How to dance in ohio where are they now
Autistic cast of ‘How to Dance in Ohio’ makes connections
Seven of the actors in How to Dance in Ohio, a play about autism, have autism. Conor Tague (Tommy), Imani Russell (Mel), Desmond Edwards (Remy), Ashley Wool (Jessica), Amelia Fei (Caroline), Nicole Fazia (understudy), Madison Kopec (Marideth).
Dennis Nett | [email protected]
Syracuse, N.Y. — Amelia Fei holds a fuzzy yellow hat with a smiley face on it, smoothing it and flipping it in her lap as she talks.
The actress’ choice to audition for the groundbreaking musical “How to Dance in Ohio” could propel her career. It could also destroy her.
“And I was like this close to not auditioning for it, because I don’t know how my friends would react. I don’t know if it will affect my, my career … And I don’t know if the publicity or anything will affect my parents,” said Fei, who is from Taiwan.
To be in the play, she had to tell the world she was autistic. Fei is an accomplished actress and singer, but even her close friends did not know.
Fei plays Caroline in the musical that’s having its world premiere at Syracuse Stage. The plot is taken from the critically acclaimed documentary of the same name about seven autistic young adults. Each one is played by an autistic actor, which is explained to the audience at the beginning of the performance.
For the first time, the thing that threatened to keep these young people on the outside was the key to getting in. And it was being celebrated.
This is possibly the first musical to showcase autistic actors. It makes the art authentic and poignant in a way that already has earned good crowds and standing ovations, even on a rainy Wednesday night in Syracuse.
It has connections that give it a real chance at Broadway: The producers include Ben Holtzman and Sammy Lopez, who are part of P3 Productions with Fiona Howe Rudin. The partnership produced “The Kite Runner” and “A Strange Loop,” which won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 2020. Tony Award winner Wilson Jermaine Heredia plays Emilio Amigo, the doctor who is working with the young people and hatches the idea for a prom.
But it also has made a different, separate joy for the young actors who are, for the first time, able to be themselves onstage and off.
The actors have been in Syracuse for weeks now. Onstage they are telling the story. Offstage, they are living it. What a joy it is for them to be with people who require no explanation for anxious rocking or jittery hand movements, to not need scripts for small talk.
They’ve even come up with a name for themselves: Spectrum Club Seven. That’s who they are: autism superheroes of sorts, without masks.
Taking off the mask
Only two of the actors had ever portrayed someone with autism. None of them ever had a job where being autistic was required.
At the beginning of this interview, the actors say they will try not to talk over each other. But their words bubble on top of one another as they explain what this experience has been like. There’s no having to hide that they see the world differently as they work to make art.
Their differences are the art.
Madison Kopec takes over as the group discusses the proper way to refer to autistic people. (This group, like many others, prefers that term, not “people with autism.”)
No one calls it Asperger’s Syndrome anymore; it’s ASD or autism spectrum disorder, she says. She begins rattling off research and what diagnostic manuals now say. Asperger’s was named for Austrian physician Hans Asperger, who did neurological research on Jewish children during the Holocaust.
In the play, Kopec is Marideth, a young woman with encyclopedic knowledge of just about everything. She, too, prefers books and research to people.
“People who know me are like, ‘Are you acting, or is that just you?’ ” Kopec says.
ASD affects communication. People struggle with conversation, social cues and understanding emotions. They often learn to mime neurotypical people’s responses in social situations. Like raising your eyebrows, or making eye contact during conversation.
That’s called “masking.” For these actors, it’s been a lifetime of performing, even offstage.
The musical opened a door to a world where they don’t have to cover up.
“Caroline is just me, not masking,” Fei says, referring to her character in the play. Caroline is joyful and chatty, but she struggles to understand her relationship with her boyfriend and friends.
The reaction to the play’s authenticity has also been unlike anything the actors have ever experienced. One of the other actors in the production brought her son, who is on the autism spectrum, to see the show.
The young actors tear up as they talk about how much he loved it.
He raved to his mom about how great it was to see someone on stage just like him. I didn’t know people could make a musical about what was happening inside my head, he told his mother.
Kopec said the production has worked to accommodate the actors and crew. At the beginning there was a Google form for everyone, from the actors to the crew, asking what kind of accommodations they needed.
Is there something that stresses you out? Is there something that would calm you, an object you’d like to squeeze or hold?
Ashley Wool has been in productions for more than a decade; this was something entirely new.
“The fact that we were all able to talk about it that kind of just helped facilitate a sense of trust among the cast and crew in general, where it was OK for us to talk about stuff,” she said.
It’s also been OK to “stim.” Autistic people are sometimes calmed by repetitive motions or fidgeting. Imani Russell and Desmond Edwards, who are both Black, talk about how they work hard to control that behavior when they are in public.
“People might assume I’m on drugs,” said Edwards, who plays Remy.
But opening night, he and Russell, who plays Mel, could simply be themselves backstage on opening night.
“We were like waving our arms and rocking back and forth and just like expending that anxious energy, and it feels really good. But it’s like if I did that on the train in the city, people would look at me weird,” Russell said.
