Associate Professor and Associate Head Tom Mitchell is spearheading efforts to mark 50 years of Illinois Theatre. Alumni and other friends of Illinois Theatre are invited to a weekend celebration of our past, present, and future. Highlighting our five decades of innovative teaching and production, as well as our efforts to diversify U.S. stages, we will…
Our smart and sassy student workers, Susan Bywaters, Esther Fishbein, Hannah Schumacher, Alexandra Smith, and Vincent Williams, are developing an expanded social media presence for Illinois Theatre. Like Illinois Theatre on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @TheatreIllinois, and find us on Instagram at illinoistheatre. We are featuring lots of behind-the-scenes information about our classes and productions, as well as…
Stage management professors Cindy Kocher and Amber Schultz took the MFA stage managers to New York City as part of their course on commercial theatre. Students toured Hudson Scenic Shop, which built sets for the Hamilton tours, and the Eric Winterling Costume Shop for a demonstration of the gorgeous breakaway costume from Frozen. Students met with Alexander Dodge…
Our faculty graced Windy City stages this fall. Associate Professor of Scenic Design Regina Garcia created the contemporary museum gallery, hospice apartment, ancient Greek temple, and 17th century artist’s studio for The Rembrandt, produced by Steppenwolf Theatre and featuring longtime company member John Mahoney. The Chicago Sun-Times called her the “unseen star of this production” and praised her…
Professor Emeritus Dr. Bernhard R. Works was Krannert Center for the Performing Arts’ first technical director and served in that capacity until his retirement in 1993. He died October 28, 2017, in Middleton, Wisconsin, surrounded by friends and family. In his long career in technical theatre, Dr. Works designed hundreds of productions in schools, colleges,…
Every production—whether in the Studio, the Armory, or the Playhouse—is special. But this fall’s production of Travesties offered a unique opportunity to connect with alums, theatre professionals, and campus initiatives. British wordsmith Tom Stoppard imagines Zurich in 1917, putting surrealist Tristan Tzara, novelist James Joyce, and revolutionary Vladimir Lenin in conversation with each other, the women they…
Following a national search, Professor Kirsten Pullen became Head of the Department of Theatre on August 16. Dr. Pullen joins us from Texas A&M University where she was a professor of Performance Studies. She had served as Director of Graduate Studies for Texas A&M’s M.A. in Performance Studies from its inception in 2010. From 2012…
Illinois Theatre alumnus Nick Offerman (B.F.A. 1993), known for his role of Ron Swanson on Parks and Recreation, visited campus in March to see Iago’s Plot and to attend a Japan House fundraising event. Offerman spent his Sunday morning regaling an intimate gathering of Theatre students about his experiences at Illinois and beyond. In May, Offerman returned as the main speaker…
On April 1, the Champaign-Urbana Schools Foundation hosted a gala to celebrate the accomplishments of their alumni. Illinois Theatre’s Lisa Gaye Dixon was honored with the Distinguished Alumni Award. In a News-Gazettearticle featuring Professor Dixon, the acting teacher spoke about her journey as a teacher and artist. Beyond the teaching of subject matter itself, she noted the…
Iago’s Plot, adapted and directed by Shozo Sato, played to a remarkable response at Krannert Center from March 30 to April 9. Reviews called it “visually stunning, tragic, and haunting,” and noted that “Sato reveals new truth in this classic tale of family dysfunction.” Jessica Kadish, current M.F.A. student in acting, described the process as…