Wesley Roberts Dalton

About me:

Well, well I am producing and directing a film called " Bird Lake " which will be shot here near Fairbanks, Alaska in Spring 2010. http://birdlakemovie.wordpress.com/ www.authenticakproductions.com I also play music, work at the day job, father to several amazing daughters, and commit myself to helping others stay sober. If you are interested in working on the Bird Lake movie with us in 2010, check out the websites above and keep an eye out for the trailer in several weeks. Wes. (some archives from past work below) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: The Winter Bear Performance Dates: May 22, 2008 (Preview) at 7:30 p.m May 23 at 7:30 p.m. May 24 at 2:00 p.m. &; 7:30 p.m. At Salisbury Theatre in the UAF Fine Arts Complex Open seating. Admission is free. *Parking is free at UAF after 5:00 p.m. and on weekends. The Winter Bear is a fictional play, but one of the main characters is based on a real person, Sidney Charles Huntington, a Koyukon elder from Galena, Alaska. Fairbanks, AK “I’ve learned some new things that make me appreciate my culture even more through working with this play and the life of Sidney Huntington,” says Elias Saylor who plays the part of Duane “Shadow” David, a troubled 16-year-old Athabascan, who is sentenced to cut wood for Sidney Huntington for a winter. The play explores the actual events of Huntington’s life through his fictional interaction with the contemporary teen-ager. In the process of coping with their own lives, the elderly man and the young man discover that in spite of their differences their Athabascan culture binds them together. When a winter bear, a grizzly that has been disturbed during hibernation, threatens the village, the two must work together to hunt the bear in the old Athabascan way. Duane, tutored by Sidney, is finally able to take the final step toward self-actualization that allows him to become a hero. About 30 students at Effie Kokrine Charter School, a Fairbanks public school with a focus on Athabascan culture, are receiving college credit for acting in and assisting with all technical aspects of the play. Community members are also involved as actors, technical advisors and mentors to the Effie Kokrine students. “For instance, Frank Yaska, an actor with Athabascan roots who plays Sidney Huntington, is helping the students with stage movement, voice and diction,” says Wesley Roberts Dalton, the director, who has a Tlingit and Athabascan background (www.authenticakproductions.com). First-time actor Mark Frank, who plays a disgruntled former Village Public Safety Officer, explains that the goal behind the program is to educate the community about Native history and culture and to train Native students in all aspects of theater. The idea came out of a brainstorming session at Diigi Naii, a group of Native men who meet to come up with innovative ways to promote Native culture, especially to young, at-risk Native men. Denakkanaaga, Inc. was happy to partner with the group since its mission is to promote the interests of elders and youth. They received a grant from First Alaskans Institute to launch the “Broadway for Natives” Program at Effie Kokrine Charter School. “We wanted to begin this unique collaboration with a play that showcases our Native culture. That’s why we turned to Shadows on the Koyukuk, Sidney Huntington’s autobiography as told to Jim Rearden,” says Matthew Stevens who is producing the show. Fairbanks playwright Anne Hanley, a former Alaska Writer Laureate, wrote the script. After interviewing Huntington and reading his book, she decided that a fictional interaction between Huntington and a troubled teenager would be the most powerful way to present the lessons of Huntington’s life. (Denakkanaaga Inc. is an elder program serving the interior of Alaska and based in Fairbanks. Denakkanaaga Inc. is a non-profit 501c(3) organization and has been incorporated since 1983).