Karen Thorsen finishes up tour in Johnson City

Johnson City, TN – 9/23-9/25/12

By Karen Thorsen

Getting there was not fun. The USAir flight out of NYC had to change a tire (with all of us on board!), and a trip that began at 2PM finally got me into my Johnson City hotel room at 2:30AM. Being there, however, was great. The Carnegie Hotel is grand and full of antiques; the Eastern Tennessee State University campus is gorgeous and full of huge trees; the ETSU Video Department is endowed with a cutting edge TV studio, lighting grids, green screen, tape decks, mixing boards, rows of Final Cut editing IMacs (all funded by the TARP stimulus!); just down the road is the historic town of Jonesborough, the oldest town in Tennessee; and the backdrop for it all are the mountains, aptly called the Great Smokies, where the green ridges turn purple as they recede into the haze.

My day started with a warm welcome from ETSU Director of the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts, Anita DeAngelis, and an excursion to 18th-century Jonesborough. We spent our morning on Main Street, exploring wooden-balconied buildings and old-style emporiums, walking pathways first trod by Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett and Andrew Jackson. I learned local history – which, even before the French and Indian War, the American Revolution and the region’s first bid for statehood, goes back to the post-dinosaur Miocene Age and a nearby fossil dig (whose recently-discovered treasures have made ETSU a worldwide center of paleontology). We topped it all off with panini and pastry inside the old Jonesborough Post Office, where pressed-tin ceilings and hardwood floors have been restored to their original glory.

Fast forward to the 21st century and a Radio-TV-Film class at ETSU. Under the guidance of teacher Tammy Hayes and Program Chair Shara Lange, the students and I spent 90 minutes discussing the challenges and rewards of documentary filmmaking. Most exciting for me, I got to learn about the students’ personal projects – including a future sports commentator-in-training who confided that he had actually quoted from Shakespeare’s “Henry V” in one of his sportscasts: “We few, we happy few, we band of brothers…” Joe Papp would have loved it.

After class, we toured the department, took a quick break and then regrouped for dinner: Thai food plus film talk with Shara Lang and her husband (along with her teaching at ETSU, she’s now completing a documentary she filmed in Morocco, plus another on Bluegrass music). Then off to the impressive theater in the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts, where we had one of our largest audiences yet for JOE PAPP IN FIVE ACTS – followed by a rousing Q&A where I got to wax eloquent about Joe Papp’s conviction that the arts are for everyone, both onstage and in the audience. Then came an elegant reception, more questions and comments, and, finally, warm goodbyes from all – including Jim Martin himself, the retired chemist whose generous funding helps local arts thrive – before Anita drove me back to my room at the Carnegie. I flew out the next morning, sorry to leave: this was the last stop on my JOE PAPP tour of the South, and a great way to end it. Now I just have to figure out how to return.

PS: Everywhere I’ve been on this fall’s Southern Circuit, I’ve seen tangible proof: the next generation of film students is truly awesome; Joe Papp’s “art-is-for-everyone” mission lives on; and Southern hospitality is NOT a myth!

Joe Papp at the beautiful, historic Lucas Theatre

The Outer Banks, NC, to Savannah, GA -- 9/13/12
By Karen Thorsen

Up at 6:30AM – never quite enough sleep, the way my particular tour is scheduled – and, after a last glimpse of the beach, the long drive back to Virginia, the rental car turn-in and the Norfolk Airport.  3PM:  After two airplanes, my rental car pickup and the drive to Savannah, I finally arrived at the Planters Inn, literally across the street from the Lucas Theater.  A beautiful hotel, more like a luxurious home… and my corner room had a view of the park and a four-poster bed! 

I then checked in with the team at Lucas and learned the history of this spectacular theater:  built in 1921, back when organists provided the soundtrack for silent stars like Rudolf Valentino, it was shut down for a few decades and then recently refurbished, ornate molding included – and now offers everything from art films to opera.  We did a quick test-run, swapped their DVD copy of JOE PAPP for the Blu-Ray I’d brought with me and then adjusted the reds on their projector:  much better! 

I now had two hours left before the screening.  A nap?  A trolley tour of the city?  I was advised against the tour (“too many lies!”) and wound up literally criss-crossing the city in my rental car (by request, NOT a Ford Focus), following my well-marked tourist map.  I explored streets lined with 18^th century homes and spreading oaks dripping with Spanish moss, stopping every so often to read a historic plaque or to walk down an old sidewalk.  What a graceful and elegant city!  Its history is so well-preserved, from the old parks and fountains (literally every few blocks) to the cobblestoned riverfront walkways.  And the food is great too:  based on a suggestion from friends who have lived in Savannah, I ate at the Crystal Beer Palace on Jefferson Street.  First opened in 1933, it hasn’t changed much since then – and now serves a wide range of southern treats and a remarkable beer list.  Highly recommended:  crab stew, fried shrimp & oysters, Ocilla slaw, peach cobbler… That’s more than one person can eat, but worth the adventure! 

