DENVER’S HIDDEN GEMS OF HUMANITY RACHEL GRAHAM. CREDIT: DOUG HRDLICKA KYMI PARKER. CREDIT: DOUG HRDLICKA DURING PANDEMIC, LOCAL ARTISTS OPEN UP NEW AVENUES BY DOUG HRDLICKA THIS SUMMER, although restricted in many ways, can still be the year we hoped for ourselves as we faced the end of December and looked forward to the year ahead. That resolution of new skills to learn, books to read, or healthier routines to adopt may seem like a vestige of 2019, but it is most certainly not. Amid the throes of a pandemic are people dedicated to their craft, who are opening up avenues for people to share in that craft and stay the course. Following is a look at four Denver-based artists, whose creativity is an inspiration for those of us who, despite the strains of the COVID pandemic, have a desire to learn and fulfill personal resolutions. RACHEL GRAHAM is trained in theater and has made a career as a performer, starring in shows such as Peter Pan. Her keen knowledge and predilection towards all things theater would lead to opportunities in directing and teaching. Her understanding of stage acting would give way to photographing performances in which she had no role. Before the pandemic forced theaters to close, Graham’s schedule was rigorous and booked as far out as October, but such a demanding schedule is merely business as usual for a workaholic. “I started shooting shows when I wasn’t in the cast, and I slowly became one of the number one theatrical photographers in Colorado,” said Graham, who typically booked two to four shoots each week. “On March 10, the rug was just ripped out.” The pandemic would come, and a wave of closures would 10 DENVER VOICE July 2020 follow, devastating Graham’s schedule for the foreseeable future. It was a huge blow. But those who work in theater learn resilience because “the show must go on,” and Graham refuses to let the curtain drop before the scene is through. She was taken back by the onslaught of closures, and her prosperity seemed slight, but a new calling would emerge. A parent reached out to her through Facebook asking if she had any classes on Zoom available for children. At that time Graham didn’t offer such a class, nor was one in the works. Recognizing the situation as an opportunity, not just to get back to work but to teach aspiring young actors a trade that will surely help them on their path, Graham built a syllabus. Being an actor in theater means versatility, and one skill that can be the difference between appearing on stage and watching as an audience member is the performers’ makeup. Applying stage makeup may seem like a simple task but it requires artistry and focus. Graham’s vocation and natural curiosity lend themselves to such knowledge and ability. “If you learn how to do it, and you also have the skills and the reference sheet, when theaters are open again, [the art of applying stage makeup] would be a handy skill,” said Graham. The course Graham designed is offered in two parts, the first being about how to work with stage makeup. This class begins with contouring and smoothing everything out. Next, Graham teaches shadowing and highlighting to give shape, leading to the darkening of hard lines that look real even to the people in the back row of the theater. Lastly, part one of the course addresses texturing. The combination of all these techniques allows a person to change their face to nearunrecognizable, and the final result of the first course teaches how to apply makeup to transform an actor of any age into an old person with liver spots. The second part of the course is all about the special effects of stage makeup. This is where her students learn the technique of creating scars, or blisters, or applying mermaid makeup — whatever is needed to give life to fantasy and sci-fi. The art of makeup is like many other crafts in that if it’s done with skill and diligence, then it will appear easy, but that assumption can’t be further from the truth. A big part as to why it is difficult can be partly attributed to the time required. The makeup needs to be stripped or reapplied during a performance while maintaining true-to-life contouring because even a green-faced ghoul has textured skin with highlights and shadows. “I’ve always wanted to do a makeup class,” said Graham, “and they [theaters] give me all these duck noises of excuses, and I’m like ‘ok, well I think it will be cool, I think the kids will like it.’” It took a pandemic for Graham to be able to teach stage makeup, and she suffered a great loss, but future performers and makeup artists will be better prepared with her guidance. So, whether for theater or the zombie walk, makeup is a skill that will most certainly serve whoever learns it. If classes on stage makeup aren’t your forte then perhaps dance is. And not many move with grace and poise like Kymi Parker. KYMI PARKER began dancing when she was eight-years-old, focusing on classical. Her training began in Albuquerque, N.M., and she would grow in technical skill but found it hard for the genre to accept all body types, and she was often discouraged from pursuing it as a career. “My entire life I’ve said I want to grow up and be a professional dancer,” said Parker, “Many teachers and my parents were like ‘You’re good but…,’ and it was always because dance was a mean-ass world. There is very little body positivity in classical dance.” But when she was in her early 20s, she took a trip to Denver to visit her sister and found The Clocktower, where she saw for the first time, professional dancers of all cut and creed performing
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