Horace Mann - Spring 2017 - 48

Class Notes

1972
Save the Date, October 14, 2017,
for HM Homecoming and the
45th Reunion of the Class of 1972.

1974

Prof. Jonathan Slater wrote: I had the pleasure
in June (2016) of getting together and catching
up with classmate Neil Friedman at his home
in the Boston area. I continue to chair the
Department of Journalism and Public Relations
at SUNY Plattsburgh. In fall 2015, I also became
the director of the campus' new Jewish Studies
Program. In addition, I recently was appointed
to lead the college's Institute for Ethics in Public
Life. These three administrative roles pretty
much keep me away from the classroom,
where I have spent the bulk of the last 18 years.

in People Magazine and The Huffington Post)
and Best Revenge: How the Theatre Saved My
Life and Has Been Killing Me Ever Since, as well
as two books of poetry, Dreaming in the Maze of
Love-Grief-Madness and U & Me & The City. His
articles and essays on the arts have appeared
in The New York Times Arts & Leisure section,
the Village Voice and the New Republic (among
others), and he has edited several volumes of
monologues and scenes for Applause Books.
Fife's screenplay adaptations of his plays Blue
Kiss and Sizzle Sizzle are both being filmed. His
screenplay The Falling Man has won several
awards. The alumnus is currently based in the
Los Angeles area, where he co-founded and
ran The Young Actors Workshop in Venice, Calif.
for five years, directing students ages 7-15 in
original musicals he wrote for them, including
Charming and Young Forever. (Young Forever
was also performed by teens in Tokyo.)

1976
Doug Henderson, Jr. enjoyed his Class reunion
at Homecoming 2016. Shortly before his
reunion, during the U.S. Open, Doug was joined
for dinner at Mr. Chow with Jimmy Connors
and his daughter Aubree. Henderson's book
Endeavor to Persevere covered Connors' five
U.S. Open championship wins.

1975
Stephen Fife's play Blue Kiss was featured at

the 2016 Hollywood Fringe, where one critic
called it "a sly and brilliant conundrum." His
play, The American Wife-co-written with
Ralph Pezzullo-premiered at the Park Theatre
in London on September 10, 2016 before an
audience of luminaries, including actors Emma
Thompson and Emilia Clarke. The American
Wife was chosen by HB Playwrights in New
York City for its fall reading series. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Columbia
University School of the Arts Stephen was
recently featured in an "Alumni Spotlight" interview by Columbia's School of the Arts. http://
arts.columbia.edu/soa50/spotlight/stephenfife. Along with Blue Kiss and The American
Wife Fife's plays include Savage World, Break
of Day and This Is Not What I Ordered, Sizzle
Sizzle, Mickey's Home, Scattered Blossoms,
FutureSex and The Shadow Man. His adaptation
of Sholem Asch's God of Vengeance was produced Off-Broadway by the Jewish Repertory
Theatre. Receiving glowing reviews it has been
performed around the world. Stephen has also
published the memoirs The 13th Boy (featured

Horace Mann Magazine Spring 2017

Attorney Robert G. (Rob) Nassau is Professor
of Practice and Director, Low Income Taxpayer
Clinic, Associate Director, Office of Clinical Legal
Education at Syracuse University College of
Law. Rob recently connected with several young
HM alums who are current Syracuse University
undergraduates after he read in the summer
2016 issue of Horace Mann Magazine that HM's
graduating Class of 2016 included two students
who would be entering Syracuse. Prof. Nassau
contacted the HM Alumni and Development
Office offering to make himself available as a
local resource to these new Syracuse students.
After learning of additional HMers in their
sophomore and junior years at the university
he also extended his gracious invitation to these
young alums. The Alumni and Development
Office and Horace Mann School appreciates his
generous hospitality to these alumni.

1977
Save the Date, October 14, 2017,
for HM Homecoming and the
40th Reunion of the Class of 1977.

Lawrence (Larry)
Axelrod released his
CD "The Heart
Revived" on Aug. 26,
2016. https://www.
amazon.com/
Axelrod-HeartRevived-Lawrence/dp/B01KYOICWY. His
second album for Innova Recordings "The
Heart Revived" covers almost two decades of
Axelrod's work, and displays a passionate and
emotional range of expression. A notable work
on this release is the song cycle "Saisons" with
the French poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke as its
basis. Axelrod's colorful orchestration
brilliantly supports the soloist's journey
through the seasons. His first album for Innova
Recordings was "The Six Brandenberg
Fantasias" a series of companion pieces to
each of J.S. Bach's Brandenburg concerti.
Axelrod also contributed to Chicago's
celebration of the 100th anniversary of poet
Carl Sandburg's ode to that city by composing
a classical work based on Sandburg's poem
"From the Shore." The work was performed as
part of Chicago's groundbreaking Ear Taxi
Festival of new music, on a concert broadcast
on wfmt.com on October 7, 2016 and at a
concert of Sandburg-inspired music on
October 8, 2016. Axelrod's works have been
performed by such ensembles as The Chicago
Composers Orchestra, Pinotage, The Lincoln
Trio, the Ensemble JungeMusik Berlin, The
Verdi String Quartet and more in recent
seasons. Two of his Brandenburg Fantasias
were premiered by the Chicago Composers
Orchestra in November 2014. His music was
also included in the Sound of Silent Film

http://www.amazon.com/Axelrod-Heart-Revived-Lawrence/dp/B01KYOICWY http://www.amazon.com/Axelrod-Heart-Revived-Lawrence/dp/B01KYOICWY http://www.amazon.com/Axelrod-Heart-Revived-Lawrence/dp/B01KYOICWY http://www.amazon.com/Axelrod-Heart-Revived-Lawrence/dp/B01KYOICWY http://arts.columbia.edu/soa50/spotlight/stephen-fife http://arts.columbia.edu/soa50/spotlight/stephen-fife http://www.wfmt.com http://arts.columbia.edu/soa50/spotlight/stephen-fife

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