The Spectrum Club Seven
Small talk can be exceptionally hard for autistic people. Russell usually goes through little scripts before they go to social events, preparing for each person they might encounter. The rest of the group nods.
But when they hang out together, there is none of that. No need to remember eye contact. No worrying if they missed an eyebrow raise or moved their hands too much.
And they look out for each other. At the beginning of a meeting with a Syracuse.com reporter, Conor Tague, who plays Tommy, sat clear across the room from everyone else, looking down. Come on over and sit here, one of the seven said, pulling out a chair. He sat down and later told the stranger all about his stint on “Law & Order.”
The Spectrum Club Seven has been traveling around Syracuse together. They all went to the State Fair.
They were waiting in a line, all together, and they mentioned the play. The person in front of them said that they were autistic, too.
The Spectrum Club Seven, strangers who came together in Syracuse to show the world the beauty of being themselves, cheered and broke into a chant: “You’re one of us!”
Marnie Eisenstadt writes about people, public affairs and the Syracuse City School District. Contact her anytime email | Twitter| Facebook | 315-470-2246
How to Dance in Ohio
What: World premiere of “How to Dance in Ohio,” a musical
Where: Syracuse Stage, 820 E. Genesee St.
When: Sept. 21 through Oct. 9
Tickets: $25-$60; under 18 and students receive special rates
To buy: online at syracusestage.org or 315-443-3275
Covid: Masks recommended but not required
‘How to Dance in Ohio,’ groundbreaking play with autistic cast, ends Syracuse run because of Covid
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Seven of the actors in How to Dance in Ohio, a play about autism, have autism. Conor Tague (Tommy), Imani Russell (Mel), Desmond Edwards (Remy), Ashley Wool (Jessica), Amelia Fei (Caroline), Nicole Fazia (understudy), Madison Kopec (Marideth).
Dennis Nett | [email protected]
Syracuse, N.Y. -- “How to Dance in Ohio” has canceled the rest of its world premiere run at Syracuse Stage as a wave of Covid-19 continues to spread through its cast and crew.
The groundbreaking show, featuring a core cast of autistic actors, opened Sept. 21 to rave reviews. It brought standing ovations even on a rainy middle-of-the-week night.
“Even with understudies and continual attempts by the production team to find a way forward, we have run out of viable options to proceed,” Jill Anderson, managing director of Syracuse Stage, said in an email. “We are deeply sorry for the inconvenience and disappointment this news brings to the ‘Ohio’ team and patrons.”
The show had several understudies in place and was strictly adhering to the Actors Equity Association Covid protocols, but the number of cases still rose to a point that made it impossible to continue.
Onondaga County is currently experiencing high levels of Covid-19; the CDC recommends wearing masks inside.
The show had been doing regular testing and had strict Covid-19 protocols in place, said Joanna Lynn Penalva, a spokeswoman for Syracuse Stage.
The show’s trouble began Saturday evening, when, 25 minutes after the play was to start, the audience was told there would be no show. One of the actors had suddenly fallen ill. Later, Syracuse Stage canceled the rest of the weekend shows but was hopeful that production would begin again today.
Even with its shortened run, the show had buzz that kept audiences in Syracuse raving and connections that may take it well past Central New York. The coming-of-age musical follows seven autistic young people as they navigate the greater world, and their relationships with each other. The play is based on an HBO documentary of the same name about a group of young people and their therapist, Dr. Emilio Amigo. Amigo hatches the idea that the teens will have their own prom.
Syracuse.com reviewer Linda Lowen called it “the musical you’ll talk about for the rest of your life.
” The musical was so good she returned to see it a second time with her husband, something she hardly ever does.
The producers include Ben Holtzman and Sammy Lopez, who are part of P3 Productions with Fiona Howe Rudin. The partnership produced “The Kite Runner” and “A Strange Loop,” which won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 2020. Tony Award winner Wilson Jermaine Heredia plays Amigo, the doctor who is working with the young people and hatches the idea for a prom.
The actors in the cast said working together on the show was like nothing they’d ever experienced. Offstage, they had a new community of people who understood each other without worry about social awkwardness or missed cues. They called themselves the “Spectrum Club Seven.”
They celebrated their differences and it spread. A cast member brought her son, who is on the spectrum, to see the show.
After, he raved to his mom about how great it was to see someone on stage just like him. I didn’t know people could make a musical about what was happening inside my head, he told his mother.
The cast members teared up as they talked about the boy’s reaction.
Syracuse Stage will automatically refund anyone who has tickets to the remaining shows.
The theater will continue its plans for live theater going forward, said Artistic Director Bob Hupp. The Cold Read Festival of New Plays starts Oct. 18.
“We are heartbroken by this turn of events that prevents us from welcoming patrons to our last week of performances for ‘How to Dance in Ohio,’” Hupp said. “We thank everyone who joined us for this world premiere, and we look forward to seeing what’s in store for this exceptional production that started right here in Syracuse.”