Then back to the Lucas, just in time to watch Joe Papp In Five Acts on the very big screen, do a Q&A full of anecdotes and then answer more questions at the closing reception.  Truly a gorgeous projection and venue – and the largest crowd we’ve had yet.  (Tracie, I’m sorry you missed this!)  The conversations were so animated, they spilled out into the street after we left the theater – and as a final treat, I took the free ferry across the river and back, just to say goodnight to the lights of Savannah.

Karen, of Joe Papp, has full day of screenings in Dare County, North Carolina

The Outer Banks, NC -- 9/12/12
By Karen Thorsen

Up 7 AM, just enough time for a quick walk on the beach, watching pelicans dive for breakfast at sunrise, then my own breakfast (make-your-own Belgian waffle, compliments of Day’s Inn) before heading off for a full day of activities with Richard Martin, the President of the Arts Council Board and a most excellent tour guide.
· Stop #1: back on Roanoke Island, the amazing Elizabethan Gardens – a 12-acre jewel of 16th-century plantings, sunken gardens, fountains and statuary, even an authentically-thatched gazebo, all on water’s edge, in honor of the first English colony on American soil.
· Stop #2: an hour-and-a-half class with theater students at Manteo High School, an exhilarating back-and-forth with the next generation of filmmaker/thespians.
· Stop #3: a visit to a Nautical Consignment Shop in Nag’s Head: half-museum, half-thrift shop – and more inspiration for my son’s college dorm room.
· Stop #4: local seafood at a fisherman’s grill in Kill Devil Hills (we were joined by Chris Sawin, Executive Director of the Dare County Arts Council).
· Stop #5: another high school theater class, this time at the First Flight High School in Kitty Hawk – and this time with a projector so that I could mix commentary with clips of the film.
· Stop #6: return to the Day’s Inn for a quick nap and Email catch-up, then prep for the evening reception and screening.
· Stop #7: a gala reception back at the Manteo Court House, for friends of the Dare County Arts Council.
· Stop #8: the screening of Joe Papp In Five Acts on yet a third smaller island, a state-funded property called Festival Park: the site of a History Center/Museum, an outdoor amphitheater, scattered picnic grounds and two, count ‘em, two movie theaters, all with spectacular views of the water. We did our best to fill the smaller theater, not an easy task in off-season – but those who came loved the film and after a lively Q&A, I finally bid warm goodbyes to all my new Outer Banks friends and headed back to Kill Devil Hills … and bed.

What a great day!

Karen has authentic Outer Banks experience

The Outer Banks, NC -- 9/11/12
by Karen Thorsen

Up at 4:30AM (again!) to catch my NYC flight to Norfolk, VA. Got my rental car (NOT a Ford Focus, thank you) and enjoyed a two-hour drive south through coastal farmlands to North Carolina’s fabled Outer Banks – a trip which took over three hours because of stops along the way. What got my attention? Farm stands (great peaches!), thrift shops (feeding the nautical theme of my son’s college dorm room), the site of the Wright Brothers’ historical First Flight (now a national park in Kitty Hawk), and Sooey’s BBQ in Kill Devil Hills (pulled pork. ribs, collard greens, baked beans and the best hush puppies I’ve ever had) – more than I could eat and highly recommended!

4PM: I finally checked into the Wilbur and Orville Wright Day’s Inn right on the beach, also in Kill Devil Hills. Built in 1941, this was the first hotel built on the Outer Banks – and although it’s part of a national chain in name, all of its original character is still intact: a façade that must have been shockingly ‘moderne’ in the forties, a soaring white wingspan of a roof with a front porch full of old wooden rockers facing the sunset, a doorsill made of old driftwood and a wood-paneled lobby full of sofas surrounding a fireplace. Out back, the hallway leads straight to a path through the dunes and a beach that won’t quit, perfect for an off-season walk where the only companions are seagulls and a few lone fisherman, casting for red drum and stripers.

Pretty sweet. And, as if that isn’t enough, I’m here as the guest of the Dare County Arts Council and ‘friends of the Arts Council’s Board,’ the generous owners of the Day’s Inn itself – which means that I get to save a little of my South Arts per diem, always important to a struggling filmmaker!



As for the rest of my day, after a walk through the waves and a nap by the pool, I drove further south across yet another long bridge to Roanoke Island and the historic town of Manteo: Dare county seat and the home of the Dare County Arts Council. This group is truly impressive! Founded back in the seventies, they talked the town into letting them take over the abandoned 1904 Dare County Courthouse – just in time for Hurricane Irene – and, despite all the flood damage, they’ve just finished turning their first floor onto a multi-room art gallery. Among their many activities, they host art openings every ‘First Friday’; by next year, the upstairs courtroom will be turned into a much-needed arts workshop / performance space. In the meantime, they’re fundraising – so I spent my evening with a roomful of Arts Council Board Members, enjoying good conversation and wine while we all helped stuff envelopes for their fall fundraising drive.

