Dave Reynolds of Wilkes Barre is the 23rd #NEPACreative of 2017. Dave brings creativity to the area through theater and giving a voice to original playwrights and artists. Day to day, Dave wears many different hats in the world of theater. He is a director, set designer, lighting designer, and both a theater artist and a teacher at King’s College and KISS Theatre as well as a founding member of the Gaslight Theatre Company.
Dave began working in theater officially when he was a junior in high school. He choose to make it his career about 15 years ago because to him, there is literally nothing else that he would be happy doing.
“My first role was in Anything Goes. I played Moonface Martin, the goofy, comic gangster. I immediately fell in love with the magic of theater,” Reynolds explained. “Being around lots of talented people who gave their time and talents generously and watching the whole thing come to life was amazing. I knew then that the theater would always be a part of my life.”
Dave’s love for theater and the arts grew over time with the assistance of a handful of very important people in his life. He expressed how fortunate he feels to have had great teachers all throughout his journey thus far.
His elementary school music teacher, Mr. G, taught him to love music and creativity. Upon entering high school, a director by the name of Mrs. Smith helped him find his love for theater. During his time as a student at King’s College, he said he felt blessed to learn the craft of theater from three inspiring professors, Sheileen Godwin, J. Gerald Godwin and Brother Jim Miller. While in graduate school at Temple University, Dave said he had amazing professors who taught him how to think big and creatively as a designer and theater artist.
“I’m inspired everyday by my students at King’s. Watching them learn, grow, take risks and succeed in their craft makes it all worth it. And throughout all of it, my greatest inspiration has been the love of my life, my wife Christina,” Reynolds said. “She’s also a theater person and teacher, as well as the most amazing mom to our three kids. Having her in my corner is the greatest feeling in the world. I simply could not do all of the things I get to do without her constant, love and support.”
To Dave, being creative means surrounding himself with amazingly talented artists, sharing ideas and visions, and watching all of this come together in one beautiful cohesive production.
When being considered as an NEPA Creative, individuals are asked to explain how they bring creativity to the area, how long they have been doing it and why, and finally what being creative means to them. Once chosen, the next step is to bring each creative into CoalCreative’s studio space to be filmed for a 60 second video that is shared every Wednesday across all their social media platforms. The series plans to highlight all sorts of creatives throughout the rest of the year. There are no limits to who could be considered. Photographers, musicians, barbers, magicians and improv artists are just a handful of the submissions CoalCreative has received thus far.
