People To Watch 2006
New Orleans Magazine,
03-09-06 22:49
BY:
MORGAN PACKARD AND SARAH RAVITS N PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEFFERY JOHNSTON
"Think of what follows as a New Orleans All-Star team of the future. Mostly, we
define “People to Watch” as new faces who are doing something interesting with
their lives that is worthy of our awareness or, in some cases, familiar faces
moving in a different direction. Our team is a combination of promising rookies
and of veterans playing new positions. Barring injuries or scandals, the season
should be a good one. Now, please rise for our national anthem.
Theatre
Louisiane, the itinerant group of New Orleans-based artists, recently returned
from Montreal, where they toured dis+graced, a multimedia performance featuring
text from Euripides’ Medea and letters of Josephine Bonaparte, a piece that
originally debuted in New Orleans at the Zeitgeist theater. Amy Woodruff, the
artistic director who founded the group in 1999, compiled the script, designed
the set and costumes, and also starred as the main characters in their first,
one-actor show. Each project, she says, is a learning experience. Her husband,
Blake Buchert, a cartographer, is on the board of directors and is chairman of
the Board of Trustees for the company, which was incorporated as a non-profit
theater in the state of Louisiana in 2001. The self-described group of “allied
artists” will begin working on their next project this winter. Woodruff and
Buchert, along with Chrispin Barnes and Jennifer Buras, the current resident
artists, also look forward to developing more touring opportunities. “We would
love to see our work represent Louisiana in a positive light to other parts of
the country and the world,” says Woodruff. — S.R."
Other
Honorees included:
-
Walter Leger, Jr., Chairman of the Housing & Redevelopment Task Force for
the Louisiana Recovery Authority, co-chair of St. Bernard’s Citizen Recovery
Committee and vice president of the New Orleans Zephyrs
-
The
Big Easy Roller Girls, the first (and only) all-female, flat-track roller
derby in the city
-
Alistair Ramsay, Professor of Medicine and Director of the Gene Therapy
Program at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center
-
Donald Link, Chef of Cochon Restaurant
-
Pete
Breen and Jenny Tice, co-owners of The Joint BBQ Restaurant
-
Jen
Powell, founder of Sip Wine Market
-
David
Kahn, Director of the Louisiana State Museum
-
Les
Hirsch, president and chief executive officer of Touro Infirmary
-
Monica Kalozdi, mountain climber who reached the summit of Mt. Everest
-
Kevin
Jordan, M.D., chief medical officer and vice president for Medical Affairs
at Touro Infirmary
-
Terrance Osborne, painter of representations of New Orleans’ houses and
neighborhoods
-
Belinda Hernandez, assignment manager for CNN’s Gulf Coast Bureau
-
Nancy
Marshall, lawyer and tax assessor
-
Patrick J. Quinlan, M.D., chief executive officer of Ochsner Clinic
-
Chris
Giordano, the general manager and partner of Wow Café Tennis Center
-
Kate
Wendel, Group Marketing Manager, Marketplace Properties, East Coast
-
Edmond “Ed” Muniz, the newly elected Mayor of Kenner
-
Percy
Marchand, Chairman of the Gert Town Revival Association and owner of the
Gentilly printing business Marchand Ink
-
American Coffee Company, Inc.
-
Ann
Duplessis, Louisiana State Senator
-
Craig
Tracy, bodypainting artist
-
Latoya Cantrell, president of the Broadmoor Improvement Association and the
manager of Greater New Orleans Education Foundation
-
Kevin
Kelly, business president, real estate developer and three-year owner of
Houmas House Plantation
-
Arnie
Fielkow, one of the city’s two Councilmembers-at-large and former executive
vice president of the New Orleans Saints
-
The
Bingo! Show, an eight person, multimedia, audience-interactive,
carnivalesque, game-show-rock band
-
Brent
“Buzz” Williams, head basketball coach of the University of New Orleans
Privateers
-
John
Bellini III and Shane Nicaud, founders of Bell Foods
-
Janee
“Gee” Mercadel, owner of Sophie’s Gelato
-
Gogo
Mathas Borgerding, jewelry designer and owner of GoGo Jewelry
back
to Amy Woodruff's Personal Artist Page
back
to Theatre Louisiane's homepage