Q&A: Actor, composer tells his story
MJ Brickey
Issue date: 4/27/09 Section: Campus & Life
Q & A, getting to know Jacob Packer, music & drama major, who made SSU stage debut in The Good Doctor.
Q: Who are you, anyway?
A: My name is Jacob Packer and I am 30 years old. I'm one year away from earning BIS in Music and Drama.
Q: What brought you to Portsmouth?
A: I'm here by chance mostly. After attending Marygrove University in Detroit in 2005-2006, I joined up for their Study Abroad program and moved to London, England to study music, drama and poetry at Kingston University. After a year of studying in the UK, I came back to the states in 2007 to find that the rest of my family had moved to Russell Kentucky. I stayed with my family in 2007-2008 while trying to figure out where I wanted to finish school. After deciding that I never wanted to live in Detroit again, I started looking at different universities in the tri-state area. Shawnee University caught my eye. I was pleased to find that the tuition was very low compared to the previous schools I have attended. So I decided to finish here while I save up money to move closer to New York.
Q: Tell us about your experience in music and theatre and how your interests were first sparked in them both?
A: I have always been interested in music; especially Rock music. I started playing guitar when I was 12-years-old, and by the time I was 15-years-old, I was writing my own songs. My friends and I started a novelty punk band called "Toke Hole". We were like a bunch of vile comedians with instruments. When I was 21, I decided to start studying music at Henry Ford Community College in Dearborn, Michigan. I reluctantly started taking to other styles of music like Minimalism, Opera and Avant Garde then my writing capabilities started taking a turn for the better (at least I think so). Then I dropped out of school for a year and joined a theatrical Death Metal band. We were kind of like a Slip Knot-rip-off band, but with more theatrics. We played around Michigan, Ohio and Illinois with some of our favorite bands like "The Misfits", "Clutch", "Fear Factory", "Kittie" and others. We played out "Mushroom Head" often. At the time they were developing right along with us, but we broke up. I'm glad that "Mushroom Head" didn't, because they have come a long way since then and I love their music. After the "Hate Work" project was exhausted, I went back to school at Henry ford Community College. My therapist suggested that I start taking acting classes, so that I could express my pent up emotions. I took to it immediately, because it alleviated my depression. I picked up new ideas as my acting teacher, Jerry Dzublinski, turned me on to performance art. I started putting on productions which entailed monologues over original musical pieces, mimes, props and costumes. The project was called Mercury Retrograde Productions and with the help of some friends, I put on the performances all around Michigan.
Q: Who are you, anyway?
A: My name is Jacob Packer and I am 30 years old. I'm one year away from earning BIS in Music and Drama.
Q: What brought you to Portsmouth?
A: I'm here by chance mostly. After attending Marygrove University in Detroit in 2005-2006, I joined up for their Study Abroad program and moved to London, England to study music, drama and poetry at Kingston University. After a year of studying in the UK, I came back to the states in 2007 to find that the rest of my family had moved to Russell Kentucky. I stayed with my family in 2007-2008 while trying to figure out where I wanted to finish school. After deciding that I never wanted to live in Detroit again, I started looking at different universities in the tri-state area. Shawnee University caught my eye. I was pleased to find that the tuition was very low compared to the previous schools I have attended. So I decided to finish here while I save up money to move closer to New York.
Q: Tell us about your experience in music and theatre and how your interests were first sparked in them both?
A: I have always been interested in music; especially Rock music. I started playing guitar when I was 12-years-old, and by the time I was 15-years-old, I was writing my own songs. My friends and I started a novelty punk band called "Toke Hole". We were like a bunch of vile comedians with instruments. When I was 21, I decided to start studying music at Henry Ford Community College in Dearborn, Michigan. I reluctantly started taking to other styles of music like Minimalism, Opera and Avant Garde then my writing capabilities started taking a turn for the better (at least I think so). Then I dropped out of school for a year and joined a theatrical Death Metal band. We were kind of like a Slip Knot-rip-off band, but with more theatrics. We played around Michigan, Ohio and Illinois with some of our favorite bands like "The Misfits", "Clutch", "Fear Factory", "Kittie" and others. We played out "Mushroom Head" often. At the time they were developing right along with us, but we broke up. I'm glad that "Mushroom Head" didn't, because they have come a long way since then and I love their music. After the "Hate Work" project was exhausted, I went back to school at Henry ford Community College. My therapist suggested that I start taking acting classes, so that I could express my pent up emotions. I took to it immediately, because it alleviated my depression. I picked up new ideas as my acting teacher, Jerry Dzublinski, turned me on to performance art. I started putting on productions which entailed monologues over original musical pieces, mimes, props and costumes. The project was called Mercury Retrograde Productions and with the help of some friends, I put on the performances all around Michigan.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Kitkatney
kit
posted 4/27/09 @ 8:18 PM EST
Very nicely done. Learned a lot about a good friend...very nicely executed
MJ
posted 4/30/09 @ 12:52 PM EST
Thanks, Kit!
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