Today we’d like to introduce you to Haden Rider.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Haden. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I never saw my career path being that of acting, directing, or music. I was more interested in marine biology or playing football- while my family members have always been more on the musical side of things. I started as running back for my high school football team and found myself with a couple of scholarships as a result by Fall 2008. Yet fate has a funny way of showing up, and a mix up happened with my school schedule where I ended up in a Drama Fundamentals Class. At the time, many things were changing in my life that I didn’t have control over and as a result, I decided to make “dramatic” changes myself. And that’s where it all began! I shifted gears, quit football my Senior year to go on to win state in Dramatic Interpretation. With that verve, I set my sights on attending The Gainesville Theatre Alliance (GTA) after I graduated high school to further my theatrical studies. Whilst there I continued to grow as a theatre artist, co-found my company Play On Players (POP) while still in school, and then eventually found my way into the Atlanta regional market as a performer. The rest is history.
Has it been a smooth road?
There’s a saying that says, “A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor”. And I find that there’s a lot of truth in it. Obviously, I’ve made many mistakes along the way and am still making mistakes; but I try my best to learn from them and keep my eyes forward. I’ve definitely had high tides and low tides, but that’s life- and at the end of the day you have to learn to swim or sink. My family always taught me to persevere when life gets tough, especially my mom and sisters. They supported me in tough decisions wholeheartedly (like switching from football into theatre). And when I started college studies in theatre – I didn’t start out sounding like I do today. It took an insane amount of hard work to find myself as a vocalist. In fact… I’m still working on it! Luckily, Bruce Sellers was an amazing vocal coach and mentor to me. He really gave me my start in vocal pedagogy and his lessons became the basis for what I teach my students today. I live my life through phrases that mentors have taught me, and I will never forget one thing he said: “[Your students] may not always remember everything you say…but they will ALWAYS remember your passion. Above all else, show them your passion”. That will always stick with me.
During my time in school, faculty also challenged me to make the most of my time in college and learn how to balance a very busy schedule! I thoroughly appreciate the discipline they taught me and how support their staff has always been. Without the guidance and fostering of my talent (in all arenas: directing, acting, and theatre management), I never would have made it this far. However, when I graduated the Gainesville Theatre Alliance, I hadn’t set sights onto acting as a path. The plan was to work alongside my co-founder of P.O.P. and grow the company… and we did that. Yet subtly, Alan Kilpatrick (who has greatly influenced me as an actor/director and whom I have an immense amount of love, appreciation, and respect for) kept offering me opportunities to be involved with shows and supporting my career in acting- which has been life-changing.
Especially this past year when I received the Suzi Bass Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Musical (The Hunchback Of Notre Dame- Aurora Theatre/Theatrical Outfit). I was overjoyed and immensely honored, but the highlight for me wasn’t the award. It was the chance to work alongside people whom I have admired and respected for years, like David de Vries (whom I had as a guest professor in my junior year of college). He and Alan have been among my greatest mentors and I thank them for seeing something in me that I couldn’t see for myself. Their kindness and generosity have brought so many wonderful people and experiences into my life. I’m now involved with the incredible Atlanta theatre scene and am so proud to be a small part of it.
As far as the challenges nowadays? I find it incredibly difficult to keep everything up in the air! Although I’m grateful for it all- and wouldn’t have it any other way- it gets hard to juggle POP, my career, and my voice students all at once. Occasionally, something drops and I just try my best to pick it up as fast as I can and keep surfing the tides.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Play On Players story. Tell us more about the business.
As I pursued theatre at GTA, I co-found Play On Players children’s theatre (POP) with Carly Ann Berg before we’d even neared graduation! With serious support and guidance from our professors and colleagues, we began a journey in theatrical education. Since its beginning in 2012, we have grown into an internationally recognized organization. The POP team is comprised of a talented group of individuals ranging from ages 8 to 18 who perform a full-length version of a show, and then it is condensed and taken to an international theatre conference known as the Junior Theater Festival -as well as the National Performing Arts Festival at Disney World.
The Junior Theatre Festival (JTF) is an annual theatrical celebration/festival hosted by iTHEATRICS. It is held here in Atlanta- with another festival in Sacramento, CA, as well as several international celebrations! JTF is sponsored by Playbill, Disney Musicals, and Music Theatre International (MTI). This festival and the people behind it are so integral to the theatrical process and the institution of theatre education. It has become the world’s largest celebration of young people performing musical theatre.
When bringing works, however, limitations are set when performing at JTF: No sets, costumes, or props! This experience allows us to teach the kids how to become true story-tellers (as opposed to “story-talkers” hiding behind lavish spectacle) and ultimately leads them to discovering what theatre is really about: the relationship between actor, to actor, to audience, to community, to change. The art form focuses on giving- and, that’s why we wanted to give our kids the JTF experience. To name some of my favorite moments would be to mention our JTF New Works Showcase performances of ELF Jr. and WEST SIDE STORY School Edition. We were even given the incredible experience of mounting the pilot production of MADAGASCAR: A MUSICAL ADVENTURE Jr. Most recently, we were given the world premiere opportunity of MARY POPPINS Jr. for the New Works Showcase at JTF 2017! This year we received a wonderful shout-out from MTI in which they said, “Play On Players brought the audience to tears with a production that found the heart of Godspell and how it resonates in our community today.” …which is exactly what we wanted to accomplish. I’m so proud of the kids and their hard work. They touched lives of their generation, and they did it with nothing but 12 actor blocks. As for Carly and I, we were honored to be selected as recipients of the 2016 JTF Broadway Junior Spirit Award in which we joined the Freddie G. Fellowship (named for Freddie Gershon, CEO, and Chairman of MTI).
I really can’t praise the iTHEATRICS team enough for their devotion and love for Theatre Education and their perseverance in making it a priority in communities and schools. They know the power of theatre education and what kind of an impact it can have on someone’s life. I’ve seen it happen with kids in my own company and have experienced it personally. To find out more about their process- check out the book! (The iTHEATRICS’ Method: The Quintessential Guide to Creating Quality Musical Theatre Programs) It is the world’s first musical theatre education textbook that is specifically devoted to building high-quality, sustainable musical theatre programs in schools and communities. It is an excellent read and a must for anyone trying to grow a quality musical theatre program for students!
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
The arts industry is ever-evolving. To put it simply: art imitates life; therefore there will never be a shortage or lack of need for what we do as an industry. It’s a medium to express humanity in its most basic and vulnerable form; a chance to step back and look at where we are, where we were, and where we are going. I think that, especially in the past decade, we have seen a tremendous shift to tell stories that are diverse and deeply impacting. Everyone, no matter their creeds/race/walk of life, has a story that deserves to be told and represented. I think the Atlanta community, in particular, is opening doors to usher in a new and intelligent generation of artists. I am always looking forward to what all artists and companies put forth, and I cannot wait to be apart of their stories.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hadenrider.com
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