Karen Thorsen back on SC Tour with Joe Papp

Winder, GA -- 9/9/12

by Karen Thorsen

Hard to believe!  After a two-decade hiatus, I’m back on the Southern Circuit.  The first time was to present my first film, the feature-length documentary, James Baldwin:  The Price Of The Ticket (a co-production with Maysles Films and the PBS series, American Masters).  This time, I’m presenting the feature-length documentary, Joe Papp In Five Acts, a collaboration with my Co-Producer / Co-Director Tracie Holder.  (Papp is also a co-production with PBS/American Masters, in partnership with ITVS and the Papp Project).  In the interest of both logistics and budget, Tracie and I decided to split our Southern Circuit screenings, four for her and four for me.

The first stop for me was Georgia.  I got up at 4AM (yikes) in Connecticut to make an early flight out of NYC to Atlanta, then headed Northeast in my Ford Focus rental (I mention the car model for a reason, to be explained later). The drive was long but relaxing, through Georgia pinewoods and rolling farmland, with a quick stop at Shane’s Rib Shack:  BBQ for breakfast!  I finally arrived in the small city of Winder just after 2PM. 

My hosts were waiting for me in their Cultural Arts Center, an ex-furniture factory turned into a magnificent 225-seat theater and TV studio, complete with dressing room, prop room, and huge spaces for set-building – a perfect setting for a film about Joe Papp and the importance of making the arts accessible for everyone.  Even better, the Center’s Executive Director, Don Wildsmith, turned out to be a retired Navy man who had done plenty of theater while in uniform (just like Joe Papp, who did his first productions on board a WWII aircraft carrier in the Pacific) … and the TV Studio Director, Chris Childs, was (and still is) a recent film studies graduate who had spent months in New York interning with my old alma mater, Maysles Films!

Then came our 3PM screening, a Q&A emceed by Chris Childs and a festive reception for all who attended:  not enough to fill the theater, but apparently the largest crowd they’ve had yet for a film.  Many attendees were theater buffs, excited to discuss Joe Papp because they’ll be doing their own Shakespeare play (“Much Ado About Nothing”) in just a few weeks.

It was a very satisfying first screening–  Right up until I laid my keys, purse and phone on the front seat of my car, turned to give one last hug to my hosts, and the car locked itself shut!  After a fruitless hour on the phone with National Rent-A-Car – who admitted that this happens often, because all 2011 Ford Focus models have a self-locking feature … but who had no quick solution, because Winder was far from any National service center – my hosts finally persuaded a local locksmith to come out on a Sunday.  The result?  A balloon device was inserted in the car’s door frame, the balloon was inflated, a hook was inserted through the space created by the balloon, the door handle was captured – and I was once again ready to make my departure, first to my night’s lodging and then on to the airport, a 4:30AM wake-up (yikes again) in order to catch my flight back to New York in time to prepare for a Monday night screening there.  Moral of the story:  beware the Ford Focus … or think twice before you shut the car door!

Meet Tracie Holder and Karen Thorsen

Welcome Tracie Holder and Karen Thorsen to the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers!

Tracie and Karen will be touring with their film, Joe Papp in Five Acts, starting September 4th at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, NC. Don't miss out on this great opportunity to view Joe Papp in Five Acts and talk to Tracie or Karen about their film. Don't forget to check back here to hear from both filmmakers as they tour across the southeast!

More about Tracie Holder: 

Tracie Holder is a filmmaker and consultant for Women Make Movies and for Active Voice. Among her film credits are Consulting Producer on Sun Come Up, a 2011 Academy Award nominee for best documentary short; Co-Director/Producer/Writer of Joe Papp in Five Acts, a co-production with PBS/American Masters; and Segment Line Producer on Rebirth,which premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Holder is a former board member of New York Women in Film & Television and Manhattan Neighborhood Network; and panelist for the New York Council for the Hu­mani­ties and the New York State Council for the Arts.

More about Karen Thorsen: 

Karen Thorsen finds inspiration at the intersection of art and social justice.  A Vassar graduate, she was an editor for Simon & Schuster, a journalist for LIFE and a foreign correspondent for TIME. Joe Papp in Five Acts is Thorsen’s second co-production with PBS/American Masters. Her first was the feature-length documentary, James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket, now recognized as a documentary film classic. Working with Maysles Films, she wrote, co-produced and directed Baldwin, which has been honored at festivals including Sundance, London, Berlin and Toyko. Thorsen’s productions also include anIntimate Portrait for Lifetime Television; a series for the History Channel which won the Parents’ Choice Award; and One Small Candle, a documentary film history of the Pilgrims and their Native neighbors. Her latest is Thomas Paine: Voice of Revolution. Paine was one of three films to be awarded an NEH Scripting Grant.

Click for complete tour details including locations and schedule.