crafted work. These days, he shares the wealth as a teacher, too, and as a dedicated lover of a good script, he's also branching out into screenwriting.

And he's having a very good year. His direction of James O'Hagan-Murphy in the one-man show RFK at the Aurora Fox knocked 'em dead early in 2013 (and, as he mentions below, is in the works for a third revival), and on Thursday, his work with the new theater company Theatre Esprit Asia hits the stage in Julia Cho's 99 Histories, at Vintage Theatre in Aurora. We asked Dodd to tackle our 100CC questionnaire. His answers follow.

See also: 100 Colorado Creatives: donnie l. betts

If you could collaborate with anyone in history, who would it be, and why?

Aaron Copland and Alfred Hitchcock and James Dean. Because and because and......because.

Who in the world is interesting to you right now, and why?

Anyone who is in the vanguard of the arts, truly. The creators behind Breaking Bad or Downton Abbey or Alexander Payne, who keeps the film business rolling in the Midwest with his new film, Nebraska. 

What's one art trend you want to see die this year?

Twerking and tweeting. I'm a storyteller. Shortening stories is not the answer.

What's your day job?

Teaching at CCD (playwriting and screenwriting) and Lighthouse Writers (playwriting). 

A mystery patron offers you unlimited funds for life. What will you do with it?

I would breathe, and then I would form a philanthropic organization that would sustain and maintain artists and art organizations that needed it.

Continue reading for more from Terry Dodd. What's the one thing Denver (or Colorado) could do to help the arts?

I think that more is not necessarily better in the arts. Sometimes there is a lot going on when you're vying for the same audience. 

Who is your favorite Colorado Creative?

There are so many people whose good work goes under the radar I think.  Sharon Feder and Dwight Davidson as visual artists. I greatly admire Brian Freeland and the LIDA Project, and Buntport Theatre. 

What's on your agenda for the rest of 2013 and beyond?

I am directing 99 Histories by Julia Cho for Theatre Esprit Asia (a new company worth watching) that opens at the end of October at Vintage in their small theater. I hope to remount RFK, the wildly successful one-man play that I directed, sometime in the winter/spring with James O'Hagan-Murphy as Robert Kennedy. Will be directing A Steady Rain at the Edge Theatre next summer. And there may something with a play of mine in the fall of 2014 that I can't talk about too much at the moment, sorry!

Who do you think will get noticed in Denver's theater community this year?

I think the Edge Theatre with Rick Yaconis and Patty Yaconis is right on the edge (no pun meant) of becoming much bigger with a very successful season already on board with just finishing Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo and a great performance by Paul Page as the Tiger. I think some of the new plays at the Denver Center will shine much bigger, too.

Throughout the year, we'll be shining the spotlight on 100 superstars from Denver's rich creative community. Stay tuned to Show and Tell for more, or visit the 100 Colorado Creatives archive to catch up.

Do you have a suggestion for a future profile? Feel free to leave your picks in the comments.

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