Theatre, Dance, and Performance Department News

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Statement of Solidarity With Black Students, Colleagues, and Citizens

The IUP Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance stands in solidarity with communities in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Louisville, Tallahassee, and across the nation that are fighting for racial justice.

Posted on 6/3/2020 10:52:36 PM

Theatre, Dance, and Performance Announces Outstanding Student Achievement

The Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance announces the awards for outstanding achievement in 2019–20. These students excelled in theater and dance courses, and accomplished noteworthy creative achievements on stage and “behind the scenes.”

Posted on 5/20/2020 4:27:24 PM

New Student Audition Deadline Extended Through Summer

Due to restrictions resulting from the COVID 19 pandemic, we are extending our audition period through the summer. We accept video recorded auditions anytime for Theatre, Musical Theatre, and Dance Arts auditions. Prospective students must first be accepted to IUP.

Posted on 4/8/2020 4:35:43 PM

CFA Costume Studio Employee Makes Face Masks for Mission-Critical IUP Employees

Kym Laret is pivoting her expertise to help staff on campus stay safe with dozens of hand-crafted face masks. Kym is the professional staff costume technician in the Theatre, Dance, and Performance costume studio.

Posted on 4/7/2020 4:28:08 PM

DeSoto-Jackson's Applied Theater Adaptations Noted in “American Theatre Weekly”

Professor Rachel DeSoto-Jackson’s innovative work in appliedtheater was mentioned in a national article in American Theatre.

Posted on 4/7/2020 11:07:37 AM

IUP Students Invited to Attend Regional Theater Competition

National and regional accolades are on the line this week asIUP theater students and faculty are presenting work at a regional theaterfestival in Maryland. Next year’s Region II festival will happen at IUP.

Posted on 1/15/2020 3:59:42 PM

Schwartz Play Named Finalist in SETC/Stage Rights Ready to Publish Award

Michael Schwartz’s play A Punchline, on which he has been working for the past several years, is one of 10 finalists out of over 200 submissions. The winning play will be published and featured in the Stage Rights catalog, with a reading to be given at the 2020 SETC.

Posted on 12/13/2019 12:46:09 PM

IUP Production of “Actually” Chosen for Kennedy Center Regional Festival

Theater by the Grove’s production of Actually has been selected for Region 2 of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival on January 16, 2020. Anna Ziegler’s play was performed on the IUP campus September 27 through October 5 and became a catalyst for challenging dialogues about sexual consent, gender,and race politics.

Posted on 12/9/2019 6:05:00 PM

Cole Elected to Board of Trustees of Network of Ensemble Theaters

In November 2019, Carrie Cole (associate professor of Theatre and assistant chair, Department of Theatre, Dance and Performance) was nominated and elected to the Board of Trustees of the Networkof Ensemble Theaters.

Posted on 12/2/2019 7:20:07 PM

Desoto-Jackson Invited to Join National Smithsonian Advisory Board

The Smithsonian Latino Center will open the Molina Family Latino Gallery in 2021 at the National Museum of American History. Assistant Professor of Applied Theater Rachel DeSoto-Jackson was invited to join the national advisory board governing the creation of this gallery.

Posted on 11/14/2019 1:59:16 PM

Desoto-Jackson Presents Invited Workshop at Smithsonian Latino Center for Third Year

On November 8, 2019, Assistant Professor of Applied Theater Rachel DeSoto-Jackson was invited for a third consecutive year to present a national Master Class workshop, titled “The Secrets of Non-Verbal Communication,” at the Smithsonian Latino Center in Washington, DC.

Posted on 11/14/2019 11:58:53 AM

Musical Theater Students Move on to Second Round of Auditions in Louisville, KY

Musical theater students Lauren Eylicio, J’Quay Gibbs, Riley Guers, and Lindsay Herring successfully auditioned at the Southeastern Theatre Conference prescreening in West Virginia on November 9, 2019.

