Alumni Spotlight: Samantha Jakus
Degree: BFA, Dance, 2009
Occupation: Dare Devil
Location: New York, NY
Suspend everything you think you know about who a dancer is and what a dancer does. Meet Samantha Jakus, BYR ’09.
She never has.
2010s
Ryan Mullaney, BYR ‘10 and his early music ensemble Mountainside Baroque were featured in Early Music America Magazine in association with their inaugural summer early music festival held this past June. The article, "Early and Idyllic," from the May 2018 issue of EMA magazine can be read at mountainsidebaroque.org.
Ana Tsinadze, BYR ‘10 made her third appearance playing viola at the Maurice River Music Salon Concert.
David Carpenter, BYR ’11 will release his first commercial CD through Parma Recordings, with three of his chamber pieces, in early 2019. The performers featured on the CD will include baritone Lawrence Indik, BYR ‘84, pianists Charles Abramovic, BYR ’90, and Katelyn Bouska, BYR ’11, BYR ’16.
Rachel L. Zatcoff, BYR ’11 made her Broadway debut as Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera. She is currently playing the role of Tzeitel in Fiddler on the Roof (in Yiddish) Off-Broadway directed by legendary Joel Grey.
Erin Busch, BYR ’13, BYR ‘15 started the first Young Women Composers Camp on Temple University’s campus in efforts to encourage more women composers to enter a field traditionally dominated by men.
Megan Mizanty, BYR ‘13 premiered her dance, “Cherry Pop Pie”, a dance-theatre piece inspired by television crime dramas of the 1990s, following a residency at the Iron Factory in Philadelphia. It will be produced again at Dixon Place in New York City on October 9th and at Green Street Studios in Boston on December 7th-9th
Albert J. Roldan, BYR ‘13 is a nationwide consultant for music for the Department of Education, Philippines, a faculty/staff pianist at the University of the Philippines, and a juror for the National Music Competitions for Young Artists (piano category, 2017).
TJ Capobianco, BYR ‘14 joined the Barbara and Halsey Sandford Studio Artist Program with the Kentucky Opera, was accepted for the 2018 apprentice program with the Des Moines Metro Opera and made his main stage debut with the New Orleans Opera in 2017.
Laura Gabriela Lizcano, BYR ‘17 recorded her extended play record, Chance on Me, at Rittenhouse Soundworks in front of a live audience in March 2018. The record releases fall 2018.
Emma Valeria Girandola, BYR ‘18 had her work entitled “[ey-vis]” selected to appear in the 2018 National American College Dance Association Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Rebecca Simpson, BYR ‘18 was a harpist for the Bucks County Center for Performing Arts production of the musical “The Fantasticks” at Delaware Valley University in Doylestown Township.
2000s
Veronica Chapman-Smith, BYR ’00, BYR ’02 won a Grammy for Best Choral Performance with the choral group, The Crossing. During Opera Philadelphia's O18 festival, she will sing the role of Elder #1 in the world premiere of Sky On Swings. She also works as the Community Initiatives Administrator at Opera Philadelphia.
Jonathan A. Palant, BYR ’02 was featured in Opera News and Today.com for his work with the Dallas Street Choir, a musical outlet for those experiencing homelessness and severe disadvantage.
Katya Stanislavskaya, BYR ’02, BYR ’04 premiered a new musical Going South at Dixon Place in New York City in January 2018.
Crystal Jordan, BYR ‘04 recently accepted a music position at Cornwall Terrace Elementary in the Wilson School District. She serves as string director of the Millersville University Summer Music Camp. She performs regularly with many ensembles including Trio Jolie, of which she is a founding member.
Julie Snyder Bishop, BYR ’05, BYR ’10 won a Grammy for Best Choral Performance with the choral group, The Crossing and is a member of the adjunct faculty in the Department of Voice and Opera at Boyer College of Music and Dance.
Shayna Corapi-Stahl, BYR ‘05 had her Doctor of Musical Arts Conducting Recital in April 2018 and completed her exams in May 2018. She was also a winner of the American Prize in Conducting, Community Band/Wind Ensemble Division.
Mena M. Hanna, BYR ‘06 won the inaugural Honors Distinguished Alumni Award, given to a Temple Honors alumnus who continues to embody the key pillars of the program’s mission statement: to be intellectually curious, socially courageous, and uphold the values of integrity and leadership.
Francesco Barone, BYR ‘09 recently performed in the Connecticut Guitar Society’s annual concert series and was selected to play in a masterclass for Manuel Barrueco at the Philadelphia Classical Guitar Society.
