Guy Bala
Guy Bala has been called a renaissance man, a bon vivant, an epicurean, and a modern-day bohemian, and rightly so -- for such descriptions fit him well. Inspired by the "unsanctioned poets" of his youth -- Bob Seeger, Journey, Foreigner, Styx, Fleetwood Mac and the Moody Blues, to name a few, Bala recognized early on the critical importance of artistic interpretation. Although an ardent fan of all traditional models of literature, Bala believes poetry to have an immediate and universal recognition of human emotions. "Words used everyday take on a profound simplicity. They become lyrical and stay in our minds, like music. Indeed, poetry often produces the most emotive sensibilities that strike at our hearts. We share universal experiences, no matter who we are or where we live. Our interpretations are different, and yet the same."
Bala is a sensitive observer of humanity and his observations are reflected in his work. "I am
intrigued with humanity. The art of being a human is something that fascinates me . . . those
things that make living a shared experience . . . the colorful palette of emotional capabilities to
express what one thinks and feels. For me, these border on the ethereal."
With an extensive background in the theatrical arts, particularly music, dance and choreography,
it is no surprise that Bala seeks to express his feelings with the same artistic elements of
movement and fluidity. He finds the poetic form the perfect medium of self-expression. "The
beauty of poetry is this -- it is sublimely aligned with the same inherent flow of movement, of
rhythm, and lyricism found in dance and music. It is also pure in expression. There is an honesty
to poetry that flows from mind to heart. That is the power of the art form."
In his latest work, Memories, Thoughts, and Dreams, Bala reveals a sweet sensitivity that speaks
sincerely of love, loss, and loneliness. "I'm not afraid to reflect on my experiences and excavate
my thoughts concerning them. It's how I have come to understand myself."
A Michigan Dearbornite, Guy Bala began his performance work as a circus acrobat. From there, he quickly advanced to teaching gymnastics and choreographing performance pieces of various genres for his students. He has appeared in a variety of staged musicals as principle dancer, Fiddler on the Roof, Applause, Mame, Follies, and the King and I, to name a few. He later studied modern ballet in Royal Oak, Michigan and also studied and performed with the Ann Arbor Civic Ballet.
While living on the beaches of SE FL, Bala was engaged in 1991 to spearhead the recruitment and training of one of the largest professional (upwards of 800 active) volunteer corps in the U.S. at the Broward Center of the Performing Arts in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He interlocked a mission of impacting the love of the arts with the necessary hospitality nature required to successfully service as many as 25,000 weekly patrons. During this tenure, he also produced a documentary, The Birth of an Arts Center, depicting the anticipation and suspense of the Broward Center's premier performance as they grandly opened with The Phantom of the Opera.
Following the Broward Center tenure, Bala then moved to a time and place of quiet reflectivenss. He settled in Highlands, North Carolina, within the Nantahala National Forest. Here he introduced a poetry reading program, "Poets at the Podium," for the Bascom Center for the Visual Arts. He also wrote "A Mountain's Sojourn" which was published in the Highlander on September 4th 2001.
Today, Bala resides in Tampa, Florida with his two rescues, Aki and Rafiki. When not working on his next artistic venture, he can be found in the kitchen, crafting a new gourmet dish. A true bon vivant!