Posted on 11/13/2019 10:19:19 AM

“The Awakening of Spring” Blooms in Waller Hall

Theater-by-the-Grove opens a new adaptation of Frank Wedekind’s classic this Friday, October 25, at 7:30 p.m. This humorous and frank play traces the dawning sexual awareness of a group of teenagers who are simultaneously too innocent and not innocent at all.

Posted on 10/22/2019 10:35:05 AM

“Actually,” Homecoming, and KCACTF

Representatives of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival will recommend the play Actually for the Regional Festival in January 2020. You can see it October 2–5 at the IUP Performing Arts Center.

Posted on 10/1/2019 4:53:42 PM

Kemp’s Work With Squonk Opera Performed at Kennedy Center

Rick Kemp (Theatre, Dance, and Performance) works as staging director and creative consultant with the Pittsburgh-based performance ensemble Squonk Opera. The company creates interdisciplinary multimedia performances with live music, installations, and kinetic sculptures that tour nationally and internationally.

Posted on 9/18/2019 8:11:47 PM

DeSoto-Jackson Elected Co-President of International Arts Organization

On September 1, 2019, Assistant Professor RachelDeSoto-Jackson of the Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance, was electedco-president of the Pedagogyand Theatre of the Oppressed international arts organization.

Posted on 9/4/2019 5:22:08 PM

Footlight Players to Perform Three Shows

Tickets are on sale for the Footlight Players' 2019 festival of shows happening Friday, July 12, and Saturday, July 13, on the Waller Hall Mainstage in IUP’s Performing Arts Center. The shows this year are HONK, The Music Man, and As You Like It.

Posted on 7/5/2019 10:47:33 AM

Theater Major to Represent IUP at PASSHE Student Leadership Institute

Nina Minnelli, a theater major with a design/technology/management concentration, has been selected as one of two students at the university to represent IUP at the PASSHE Student Leadership Institute.

Posted on 5/17/2019 12:28:12 PM

Schwartz Contributes Chapters to Two Upcoming Theater Books

Michael Schwartz, associate professor in the Department of Theater and Dance, has written chapters for two forthcoming theater collections, one historical and one for use in the theater and drama classroom.

Posted on 5/13/2019 11:35:05 AM

Desoto-Jackson and Kemp Present Empathetic Communication Workshop

On April 13, 2019, Assistant Professor Rachel DeSoto-Jackson and Professor Rick Kemp of the Department of Theater and Dance presented a three-hour-long workshop, “Embodied Simulation and Empathetic Communication,” at Frostburg University.

Posted on 4/18/2019 2:44:41 PM

Theater and Dance Students Recognized at Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

Department of Theater and Dance students Eve Urban and Lindsay Herring were recognized at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival with a Certificate of Merit for their dramaturgy work on the devised production Fabric of the Nation.

Posted on 1/29/2019 8:47:39 AM

DeSoto-Jackson Awarded Prize for Innovative Teaching

Assistant Professor Rachel DeSoto-Jackson of Theater and Dance was awarded the Association for Theatre in Higher Education and Kennedy Center American College Theater Region 2 Prize for Innovative Teaching on January 19, 2019.

Posted on 1/29/2019 8:46:28 AM

Passing of Founding Theater and Dance Department Chair Donald Eisen

Donald Eisen, faculty emeritus and founding chair of the Department of Theater and Dance, died peacefully in his home over the weekend in Silver Springs, Maryland.

Posted on 12/17/2018 4:36:40 PM

Desoto-Jackson Presents Invited Workshop on Body Language and Patient Experience

On October 18, 2018, Department of Theater and Dance Assistant Professor Rachel DeSoto-Jackson presented an invited workshop titled “Body Language and Patient Experience” at the 2018 Nursing Symposium, sponsored by Saint Vincent Hospital and Allegheny Health Network.

Posted on 11/27/2018 10:29:20 AM

Theater and Dance Hosts Simulation Tour for Frostburg State University Faculty and Staff

On October 26, 2018, Rachel DeSoto-Jackson led faculty and staff from Frostburg State University’s departments of theater and nursing on a tour of IUP’s various simulations labs on campus. Given the rise in IUP’s national profile in simulation education, Frostburg seeks to model IUP in the creation of a new simulation program at its institution.

Posted on 11/27/2018 10:28:46 AM

Desoto-Jackson Presents Invited Workshop at Smithsonian Latino Center

On November 17, 2018, assistant professor Rachel DeSoto-Jackson was invited back to present a workshop on communication skills, “The Secrets of Non-Verbal Communication,” at the Smithsonian Latino Center in Washington, DC for the Young Ambassador Program Post-Collegiate Seminar.

Posted on 11/26/2018 9:59:04 AM

Schwartz to Publish Chapter in Upcoming Collection on Theater

Michael Schwartz, associate professor in the Department of Theater and Dance, is contributing a chapter to a collection of scholarly essays on theater and the Progressive Era.

Posted on 11/12/2018 3:46:53 PM

Kemp Publishes “Routledge Companion to Theatre, Performance and Cognitive Science”

Professor Rick Kemp (Department of Theater and Dance) has just published a Routledge “Companion,” part of the series of internationally distributed prestige reference works that comprehensively and authoritatively address a significant topic in a field or discipline.

Posted on 10/17/2018 1:07:55 PM

Extras Casting for “Mindhunter” in Waller Hall Friday

Kristina Peterson, the second assistant director for the Netflix series Mindhunter, will be registering auditions for extras in the lobby of Waller Hall on Friday, October 19, from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m.

Posted on 10/16/2018 8:05:21 PM

Play Reading Group: “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time”

Students interested in detective stories, the neuratypical, and what really happened at midnight should join FDI Scholar Ethan Hollinger for a reading of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time on Saturday, September 22, at 1:00 p.m. in Waller B 15 (open to all students, regardless of major).

Posted on 9/17/2018 3:16:59 PM

Theater and Dance Welcomes Frederick Douglass Scholar Hollinger

The Department of Theater and Dance welcomes Frederick Douglass Institute Scholars Fellow, Ethan Hollinger, who will teach courses at IUP this semester in Basic Stage Audio, Lighting for the Stage, and Theater Graphics in addition to serving as the resident lighting, sound, and media designer for Theater-by-the-Grove.

Posted on 9/6/2018 12:52:36 PM

Theater and Dance Welcomes Frederick Douglass Fellow Ethan Hollinger

The Department of Theater and Dance is thrilled to be joined by Frederick Douglass Fellow Ethan Hollinger. Hollinger recently graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in Theatre with a concentration in Lighting Design from Illinois State University.

Posted on 8/22/2018 11:06:38 AM

Schwartz Play Selected for Ground and Field Theatre Festival

Michael Schwartz’s play A Punchline will be one of the plays selected for an invited reading at the second annual Ground and Field Theatre Festival at the University of California-Davis. The date of the reading will be September 13.

Posted on 7/25/2018 10:58:46 PM

Pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed Conference Coming to IUP

The conference, titled “Disrupting the Politics of Place: Building Inclusive Communities for the Future,” will engage local organizations and the international PTO community in a larger dialogue and action centered on bridging existing divides based on geography, allocation of resources, population identity, ideology, and politics in the western Pennsylvania region—as well as in our global communities.

Posted on 5/24/2018 1:11:13 PM

Theater Professor DeSoto-Jackson Co-Facilitates Workshop at Summit Against Racism

Theater and Dance faculty member Rachel DeSoto-Jackson co-facilitated the workshop “Rehearsing Racial Justice: Using Theatre of the Oppressed as a Tool for Enacting Change in Our Daily Lives” at the 20th annual Summit Against Racism, held in Pittsburgh on Saturday, January 20, 2018.

Posted on 1/24/2018 2:52:58 PM

IUP Theater and Dance to Host Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

IUP will host more than 1,000 participants from more than 50 colleges and universities who will celebrate the “best of the best” in Region 2, comprising Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, and parts of New York and Virginia, on January 16-20.

Posted on 1/11/2018 12:42:06 PM

Gretta Teaches Workshops for Educational Theatre Association

From November 30 to December 2, 2017, IUP Theater professor Rob Gretta taught three workshops filled with Pennsylvania high school students (up to 30 students in each workshop) interested in acting and musical theater.

Posted on 12/15/2017 9:53:48 AM

Student Interactive Social Justice Forum Deals with Complexities of Bullying and Microaggressions

Assistant Professor Rachel DeSoto-Jackson facilitateda Forum Theater social justice event on Wednesday, December 6, at Theater-by-the-Grove, presented by the Diversity Student Council and SPATE Ensemble.

Posted on 12/11/2017 5:25:29 PM

Grant Awarded to Food and Nutrition Faculty to Support Interprofessional Simulation Use and Research

Pao Ying Hsiao, assistant professor (Food andNutrition) along with colleagues Lori Lombard (Speech-Language Pathology),Rachel DeSoto-Jackson (Theater), Johanna Boothby (Nursing), and Nikki Clark(Food and Nutrition), have been awarded with an IUP Infrastructure Enhancementand Growth Grant.

Posted on 12/8/2017 4:00:05 PM

Assistant Professor DeSoto-Jackson Presents at Smithsonian Latino Center Anniversary

Assistant Professor RachelDeSoto-Jackson was guest speaker at the seventh annual Post CollegiateSeminar hosted by the Smithsonian’s Latino Center as part of its 20thanniversary celebration the weekend of November 18, 2017.

Posted on 11/17/2017 9:58:36 AM

Unified, Open Auditions to Be Held for Theater-by-the-Grove’s Spring Productions

Theater-by-the-Grove announces open auditions for its spring productions. Sign up for an audition time on the bulletin boards outside of Waller Hall B-14. Non-majors, university, and local community members are all welcome.

Posted on 10/11/2017 9:38:41 PM

Theater and Dance Alumna Palamides Wins Edinburgh Festival Award

Theater and Dance alumna Natalie Palamides ’12 won the Best Newcomer Award at the Edinburgh Festival in the UK, the world’s largest arts festival, for her show LAID, a comic one-woman show about the battle between motherhood and breakfast.

Posted on 10/11/2017 9:51:02 AM

IUP Dance Theater Students to Perform with Kun-Yang Lin Dancers

Select members of the IUP Dance Theaterwill perform on Tuesday, October 17, in Fisher Auditorium with the Kun-Yang Lin Dancers, a professional modern dance company based in Philadelphia.

Posted on 10/11/2017 9:27:17 AM

Theater-by-the-Grove Awarded Kennedy Center ACTF Citizen Artist Award

As part of the JFK Centennial Celebration, the Department of Theater and Dance production of “We are Proud to Present...” was recognized “For insisting that theatrical production is central to the urgent community, national, and international conversations on the campuses of higher education nationwide.”

Posted on 8/30/2017 1:50:37 PM

Junior Theater Major Secula Creates Her Own Company

Theater major Miranda Secula is having an especially rewarding summer. She founded Small Town Stars Theatre Company and is directing a production of the dark and angst-ridden Heathers: The Musical at the Carroll Arts Center in Westminster, Maryland.

Posted on 8/4/2017 1:10:47 PM

Footlight Players Youth Theater Presents Four Plays July 14–16

Performances are at Waller Hall in the Performing Arts Center.

Posted on 7/7/2017 5:27:09 PM

Footlight Players Youth Theater Begins June 19

Footlight Players youth theater program begins its 13th year offering creative opportunities for young people to create theater and musical theater for four weeks starting June 19, Mondays through Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Registration is open until the first day.

Posted on 6/5/2017 5:34:27 PM

Ovations! Series Announced at Westsylvania Festival

The Lively Arts at IUP announced its 2017–18 Ovations season, which includes Broadway musicals, contemporary dance, jazz and classical music, theater, and world music.

