About Us
Department of Theatre and Dance
More than Acting: Excellence in Playwriting and Drama and Theatre for Youth
The Department of Theatre and Dance is home to talented and ambitious students pursuing careers as artists, educators and scholars. It comes as no surprise that some of the most prominently featured students are those who perform on stage. Though these performance specialties are likely to be the most apparent to the outside observer, outstanding student achievements are steadily found among students from all areas of study.
George Brant
Through his work at the James A. Michener Center for Writers and Department of Theatre and Dance, recent graduate, George Brant had the opportunity to fully develop his original play, Elephant's Graveyard. This poised him to win one of the world's largest student literary prizes, the 2008 Keene Prize for Literature.
Set in 1916, Brant's winning drama is based on the true tale of a third–rate circus traveling through a small Tennessee town and the spectacle created as a result of a circus animal's merciless punishment. It was first produced as a staged reading as part of the 2007 University Co–op Presents the Cohen New Works Festival. The play was then selected and produced for the Department of Theatre and Dance 2007–2008 main stage season. Brant credits the play's success to this process.
George Brant as “Ringmaster” in Elephant's Graveyard
He explains, "This was the second time I'd submitted Elephant's Graveyard to the Keene…the play had changed considerably since the previous year…The opportunity to produce the play at UT was invaluable in its development."
Brant plans to use the $50,000 award to support his career as a writer, and hopes that the award will encourage more theatres to produce Elephant's Graveyard.
Wendy Bable
Teaching artist and Master of Fine Arts in Drama and Theatre for Youth candidate, Wendy Bable has also been provided significant career assistance through her association with the university. As one of 14 universities in the United States offering degrees in theatre for young audiences, the UT Austin Department of Theatre and Dance is eligible to nominate students for the Annual Winifred Ward Scholarship.
"Winners of this prestigious award are sure to be leaders in the profession, leaders of tomorrow," expresses Dr. Coleman A. Jennings, Drama and Theatre for Youth Area Head.
Recipient of the 2008 Winifred Ward award, Bable is the ninth student from the Department of Theatre and Dance to receive this national honor for outstanding scholarly and artistic ability in the area of drama and theatre for children.
Bable and Jennings
This summer, Bable lent her talents to the Austin community, directing Seussical The Musical for ZACH Theatre's Performing Arts School. She will return to UT in the fall to serve as director of the 2008–2009 main stage production Still Life With Iris.
Related Links:
George Brant Wins 2008 Keene Prize for Literature for “Elephants Graveyard”
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