Congratulations to theatre and music alum Melissa Kraus ('06) on her new position with the prestigious O'Neill Theatre. Starting Sept. 2 she will become the Executive Assistant to the Artistic Director. Some recent shows that have premiered at the O'Neill are Avenue Q, In The Heights, & Spring Awakening~ all recent Tony-Award winners! The O'Neill is home to the National Playwrights, Music Theater, and Puppetry conferences as well as the National Theater Institute, O'Neill Critics Conference, O'Neill Cabaret Conference, summer Commercial Theater Institute, and Young Playwrights Conference. Alumni of these programs includes playwrights August Wilson, John Guarre, Israel Horowitz, John Patrick Shanley, Edward Albee, Adam Bock, Adam Rapp, David Lindsay-Abaire, Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the Heights) and Craig Wright, as well as acting celebrities Meryl Streep, Michael Douglas, Danny DeVito, Robert Redford, John Krasinski, Jennifer Garner, Jeremy Piven, Brian Dennehy, and many more.

 

GOOD LUCK

to our graduating SENIORS!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Left to right: Katie Doll, Candice Kozinski,

Dr. Teresa Durbin-Ames, Marty Thoman

 

Carrie Balchak                                                    Matt Bugay

BA Theatre                                                         BA Musical Theatre

BA Speech Communication                              BA Spanish

Katie Doll                                                            Jenna Gribben

BA Theatre                                                         BA Costume Design

BS Business Administration                            (Interdisciplinary Studies)

Candice Kozinski                                                Tara Murphy

BA Electronic Media Production                    BA Music (Applied)

Minor: Theatre                                                   BA Musical Theatre

Jessica Scheve                                                     Marty Thoman

BA Speech                                                          BA Politcal Science

Minor: Theatre                                                   BA Theatre

Allison Toth                                                        Jon West

BA Theatre                                                         BA Theatre

Minor: Music (Applied)                                     Minor: Art

 

Announcing our 2008.2009 Season!

The Crucible

by Arthur Miller

Hugo Young Theatre

October 10, 11, 17, 18, 2008-- 7:30 p.m.

October 19, 2008-- 2 p.m.

Crimes of the Heart

by Beth Henley

Studio Theatre

November 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22, 2008-- 7:30 p.m.

November 23, 2008-- 2 p.m.

The Spitfire Grill

Music, Book, and Orchestrations by James Valcq

Lyrics and Book by Fred Alley

Based on the film by Lee David Zlotoff

Hugo Young Theatre

February 20, 21, 27, 28, 2009-- 7:30 p.m.

March 1, 2009-- 2 p.m.

The Shape of Things

by Neil LaBute

Studio Theatre

March 26, 27, 28, April 2, 3, 4, 2009-- 7:30 p.m.

April 5, 2009-- 2 p.m.

 

Student Summer 2008 Happenings

Rachel Frady and Nicole Hale will perform with recent grad Matt Bugay at Huron Playhouse this summer.

George Maxin IV will return to Ohio Light Opera in the properties department, and Taylor Hale, a first-timer at OLO, will do carpentry and/or electrical work. They will join recent grads Allison Toth, company, and Jon West, Scene Shop Foreman.

D. Justin Bilewicz III will costume Little Shop of Horrors for Sandstone Summer Theatre in Amherst; Palace Youth Theatre's Willy Wonka Jr. in Lorain; and Dobama Theatres Kid's Playwriting Festival, which includes 11 plays written by some Cleveland area kids, ages ranging from 1st grade to 12th grade.

Shane O'Neill will perform in Honk June 13- 28, and Blood Brothers July 11- 26, for Mercury Summer Stock at the Parma Little Theatre.

AU Theatre Hosts 2008 StateThespians

From April 4-6, 2008, the Ashland University Department of Theatre hosted the State Thespian Conference, with more than 1,700 high school students in attendance. The students performed short plays and attended seminars (some given by AU theatre students) to broaden their knowledge of the theatre. Student-led workshops included: Musical Theatre, seniors Matt Bugay and Shane O'Neill; Musical Dance, senior Tara Murphy; Scenic Design, junior George Maxin IV; Costume, junior D. Justin Bilewicz III; Playwrighting, junior Alex Kugler; and Getting Warmed Up and Basic Tap, senior Nicole Hale. AU grads Paul Rycik (Acting for Shakespeare, Dramaturgy) and Dusten Welch (Sword Fighting) also taught workshops. The high school students also performed the full-length play Dead Man Walking (also part of the AU Theatre season), directed by AU's Fabio Polanco, as part of their training. The University hosts the Conference in even-numbered years.

 

Sister Helen Prejean Visits as Part of

Dead Man Walking School Theatre Project

As part of Ashland University's Dead Man Walking School Theatre Project, Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking and Death of Innocents, visited the University on Saturday, February 23, 2008. After her lecture before an audience of almost 400, she answered questions and signed books. She also attended a dinner in her honor where she spoke with AU students and faculty. In addition, Sr. Helen talked to the cast of AU Theatre's production of Dead Man Walking, written by Tim Robbins and based on her book, then attended the performance. She declared herself quite pleased with the University's presention of the Project as a whole and enjoyed the performance. In Sister Helen's own words, this was what she and Tim Robbins envisioned when they designed the Dead Man Walking School Theatre Project. Thank you to all who supported our endeavors! Photo: Sister Helen and cast members of Dead Man Walking.

 

American College Theatre Festival

At the Region III 2007 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in Milwuakee, WI, theatre graduate Paul Rycik won the top award for his dramaturgy on our 2006 production of Romeo and Juliet. Paul attended the National Dramaturgy Competition in Washington D.C. at the Kennedy Center in the spring.

For two consecutive year a production of AU Theatre was chosen to perform at the regional Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival at Illinois StateUniversity. We performed Proof on January 12, 2006, directed by Professor Emeritus Murray Hudson. In the acting competition senior Alesia Lawson was awarded Regional Winner- Classical Acting and Best Musical Actor. Assistant Professor Heather Corwin won the award for Best Classical Acting Coach. Photo: Kelly Strand & Trishah Scalera, Proof, 2005

In January 2005 the Ashland University production of The Maids, directed by former Associate Professor Kenneth J. Martin, also was performed at the regional Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival. The Maids was one of seven productions in a five-state region chosen to perform at the festival.

These are achievements of which few national theatre programs can boast. We are proud of our program and invite you to see the reason our students and productions have received these honors.

Check out our alums on our Footlighters page.