Posted on 5/26/2017 1:21:02 PM

Mount Gallitzin’s First Female Student Returns to Create Ballet

Joan Van Dyke, associate professor of Dance at IUP, this week premiered a new ballet commemorating her creative origins at Mt. Gallitzin Academy.

Posted on 4/21/2017 8:39:42 PM

Gilbert and Sullivan Musical is Ovations! Season Finale

The Lively Arts will present the New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players in “HMS Pinafore” as the grand finale of its 2016–17 Ovations! season. This light-hearted musical comedy will be performed on Wednesday, May 3, 2017, in Fisher Auditorium of IUP’s Performing Arts Center starting at 7:00 p.m.

Posted on 4/20/2017 8:46:37 AM

“Boeing, Boeing” Theater Season Finale

Theater-by-the-Grove will present the hilarious farce “Boeing, Boeing” as its 2016–17 season finale. Performances will be held in the Waller Hall Mainstage Theater April 20–22 and 26–29 at 8:00 p.m. and April 23 at 2:00 p.m.

Posted on 4/14/2017 1:09:30 PM

Schwartz Hits Hat Trick of Professional Accomplishments in April

Michael Schwartz has three accolades in April 2017: a paper presentation, a play-reading, and an e-book edition of the book to which he contributed a chapter.

Posted on 4/6/2017 11:56:49 AM

Alumnus Geoff Maus to Share Broadway Show Experience with IUP Students

IUP Theater alumnus Geoff Maus, stage manager for theBroadway production of Fun Home in its first national tour, will be stopping inPittsburgh, Pennsylvania, April 12-17.

Posted on 4/4/2017 7:18:09 PM

Cole Presents at International Conference for the Fantastic in the Arts

Professor Carrie J. Cole has just returned from theInternational Conference for the Fantastic in the Arts, where she presented herpaper titled, “Re-historicizing the Uncanny: Rossum, Embodiment, and MacRoger’s Universal Robots,”which discussed specific acting techniques used to render the actor’s body asmechanical.

Posted on 4/4/2017 7:12:03 PM

Commedia Dell’Arte Maestro Antonio Fava Presents Workshops

IUP’s Theater and Dance programs hosted one of the foremostauthorities on Commedia Dell’Arte in the world, Antonio Fava this pastweekend. Maestro Fava presented five hoursof workshops to 20 students and remarked about the focus and dedication of the IUP students.

Posted on 4/4/2017 7:04:30 PM

Student Sydnee Elder to Present Paper at Undergraduate Success Forum

Sydnee Elder, a theater major graduating in May of2017, has been invited to participate in the Undergraduate Success Forum April4

Posted on 4/4/2017 6:49:11 PM

Dance and Percussion Present “A New Genesis”

Dance Theater combines forces with the IUP Percussion Ensemble to present a one-night-onlyperformance of “A New Genesis.” This originalproduction will be presented Saturday, April 8, 2017, at 7:00 p.m. in FisherAuditorium of IUP’s Performing Arts Center.

Posted on 4/3/2017 8:47:00 AM

Reading of Syrian Play “Oh, My Sweet Land” for World Theatre Day, Today at 12:15

Please join us for a public reading of “Oh, My Sweet Land” by Amir Nizar Zuabi with discussion and interactive storytelling for World Theatre Day on Monday, March 27, at 12:15 p.m. in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Atrium.

Posted on 3/24/2017 3:57:29 PM

Broadway Musical to Tap Its Way Onto Fisher Stage

“42nd Street,” the Tony Award-winning musical about fame and the AmericanDream, comes directly from Broadway on Thursday, March 30, 2017, at 8:00 p.m. in FisherAuditorium, located in IUP’s Performing Arts Center.

Posted on 3/21/2017 11:47:35 AM

Gretta Teaches Acting and Musical Theater Workshops for High School Students

On March 15, 16, and 17, 2017, Assistant Professor Rob Gretta developed and taught three workshops for high school students interested in acting and musical theater in the eastern part of Pennsylvania.

