Recent News

Danny Tejera (M.F.A. 2020) will join fellow educators in a series of educational workshops hosted by PlayPenn, an organization dedicated to creating new work and developing playwrights.

This year marks the 17th season of UTNT (UT New Theatre), a showcase of new plays by M.F.A. candidate playwrights, directed by M.F.A. candidate directors. Meet the actors and creatives bringing this festival to the stage this spring!

Alum Kristen Leahey (Ph.D. 2012) and faculty member Roxanne Schroeder-Arce contributed chapters to The Routledge Companion to Latine Theatre and Performance. Their contributions are titled "Down the Yellow Brick Road to Querencia: Brian Quijada’s Somewhere Over the Border" and "Yana Wana: A Dramatic Call to Action for Indigenous Latinx Youth in Texas," respectively.

Faculty member Karen Maness has been named a United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) Distinguished Achievement Award winner for Distinguished Achievement in Scene Design and Technology. 

Dustin Wills (B.A. 2006) was recently awarded the Obie Award for Direction for his direction of Montag (Soho Rep), Wet Brain (Playwrights Horizons and MCC Theater) and Wolf Play (MCC Theater | Soho Rep | Ma-Yi Theater Company).

Faculty member Alexandra Bassiakou Shaw was recently newly announced as a co-producing artistic director for the Rude Mechs, joining fellow faculty members Madge Darlington and Kirk Lynn. Bassiakou Shaw has been a member of the company, also resident theatre company of the Department of Theatre and Dance, since 2014. 

Alum Trey Curtis (B.F.A. 2017) is set to take on the role of "Alexander Hamilton" in Hamilton on Broadway. Curtis has performed with the musical nationally and internationally since 2019 before landing back on Broadway in the starring role.

After acclaimed screenings at major film festivals, faculty member Annie Baker's film Janet Planet has been picked up by A24. Directed and written by Baker and praised for "delicate pacing and stirring performances," Janet Planet will show in theatres in 2024. 

Faculty member Madge Darlington will serve as Interim Director for Shakespeare at Winedale for Summer 2024 and Spring and Summer 2025. Shakespeare at Winedale is The University of Texas at Austin English Department's Shakespearean acting troupe, fostering the study of Shakespeare's works through live performance.

Get to know Peter Carpenter, chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance, following his first semester at The University of Texas at Austin. Hear about his background in dance and theatre, his everyday super power and what led him to UT Austin.