Head of dance, Charles O. Anderson's work (Re)current Unrest was recently awarded a grant from The New England Foundation for the Arts' (NEFA) National Dance Project (NDP) which supports the creation of 20 new dance works that will tour the United States. (Re)current Unrest was staged as part of Fall For Dance (Texas Theatre and Dance) and premiered at Fusebox Festival in Austin, Texas in 2018. Faculty member Rennie Harris was also awarded for his work LAZARUS (Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation).

Rudy Ramirez (M.F.A. 2012) has been recognized as one of "6 Theatre Workers You Should Know" by American Theatre magazine, which recognizes up-and-coming artists and administrators who have made an impact on theatre in the United States. 

Incoming dance faculty member, Gesel Mason, brings her experience to Austin, along with an extensive digital dance archive documenting 15 years of performing the choreography of 10 black artists relatively unknown to the general public, entitled No Boundaries: Dancing the Visions of Contemporary Black Choreographers.

Alumnus Isaac Gomez (B.A. 2013) has been named the co-recipient of the Lanford Wilson Award along with R. Eric Thomas by the Dramatists Guild of America. This award is presented annually to early career playwrights at the Guild's national conference, which will take place July 28 in New York.  

Summer is officially underway and faculty and students of Texas Theatre and Dance have departed Winship to spread their knowledge and creativity far and wide, from Austin to Minnesota; Cincinnati to New York. In this two-part series, we take a look at what everyone is up to this summer.

Robert Schenkkan (B.A. 1975) has been named a recipient of the Texas Exes Distinguished Alumnus Awards. A Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winner, Schenkkan is the author of several prominent works including All the Way, Building the Wall  and Hacksaw Ridge. The awards ceremony will take place at the Etter-Harbin Alumni Center on Friday, November 2.

'A' (What the Black Girl Found While Searching for God) written and performed by Taji Senior, directed by alumnus Matrex Kilgore (B.A. 2015) heads to Ground Floor Theatre this July. Inspired by George Bernard Shaw's The Adventures of the Black Girl in Her Search For God, 'A' is the story of a person, searching inside and outside of herself to find her place in the world. That search is filtered through a lens of black girlhood. 'A' hopes to ask and answer the question: Who has the right to self-creation?

Away, written by Andrew Hinderaker (M.F.A. 2013), is loosely inspired by Chris Jones' Esquire article of the same name and details an epic love story and a thrilling tale of survival set against humanity’s greatest endeavor – the first human mission to Mars. Netflix premiere date to be announced in 2018. 

One of Backstage's "25 Amazing Acting Colleges You Need to Know," UT Austin provides "conservatory-style teaching...woven together with training in fields like voiceover-for-video-games for a unique approach to learning. Students also have the option to participate in an L.A. residency for first-hand experience in the industry. If you’re looking for an intimate learning experience within a larger university located in a funky city, consider UT Austin."

Kathy Dunn Hamrick (B.A. 1981) of Kathy Dunn Hamrick Dance Company was recently added to the ranks of the Austin Arts Hall of Fame along with four other local creatives for their shared commitment to helping the arts thrive in Austin.

Alumnus Abe Koogler (M.F.A. 2014) recently received an Obie Award for playwriting for his work Fulfillment Center, presented at the Manhattan Theatre Club. The Obie Awards recognize the best writers, actors, directors and designers of Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway theatre. 

An information affiliation of local arts critics have recognized the year's most exceptional achievements in dance, classical music, visual arts and theatre. The Department of Theatre and Dance productions, students, faculty, alumni and friends are well represented on this year's list of nominations, including eight nominations for Dance Repertory Theatre's Fall For Dance (2017), six nominations for the spring 2018 production of Lucy Prebble's ENRON and two nominations for The Drowsy Chaperone.

Department of Theatre and Dance faculty member, associate professor Roxanne Schroeder-Arce has been named the new director of UTeach Fine Arts, the arts teacher preparation program in the College of Fine Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. 

The work presented on stage would not be possible without our talented designers, who spend countless hours developing artistry that bring performances to life. We sat down with two of our design students to discuss their creative process and the challenges of crafting work for both new plays and choreography.

Associate professor Lisa B. Thompson (Performance as Public Practice) has been named one of "The Texas Ten" by The Alcalde, awarded to those nominated by alumni as their favorite faculty members from their time on the Forty Acres. 

Sightlines magazine recently sat down with head of dance, Charles O. Anderson to discuss his work, (Re)Current Unrest, which was recently staged at Fusebox Festival (2018). This piece explores the kinesthetic state of unrest - the condition of unease, discontent and social disturbance, as a metaphor for "staying woke" about social issues and contemporary society. 

Lizzy Tan, a fourth-year B.F.A. in Dance and B.A. in Economics major, is the recipient of the Texas Parents' Outstanding Student Award. Established in 1951, the annual award celebrates two senior students who demonstrate exceptional leadership, scholarship, character and service.

Dr. Paul Bonin-Rodriguez, associate professor of the Performance Public Practice program, has been invited to attend the History of Capitalism Summer Camp, a two-week intensive workshop on economic methods for historians.

Mark-Anthony Zuniga, undergraduate academic advisor for the Department of Theatre and Dance, has been named one of three University of Texas at Austin employees to receive the Regents' Outstanding Employee Award, which recognizes full-time, non-faculty employees who have shown outstanding performance, innovation, enthusiasm and dedication to their job. The award ceremony will take place May 14, 2018. 

Creating new work is a challenging process, often riddled with unforeseen obstacles, tough decisions and unique opportunities to develop innovative art. We sat down with the playwrights and directors of UTNT (UT New Theatre) to discuss their process of creating these new plays, how those works have changed and why it’s important to let these works evolve as they are read, developed and, ultimately, presented to an audience.