Posted on 3/21/2017 10:54:46 AM

“Boeing, Boeing” Tickets Now Available

Part of the Theater-by-the-Grove series, “Boeing, Boeing” is a French farce featuring Bernard, whose three stewardess fiancées all arrive in town simultaneously. Presented in the Waller Mainstage Theater April 20–29, 2017.

Posted on 3/20/2017 12:32:13 PM

Schwartz Play Selected for William Inge Theater Festival

Michael Schwartz’s one-act play “A Punchline” has been selected for the New Play Lab at the 36th annual William Inge Theater Festival. The festival is held in acclaimed playwright Inge’s home town of Independence, Kansas, and runs April 19-22 this year. Schwartz is an associate professor in the Department of Theater and Dance.

Posted on 3/1/2017 11:03:16 PM

Theater Alumnus Making His Way in L.A.

The acting bug took a hold of Walt Gray IV when he was a kid—and it has never let go. But it was in his time at IUP that Gray developed a passion and love for the craft, and it’s one he believes wouldn’t have come if it weren’t for his alma mater.

Posted on 2/14/2017 2:41:48 PM

DeSoto Jackson Featured Spotlight in “Latino Like Me” on Panorus

Assistant Professor of Applied Theater Rachel DeSoto Jackson is featured this month in a new spotlight section, “Latino Like Me,” on the web-based scholarly platform Panoramas.

Posted on 2/13/2017 1:18:12 PM

“Electriad” Explores Three Perspectives of War

Theater by the Grove will present “Electriad” on February21–26, which uses thestory of how siblings Electra and Orestes come to terms with their situation atthe end of the Trojan War to create a conversation about how individualsand cultures experience war across history.

Posted on 2/10/2017 5:26:51 PM

Kemp Publishes Routledge Companion to Jacques Lecoq

Professor Rick Kemp (Department of Theater and Dance) recently published the Routledge Companion to Jacques Lecoq. Routledge “Companions” are internationally distributed prestige reference works that comprehensively and authoritatively address a significant topic in a field or discipline.

Posted on 1/29/2017 2:25:58 PM

Desoto Jackson Moderates Diversity in Education Session at Pittsburgh Town Hall

Department of Theater and Dance’s professor Rachel DeSoto Jackson was invited to moderate a breakout session on diversity, equity, and inclusion within education at Equitable Casting: Town Hall for Pittsburgh’s Theatre Community.

Posted on 12/13/2016 10:20:08 AM

National Theater Festival Selects “We Are Proud to Present…”

The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festivalhas selected a play produced by IUP’s Theater-by-the-Grove forKCACTF’s Region 2 festival, January 3–7 in Montclair, NewJersey.

Posted on 12/7/2016 11:01:53 AM

Gretta Invited to Teach Workshops for Educational Theatre Association

From December 1 to 3, 2016, IUP Theater professor Rob Gretta taught three well-attended acting workshops filled with Pennsylvania high school students (up to 30 students in each) interested in acting and musical theater.

Posted on 12/7/2016 8:50:47 AM

Learn 21st-Century Skills through Acting

The Department of Theater and Danceis opening THTR140 Foundations of Performance for non-majors to benefit from the “Four Cs” of Communication, Creativity,Collaboration, and Critical Thinking. Employers like Apple and Dell are calling out for graduateswith these “21st-century skills.”

Posted on 11/29/2016 10:24:36 AM

New Course Offered for Spring 2017: Theater for Social Justice

This course invites and welcomes students from all disciplines to engage in an interdisciplinary environment for the exploration of theatrical tools used for social justice.

Posted on 11/28/2016 2:10:57 PM

Grand Opera Opens in Fisher December 2

Music Theater and Theater-by-the-Grove have combined forces to present the comic musical tale of “Die Fledermaus—The Bat” in the IUP Performing ArtsCenter on December 2–4, 2016.

