098 ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION PRESENTS FREE SEMINAR AT MTSU

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Oct. 2, 2006
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919


(MURFREESBORO)—Amy Dolan, a Broadway actress who also serves as the national education and outreach coordinator for the Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), will present an interactive session titled “Equity’s Student Outreach Seminar” at 4:30 p.m. Oct. 24 in the Cason Kennedy Nursing Building’s Room 123.
The AEA, commonly referred to as Equity, is the labor union that represents more than 45,000 actors and stage managers in the United States, and Dolan’s free seminar is designed to help pre-professional actors and stage managers consider their career options with regard to Equity, remarked Jeff Gibson, assistant professor, speech and theatre.
Regarding the seminar, Gibson said, “It is designed to inform future members about the advantages of union membership, as well as to encourage them to carefully weigh the decision of becoming a member.”
In the past year, Dolan has visited universities from New York University to the University of California in San Diego. Moreover, during her MTSU stopover, “Students will experience a dynamic presentation and candid, honest descriptions of Amy’s experiences in the entertainment industry,” observed Gibson, who describes the Oct. 24 event as “a great opportunity for any student considering a career in the performing arts.”
In addition to working as an administrator and educator for AEA, Dolan is a seasoned actor whose experience includes roles on Broadway and as part of national touring companies, including portraying Rizzo in “Grease,” roles in Hal Prince's “Showboat” in London and the role of Anytime Annie in the Broadway revival of “42nd Street,” among many other productions in professional theaters across the country and in Europe.
Dolan became an AEA member at the age 7, playing the role of Gretel in the Jones Beach production of “The Sound of Music,” and then joined the association’s staff in 2005. Her MTSU visit is sponsored in part by the university’s Distinguished Lecture Fund.
According to its Web site (http://www.actorsequity.org/), Equity seeks to advance, promote and foster the art of live theater as an essential component of our society. Equity representatives negotiate wages and working conditions and provide a wide variety of benefits, including health and pension plans, for members. Actors' Equity Association is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with International Federation of Actors, an international organization of performing arts unions.

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ATTENTION, MEDIA—For editorial needs, including interview requests with performers or faculty, photo requests or to obtain review tickets, please contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at MTSU at 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu.