After Graduating with my M.M in Contemporary Performance & Production (Voice) from Berklee Valencia this past July, I set out on an ambitious adventure to the Big Apple in order to pursue my true passion: Theatre. While I knew quickly I’d be missing Valencia, I also knew that if one wants to embark on a theatrical career, there’s no place to do so other than right here in New York City!
Kierto es un rapero ecuatoriano, productor y director radicado en Nueva York. Irrumpió en la escena del hip hop underground en el año 2010, en plena ciudad de Quito, mismo año donde fundó su sello discográfico “High Records” donde colabora con diversos artistas. En el 2012 viajó a E.E.U.U. con motivos de crecer con la música. Sus influencias son varias: Vico-C, Nach, Tiro de Gracia, Arianna Puello, Control Machete, Cartel De Santa, Orishas, Talib Kweli, Rakim, Cypress Hill, Immortal Technique, Onyx, Lost Boyz, Wu-Tang Clan, Dr. Dre, 50 Cent y Eminem.
In putting together a final thesis, one in which we would work on for the entire year, I wanted to create a piece of art that was meaningful and that would have a lasting legacy. Surrounded in the beautiful city of Valencia, I was inspired to write and compose an original musical Ciao Bambino, a blend of Mediterranean and American music, where I would serve as the writer, composer and lead actress.
Taking a project on like this is no easy task, in fact it has never even been done before on Berklee Valencia’s campus. Putting together a storyline, writing a full two act script, character development, a total of twenty-four songs with music and lyrics, ten produced musical demos in the Berklee recording studios, and a business/finance plan, was what I spent the majority of my year researching, and creating. So, when I graduate with my Masters, I will return back to New York City, and start workshopping my original musical, and present this package to theaters, producers, and investors in hopes of mounting a professional production on stage.
Casey Driessen is the new Contemporary Performance (Production Concentration) Program Director at Berklee’s campus in Valencia, Spain. Casey recently performed at the Viljandi Folk festival in Estonia and shared his thoughts with the local publication Eesti Ekspress:
“I spent last weekend in Viljandi, Estonia, for my first solo gigs since arriving to my new life in Spain and the EU. It was my first time to Estonia and traveling there was similar to flying across the USA. I’m no stranger to long travel, but in this case, residing within the EU now makes getting places like this much more probable—which was a big attraction to moving here. I love music, of course, but more specifically, I love the cultural exchange that happens through music.
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