Recent News

The Department of Theatre and Dance and the College of Fine Arts at The University of Texas at Austin are pleased to announce the renewed residency of the nationally-acclaimed, ensemble -based theatre collective, Rude Mechs. This two-year residency will provide students the opportunity to work with and learn from members of Rude Mechs through group workshops, mentorship and respondent feedback on student-devised work and processes.

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The Department of Theatre and Dance and the College of Fine Arts at The University of Texas at Austin are pleased to announce the renewed residency of the nationally-acclaimed, ensemble -based theatre collective, Rude Mechs. This two-year residency will provide students the opportunity to work with and learn from members of Rude Mechs through group workshops, mentorship and respondent feedback on student-devised work and processes.

Texas Theatre and Dance is pleased to present Isaac Gómez’s La Ruta, a heartbreaking story of a border town, a bus route and the women of Ciudad Juárez who are disappearing. Inspired by real testimonies from women affected by the ongoing femicides along the border, La Ruta will be presented virtually October 23-24, 2020 under the direction of Anna Skidis Vargas.

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The 2019-2020 B. Iden Payne Award Nominations feature multiple members of the UT Theatre and Dance community, including 12 nominations for Spring Awakening, 11 nominations for Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet and six nominations for 12 Ophelias (a play with broken songs), among numerous alumni, student and faculty work outside of the university.

Alumnus Andrew Aaron Valdez (B.F.A. 2017) is currently featured as part of the touring production of American Dreams, an interactive, virtual play that invites audiences to vote on which of the game-show contestants earns immediate citizenship. On virtual stages through November 2020. 

Texas Theatre and Dance, in partnership with Texas Performing Arts and Fusebox Festival, presents Charles O. Anderson’s (Re)current Unrest October 16-17, 2020 as a livestreamed performance event. This immersive ‘ritual’ performance is built upon the sonic foundation of Steve Reich’s three earliest works: It’s Gonna Rain (parts 1 and 2), Come Out and Pendulum. This work, created over a two-year development period, utilizes movement, media and powerful imagery to meditate on the “American Dream” and Black nihilism, borne of the current racially charged moment.

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This fall, the Department of Theatre and Dance at The University of Texas at Austin welcomes new faculty member Raquel Barreto who will serve as an associate professor in the costume design area. Barreto, a Brazilian-born costume designer, comes to the university with extensive experience in design for live performance including theatre, dance and opera. She will be teaching graduate level courses focusing on visual interpretations of myth, cross-cultural approaches to design and alternative ways costume designers can expand the narrative process.

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Faculty member Katie Dawson is serving as a co-host for the Provost Teaching Fellow's new podcast The Other Side of Campus where she and other colleagues from across the Forty Acres discuss their experiences as educators as they continue to strive to innovate, create and grow as teachers.

Associate department chair and head of the dance area Charles O. Anderson has received the prestigious Creative Research Award from The University of Texas at Austin's Office of the Vice President for Research and the University Co-operative Society recognizing his extraordinary creative achievement and scholarship in 2019 as the artistic director of DANCE THEATRE X and the creator of the evening-length dance performance (Re)current Unrest.

Faculty member and Texas Performing Arts scenic studio supervisor J.E. Johnson, along with three other local Austin artists, recently shared his thoughts on the struggles and creative innovations experienced while working during this time. Johnson touched on his hands-on Performance Robots course and how it has shifted due to the pandemic.