The 2023/2024 B. Iden Payne Award winners were announced November 11 , 2024, honoring many artists in the Austin theatre community. The Texas Theatre and Dance productions of Ride the Cyclone (2023) and Romeo y Juliet (2024) were among this year's award winners, along with multiple UT Theatre and Dance artists working at theatres across Austin.
Kevin Adams (B.F.A., Theatrical Design, 1984) to light new Avett Brothers musical and "Aida" at the Met
November 11, 2024
Renowned lighting designer Kevin Adams is set to illuminate a range of performances in the coming months. Adams is currently preparing to light the new Avett Brothers musical Swept Away, and in December he will design the lighting for the new production of Aida at the Met Opera. Other recent work includes lighting design for the opera Grounded, by Jeanine Tesori and with a libretto by George Brant (M.F.A., Play Writing, 2008).
In 2016, the college honored Adams with the E. William Doty Distinguished Alumnus Award.
Faculty member Barbara Chisholm shares advice for aspiring theatre artists in a recent Backstage article highlighting faculty who are also working actors. She was interviewed among fellow acting professors from institutions across the country.
Hunter Regian (B.A. 2017) is creating his own Broadway production firm, Regian Entertainment, after earning his first Broadway co-producing credit on the revival of Sunset Boulevard.
John Proctor is the Villain, written by playwriting alum Kimberly Belflower (M.F.A. 2017), will premiere on Broadway in Spring 2025. Belflower's play will be directed by Tony winner Danya Taymor (The Outsiders) and will feature Sadie Sink (Stranger Things, The Whale).
