Recent News

Faculty member Adriana Serrano (Department of Theatre and Dance and Radio-Television-Film) served as the production designer for The Obituary of Tunde Johnson, which opened the 2019 Austin Film Festival last week. Written by Stanley Kalu and directed by Ali LeRoi, The Obituary of Tunde Johnson tells the story of a gay African American Teenager who is forced to relive, over and over again, the day he is shot and killed at the hands of the police. 

Former student Keith Machekanyanga is set to play "Little Mo," a recurring character in Showtime's limited series Your Honor. This legal thriller is based on an Israeli drama and also features Bryan Cranston, Tony Curran and Lamar Johnson. 

Though it premiered over a decade ago, [12 Ophelias (a play with broken songs)] has new resonance in a year when women worldwide are seeking a reckoning of their power via #MeToo and other movements. Under Jess Shoemaker's direction, the show is a moving, mysterious production that frees Ophelia at last from Hamlet's shadow.

Radio-Television-Film faculty Ben Bays and Deepak Chetty worked with Department of Theatre and Dance lecturers J.E. Johnson and Karen Maness to interconnect three courses. Bays taught advanced visual effects, while Chetty led a course on three-dimensional animation, both of which are seen as special effects in the subgenre of visual effects.

Will Brittain (attended) plays "Trey" in Josh Harmon's SKINTIGHT, which receives its West Coast premiere at The Geffen Playhouse later this month. Brittain recently sat down with Broadway World to discuss his work on SKINTIGHT alongside original stars of the Broadway production Idina Menzel and Eli Gelb. 

Playwriting and Directing faculty member KJ Sanchez was recently named a recipient of the University Co-op Hamilton Book Author Awards for her record of creative research, including three world premieres at three different renown venues: (dis)placed (Guthrie Theatre), Grandma’s Empanadas (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre), Cincinnati King (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), as well as her directorial role in Quixote Nuevo (Alley Theatre) and the world premiere of Knyum (Merrimack Repertory Theatre). 

Headed to the New Orleans Film Festival (Narrative Short) and NewFest (Bless Your Queer Heart Shorts Program) this October, Other Black Boys, written and directed by alumnus Nyles Washington (attended) along with writer/producer Rama Tchuente (B.F.A. 2018) and Eli Weinberg (B.F.A. 2018) stars Will Kachi (current student), Brandon Pegram (current student), Eli Weinberg and Nyles Washington.

Faculty member Kirk Lynn's The Cold Record tells the story of a 12 year old boy trying to set the record for the most days leaving school sick and in the process falls in love with the school nurse. Directed by faculty member Alexadra Bassiakou Shaw, The Cold Record was on stage at Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, Canada as part of Brave Festival 2019.  

Alumnus and Emmy Award-winning actor Rip Torn (B.S. 1953) passed away this week at age 88. Torn made his reputation as a gifted actor on film and both on and off Broadway. Most notably, portraying the role of "Artie" on the comedy series The Larry Sanders Show for which he received six consecutive Emmy nominations, winning the Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a comedy series in 1996. 

With the 2018–2019 academic year and production season over, summer settles into the Winship Drama Building. No rest, however, for the artistic! Texas Theatre and Dance faculty, staff and students are making their way all around the globe for a range of creative and scholastic projects. In this two-part series, we give a brief glimpse into the whos, whats and wheres of Summer 2019. This installment: our notes for June.