Bryan DeSilva, BYR ’09, BYR ’11, BYR ‘16 joined the faculty of Boston Conservatory at Berklee as Assistant Professor of Voice, Musical Theatre.
Dan Schwartz, BYR ‘09, BYR ’11 won a Grammy for Best Choral Performance with the choral group, The Crossing.
1990s
Rebecca Show Oehlers, BYR ’96 won a Grammy for Best Choral Performance with the choral group, The Crossing.
David Pasbrig, BYR ’96, BYR ‘05 was awarded the Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award at Temple University for his demonstrated excellence in teaching students.
1980s
Neil Elliott Dorval, BYR ‘81 is an iTunes Recording Artist with five releases – four multi-genre solo piano and one singer songwriter. The latter featured Grammy Award winners Laurence Juber (Paul McCartney) and Grover Washington Jr., BYR ’82.
Clara Sandler, BYR ‘81 teaches Voice and Alexander Technique at the New England Conservatory and Boston College. She is also a member of Boston Arts Consort, performing music from Spain and Latin America.
Eileen M. Hayes, BYR ‘82 was appointed Dean, College of Arts and Communication at the University of Wisconsin, Whitewater in Fall 2017. From 2012-17, she served as professor and chair of the Department of Music at Towson University.
Steven R. Mento, BYR ‘87 was the only composer/pianist out of 20 South Jersey artists to be awarded the New Jersey Creative Capital Grant for 'Algonquian Dreamcatcher' honoring the Lenape tribe, and for three Pandora radio stations – Steve Mento, Loretta Mento, and Duo Mento.
1970s
Ronald DeGrandis, BYR ‘73 has three string orchestra compositions published with Hal Leonard: The Morning Bus Ride, Lunch Time Jam and Recess Boogie Woogie. The Marine Band of Allentown debuts his newest composition, “The Pennsylvania March” in fall 2018.
Louis Anthony deLise, BYR ’74, BYR ’02, BYR ‘09 has two new publications – Salone del Astor, published by Alry Publications, Seattle, WA and Dreamstates for Vibraphone, published by Metropolis Publishing, Antwerp, Belgium. The premiere of Salone del Astar at the National Flute Association convention was held in August 2018.
Ronald Alan Matthews, BYR ‘76 was recently appointed as president of Eastern University.
Lynn Matluck Brooks, BYR ’79, BYR ‘85 retired from Franklin & Marshall College July 2018, after founding their dance program in 1984. While at F&M, she received the Bradley R. Dewey Award for Outstanding Scholarship and the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching.
Danielle Orlando, BYR ’79, BYR ‘82 was named Director of Curtis Opera Theatre along with Eric Owens, BYR ’93 beginning in the 2019/20 season.
1960s
John R. Custis, BYR ’68, BYR ‘72 is celebrating his 50th year as a Temple alumnus. This year also marks his 48th year as a board member on the Boyer College Alumni Board.
Whether it’s running down the side of the Bergdoff Goodman building in New York or leaping off a 30-foot high piece of scaffolding and landing on her face, she’s done it. These feats and more are what is expected of her as a company member of STREB Extreme Action Company.
STREB redefines modern dance and defies the realm of impossibility with cutting-edge movements, stunts and choreography. Their motto? “Be ready for anything.”
As a Temple Dance alumna, Samantha was and is ready – every day, for anything. Her training in the program helped her develop her work ethic, face her fears and use those fears to challenge herself and accomplish the unimaginable. When asked how she is able to push herself in this way, she says, “I know this place. I know what it means to be ready to go. I know how to take on anything given to me. Temple taught me that.”
Samantha credits the life lessons she learned at Temple with always keeping her two steps ahead of the game and learning to give 110% in everything she does. As a freshman, she vividly remembers Professor Kun-Yang Lin telling her “Never stop thinking about the dance.”
She never has.
Samantha has been featured in Dance Magazine, appeared on E! Television’s Talk Soup, National Geographic’s Brain Games, two documentary films, PBS, interviewed in The New Yorker, and photographed by Annie Leibovitz. Her notable performances include London Cultural Olympiad, Vancouver Cultural Olympiad, Pan American Games Toronto, Canada, The Holland Dance Festival The Hague, Netherlands, Just for Laughs Festival Montreal Canada, The Park Avenue Armory, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Delacorte Theater and Bergdorf Goodman Holiday Reveal.