Full Name:
Wendy Annette Bable
Major/Year:
Drama & Theatre for Youth/Directing
Favorite class in Theatre & Dance and why:
The Playwriting Workshop class with Suzan Zeder. Suzan's classes are both rigorous and life-altering. She has a rare gift for guiding her students along a pathway that leads to tremendous personal growth, both as an artist and as a human being. It was also wonderful to be in a group of students so diversely talented who were so supportive of one another's work.
Favorite thing about Austin:
I really enjoy the juxtaposition of the city and the really beautiful natural landscape. I'd much rather be outside under a tree than treading asphalt, so Austin is an ideal combination for me. It has great bookstores, music, restaurants, and local businesses, and if you look out just about any window you can still see a tree. I love that.
Favorite place to study:
I get distracted WAY too easily to get much studying done in coffee shops (and Austin has some great ones.) I prefer to hit the libraries at UT, particularly the Fine Arts Library and the Architecture Library. I like high ceilings and good light, so if I've got to hit the books, I'm usually at one of the libraries.
Brief biography:
Wendy Bable graduated magna cum laude from Slippery Rock University with Bachelor of Arts degrees in Theatre, English Literature, and Philosophy. During her undergraduate career, she was nominated for the Irene Ryan Acting award, the National Critic's Institute, and was recognized by the American College Theatre Festival for her production of King of Sticks. In 1999, she received the Dionysus Lifetime Achievement Award and Best Actress Award from Alpha Psi Omega and was named Woman of the Year by Slippery Rock University.
Ms. Bable has worked professionally with the American Players Theatre in Wisconsin and the Unseam'd Shakespeare Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Wendy has also served as a teaching artist intern with the Drama School of Seattle Children's Theatre in Seattle, Washington. In 2003, she had the opportunity to assistant direct their summer production of Much Ado About Nothing, and returned as a teaching assistant in the summer of 2004.
From 2001-2006, Wendy served as the theatre teaching artist and the resident director for Wynn Seale Academy of Fine Arts in Corpus Christi, Texas. In 2005, she was selected as the Teacher of the Year for her campus then went on to be one of three district finalists in Corpus Christi Independent School District.
Under her direction, the Academy Theatre Department consistently produced highly acclaimed productions, including several original projects such as Through the Darkness (a multi-media, collaborative production telling the story of the Holocaust through the eyes of children).
Wendy is also the Artistic Director of UT Connections Youth Theatre (a resident theatre company based out of the UT Theatre and Dance Department) and is a member of the University Co-Op Presents the Cohen New Works Festival planning committee.
Current projects/research/interests:
Right now I'm doing a critical study of the aesthetics and ethics of theatre for youth/theatre for young audiences. I spent my first year at UT researching how theatre impacts the cognitive and social development of young adolescents ages 10-14, and presented my findings at the American Alliance for Theatre Education Conference in Vancouver over the summer. I'm also looking forward to continuing my work with UT Connections and developing a model for a university-based youth theatre company that serves as a learning laboratory for graduate and undergraduate students.
