'Aiyana and I met at the Federation of Scottish Theatre Emporium of 2013. I immediately recognized somebody as hungry as myself, and I counted myself very fortunate when she joined forces with me to mount a first tour of The Idiot at the Wall. Boy, that was a challenge. We met in the February and we were mounting a tour for the September - 17 dates over 3 weeks. I was determined not to delay, but that wasn't much time to get it all up! We were so green, and unknown to people, that sometimes it involved just sitting with a huge map of Scotland, asking questions like 'Does anyone know anyone near Lochinver Village Hall, and can we get there from such and such a place in under 4 hours?!' Happily - we did, and we could. That tour was a huge success because we packed out theatres and village halls up and down the country, including some places which hadn't had professional theatre there in 20 odd years. We moved people with a story very much their own. On Berneray my Dad went around practically hustling people into a van headed for the hall - no one stayed home! We played one especially magical show for all 14 residents of the island of Canna. That tour was something special, and it was all down to Aiyana's guts and good sense, really.
It's a funny thing, trying to explain what a producer does. Pretty much everything that gets the show from your head / the page to a stage - they do. It's a lot, a lot, a lot of work! A good producer will find creative ways to reach audiences with the work - striving for a reach that matches your ambitions. A great producer will do all this with poise, tenacity, openness, and a big heart. All these things I am very lucky to have found in Aiyana, and I am so excited to see all of our work over the past year and half on SpectreTown come to fruition this August.'
So here's a bit more about Aiyana....
Aiyana D'Arcangelo, Producer - Project Management and Touring
Aiyana is a freelance producer and project manager living in Fife and working in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Born and raised in southern Oregon, she has been slowly moving east over the years. After completing her undergraduate studies in Theatre at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, Aiyana lived in New York for 6 years where she did production work for New York University (Tisch School of the Arts and Villa La Pietra), Robert Wilson (Watermill Center for the Arts), Lincoln Center Festival, ‘Inside the Actors Studio’ (Pace University), Cynthia Hopkins (‘Must Don't Whip 'Um’ - National Tour), and St. Ann's Warehouse. Since moving to Scotland in 2011, Aiyana has completed a post-graduate degree in Managing in the Creative Industries at the University of St Andrews and worked with the Dundee Rep, Derby Playhouse, Graeae, Edinburgh International Science Festival, Poorboy Theatre, David Leddy / Fire Exit, and Scottish Dance Theatre.
I remember Aiyana when she was but a wee freshman in my "Self Expression & the Arts" seminar at USC. It's been a pleasure to watch her grow into the talented and professional theater producer she is -- in Scotland!!
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