Marnie Eisenstadt writes about people, public affairs and the Syracuse City School District. Contact her anytime email | Twitter| Facebook | 315-470-2246
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What kind of meme only in Ohio, Only in Ohio in tiktok under the track Swag Like Ohio
Meme videos Can’t Even X in Ohio or Only in Ohio (“Only in Ohio”), shot to the track of the hip-hoper Lil B Swag Like Ohio, have gained popularity on Tiktok. The template is suitable for frames with fictional monsters or creepy things or events that, according to tiktokers, can only happen in Ohio.
How the Can't Even X in Ohio or Only in Ohio meme appeared. nine0008 Starting in August 2022, videos under the names Can’t Even X in Ohio or Only in Ohio (“Only in Ohio”) went viral on TikTok. Initially, Memes about Ohio or Ohio Against The World ("Ohio against the world") became popular in early 2020. In the viral template, one of the astronauts points a gun at the other. The trend started with an August 2016 Tumblr post and a photo of a digital screen of a bus stop that read "Ohio will be eliminated."
In archive and new templates, Ohio is an eerie and frightening place, a state about to take over the world. nine0003 A picture of a sign at a bus stop in Ohio
What an Ohio Only in Ohio meme. In 2022, TikTokers started filming videos about Ohio to the track of rapper Lil B Swag Like Ohio. Typically, the videos show fictional monsters running the streets, or strange things that can only happen in Ohio.
Ohio memes then went out of the box - comments about Ohio began to appear under random videos about ridiculous events or videos that cause disgust. For example, under the tiktok of mukbang bloggers. It seems that Ohio has become a place where madness accumulates. nine0003
Screenshot from tiktokDinner Crazy in Ohio.
Ohio.
The most normal dish in Ohio.
Memes about Ohio have also spread in the Russian-language segment of tiktok.
In the search line of the social network, the Can’t Even X in Ohio or Only in Ohio meme is “googled” as “Ohio”, “Ohio brigade”, “Ohio brigade” and “Ohio meme”.
Screenshot from tiktokScreenshot from tiktokAt the time of writing, the #ohiomeme hashtag has over 28 million views. nine0003
Previously, Medialeaks talked about a meme with a boat floating on the river with calm music. In the template, girls show dialogues with guys who do not understand hints.
In another article by Medialeaks, you can read who OnlyFans model Molly Moon is, who shoots scary tiktok in the pixel horror genre.
Intel to Build Two New $20 Billion Plants in Ohio with Space for Expansion / Sudo Null IT News The company will build a new $20 billion complex in Ohio. It will include two factories and space for expansion. Construction will begin at the end of 2022.
nine0003 Intel Ohio Fabric Project Intel is looking to expand its capacity in the coming years amid the current chip shortage. In the meantime, the US government is aiming to localize production and is taking additional steps to encourage companies to build additional factories in the country. Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger takes a similar stance: he doesn't find it acceptable that 80% of the world's chips are made in Asia, where Taiwan's TSMC and South Korea's Samsung are the dominant players. The latter announced in the fall of 2-21 that it would build a chip manufacturing plant in the Texas city of Taylor worth about $17 billion.
Intel's first new manufacturing site in 40 years is located in New Albany, near Columbus. Until now, all of Intel's main chip factories have been located in the western United States - in Oregon, Arizona, and at some point in Silicon Valley - so opening a plant in Ohio is an important step for the company. The area of the complex will reach almost 1000 acres (more than 400 hectares).
In the future, six more plants may be built there.
The first two factories will be built at the end of this year and will start production in 2025. The company does not officially state what the initial technology node will be, but notes that it will use "the most advanced transistor technology in the industry." It will probably be the Intel 18A process technology, which will be 4 generations ahead of the current one (Intel 7). nine0003
Intel will spend a similar amount of $20 billion on two new plants in Arizona that were announced just under a year ago and are already under construction.
The Ohio expansion will depend on several factors. Demand from Intel Foundry Services customers will be key; while Intel will use part of the Ohio facility for its own needs, they will also make chips for IFS customers.
Ohio factories will also be used for domestic chip production for key industries as the US seeks to secure its supply lines. Intel has made no secret of its interest in public investment, bluntly stating that "the scale and pace of expansion in Ohio, however, will depend heavily on funding under the Chip Act.
" News commentators note that Intel's net profit in the past few years has been about $ 10-20 billion a year, and full subsidization of construction may affect dividend payments, which investors will not be happy about. In their opinion, if the US government does not give any preferences to the company, the company may curtail the construction in Ohio. nine0003
In addition to building the facilities, Intel will need labor and is also pledging $100 million over ten years to fund local education projects. The investment will be used to help local colleges and universities develop curricula for semiconductor fabrication.
Intel announced that Air Products, Applied Materials, LAM Research and Ultra Clean Technology will also set up manufacturing facilities in the state. nine0003
In March 2021, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger spoke about the company's new roadmap. It enters the semiconductor contract manufacturing market and collaborates with other manufacturers to improve its products.
