In/Corporate Voice: Of the body and about the embodied voice.
Somewhere between the specter of AI, the rise of autocracy globally and, consequently, the stifling of individual and minority voices, we invite you to join this global symposium and consider but not be limited to this question:
What happens at the intersection of the liberated embodied individual voice and the collective uprising of these voices in unity?
Registration for access to the virtual symposium recordings – including the keynote presentations – is still open!
In/Corporate Voice:
VASTA’s 2024 Virtual Symposium
Date: 6 August, 9:00am PDT US – 8 August, 9:00Am PDT US
48 hours of continuous live programming
Register for the Virtual Symposium
Cost for VASTA Virtual Symposium is on a global sliding scale. Our decision to use a sliding scale for the Virtual Symposium represents our dedication to access and inclusivity.
Please pay to your own best ability understanding that VASTA is a service organization that pays for its existence from membership dues and these symposia.
Symposium registration is open to nonmembers and VASTA members alike. Included in the registration is access to virtual symposium content for one week after the end of the symposium (Friday, August 22). VASTA members will retain access to virtual symposium content until January 1, 2025.
Registration Tiers:
Donor $200 USD
Professional $170 USD
Professor $140 USD
Working Artist $110 USD
Early Professional/Grad Student $85 USD
Student $50 USD
Minimum $20 USD
The highest dollar cost reflects the true cost of the symposium. It is the cost that VASTA would charge all attendees in the absence of a sliding scale. This rate supports individuals attending at the lowest rate while fulfilling VASTA’s mission to build its community through efforts of accessibility.
The middle costs reflect VASTA’s acknowledgment that paying the highest rates may be cost-prohibitive to some, but the lowest rates are best reserved for those needing financial support. These rates support attendees with a “middle-ground.”
The bottom cost represents an honest acknowledgment by VASTA that there are folks whose economic circumstances would prevent them from being a part of this event if there was not a deliberate opportunity made for them to access services at a cost that is reflective of their economic realities. We want you in our community and hope this rate is accessible to you. We will work with folks to offer extended payment plans and other solutions if the lower tier is still prohibitive.
Keynote Speakers
The Sound of Power in a Changing World
Samara Bay
August 6th at 10am PDT.
Join Samara for a keynote and conversation on rethinking the sound of power, and what and who power sounds like August 6th.
As a speech and dialect coach and author of the bestseller “Permission to Speak,” Samara works with clients ranging from Congress candidates to C-suite executives, changemakers, entrepreneurs, celebrities, and high school girls. Her work has been featured in TIME, The New York Times Magazine, and Forbes – among many more; and she has conducted masterclasses and workshops across industries such as Google, MAC Cosmetics, SXSWedu, and her alma mater Princeton University.
A Snapshot of Cape Town: Insights into the Voiceover Industry at the Tip of Africa
Sarah Woodward
August 7th at 12am PDT.
Join Sarah for her presentation “A Snapshot of Cape Town: Insights into the Voiceover Industry at the Tip of Africa” as she shares her insights on the evolution of the South African voiceover industry from 2016 to 2024. Discover key trends, the impact of COVID-19, the rise of diverse voices, and the unique challenges of working with multiple languages in her presentation.
Celebrating Linguistic Tension: Opportunities and Challenges of Ugandan Creators
Kenneth Kimuli
August 7th at 9am PDT.
A journalist by profession, comedian by occupation, Rotarian by vocation, and playwright. Kenneth Kimuli is a co-founder of Tebere Arts Foundation and doubles as its Operations and Marketing Director (OMD). Tebere Arts Foundation is committed to mentoring Ugandan emerging theatre artistes and helping them to become the principal creators of new work. Pablo is also famously known as Uganda’s premier standup comedian and cemented this status by providing a high-quality comedy show, “PABLO LIVE”, that has aired on several television channels.
Vocal Training and Technique for the Noh Actor: A Conversation with Master Matsui Akira
Akira Matsui (with translator Jonah Salz)
August 7th at 4pm PDT.
“Akira Matsui is a master actor-teacher of the Kita School of classical noh. He has been active for over 50 years teaching and performing in over 25 countries, offering master classes at universities and theatre academies, as well as collaborating with performers in Asia, Europe, and the Americas on new noh, interpretations of Beckett and Yeats, and new fusion works. In 1998, he was designated an Important Intangible Cultural Asset by the Japanese government. He has been awarded cultural achievement awards from both the Wakayama Prefectural and City governments and in 2018, he was awarded the Regional Cultural Meritorious Individual Award by Japan’s Ministry of Science and Technology. He continues to train his son and perform noh in Japan.
Jonah Salz taught traditional Japanese and comparative theatre as a founding member of the Faculty of International Studies at Ryukoku University, Kyoto, from 1996-2024. Publications include translations of Japanese classical comedy kyogen and Super-kyogen, and plays by Issey Ogata, and Mishima Yukio. He edited the kyogen special issue of Asian Theatre Journal (2007) and was chief editor A History of Japanese Theatre, a widely used textbook (Cambridge, 2016). Jonah co-founded the Noho Theatre Group with kyogen actor Shigeyama Akira in 1981, directing Matsui Akira in Beckett’s Rockabye, Yeats’ At the Hawk’s Well, and an original Ophelia. He is Program Director for Traditional Theatre Training, a summer intensive introducing traditional forms to primarily non-Japanese artists and scholars, now celebrating its 40th year.”
Questions? Contact the Virtual Team:
Virtual Symposium Team:
Led by VASTA Board Liaison, Amy Chaffee
Rehane Abrahams
Jedd Bonstad-Clark
Jillian Courtney
Rina H. Gjoka
Petrina Kow
Sarah Nansubuga
Sarah Nichols
Elizabeth Parks
Mallika Prasad