Posted on 11/28/2016 9:48:58 AM

Schwartz Participates in American Society for Theatre Research Working Group

Michael Schwartz’s paper on the classic American musical “Gypsy” was accepted as part of the “History Has Its Eyes on You” working group at the American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR) conference in Minneapolis. The conference was held from November 3-6.

Posted on 11/18/2016 3:45:53 PM

Musical Theater Standout Kauffman Wins Award

Hannah Kaufmann, recipient of the Kinter scholarship for musical theater, took second place in the Musical Theater singing competition by the Tri-States Chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing on November 12, 2016.

Posted on 11/17/2016 6:14:58 PM

Safe Zone Welcomes New Members: Corbin, DeSoto Jackson, and Gretta

Val Corbin, Rachel DeSoto Jackson, and Rob Gretta, from the Department of Theater and Dance, completed seven hours of training to become Safe Zone members.

Posted on 10/14/2016 5:44:33 PM

Theater And Dance Students Perform in Large-Scale Mass Shooting Simulation

In collaboration with IUP’s Nursing and Allied Health program, students of the Theater and Dance Department’s SPATE ensemble (simulated patient/applied theater) performed as simulated patients in a large-scale scenario depicting the aftermath of a mass shooting.

Posted on 10/6/2016 4:05:29 PM

Dance Alumnus Nathan Hart Named Pennsylvania's Dance Teacher of the Year

Dance alumnus Nathan Hart has been named Dance Teacher of the Year by the Pennsylvania State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance.

Posted on 10/5/2016 10:08:40 AM

Theater Offers Thought-Provoking Play about Race

Theater-by-the Grove willpresent “We Are Proud to Present aPresentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as Southwest Africa,From the German Südwestafrika, Between the Years 1884 And 1915” on October 13–16 and 19–22, 2016, as the firstproduction of the season.

Posted on 10/5/2016 9:10:59 AM

Applied Theater Professor DeSoto Jackson Elected to National Board

Rachel DeSoto Jackson was elected to serve on the board of the Pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed, Inc. national organization for a two-year term.

Posted on 9/29/2016 6:33:33 PM

IUP Alumnus Burk Performing One-Man Show September 23

Brandon Burk, a professional actor who graduated from IUP with a degree in theater, will perform his one-person show “Invention” on Friday, September 23, in the HUB Ohio Room. The performance is free to the public and is part of his nearly week-long residency with students and faculty.

Posted on 9/21/2016 1:07:51 PM

Watch IUP Theater Alumna in Tyler Perry Television Series “Too Close to Home”

On Monday night, September 12,Trisha Rae Stahl will host a watch party in Los Angeles to see her debutin a new TV series. She hopes a lot of people back here at IUP will bewatching, too. Stahl, a 1998IUP graduate, recently completed work on the first season of the drama series.

Posted on 9/9/2016 2:21:54 PM

“Delirium,” a Riff on “The Brothers Karamazov”

The university and Indiana communities are invited to a showcase performance of “Delirium” on Friday, August 12, in Waller Hall. The play is coproduced by IUP’s Theater-by-the-Grove and EgoPo, an ensemble theater company from Philadelphia.

Posted on 8/8/2016 3:54:45 PM

Cole Participates in Play Development through Theater Game Jam

Carrie Cole, assistant professor in Theater and Dance, recently participated in a 48-hour Theater Game Jam hosted by the Engagement Lab in Boston.

Posted on 7/1/2016 3:10:14 PM

Pipkin-Hutchinson Elected to KC/ACTF Region 2 Leadership

At the Nation Leadership meeting of the Kennedy Center/ American College Theatre Festival held in Washington, D.C. in April 2016, Professor Nancy Pipkin-Hutchinson was elected by unanimous approval by the KC/ACTF Executive Committee.

Posted on 6/9/2016 9:30:38 AM

Theater-by-the-Grove Announces Auditions

Open auditions for “We Are Proud to Present a PresentationAbout the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as South West Africa, From theGerman Sudwestafrika, Between The Years 1884-1915,” a contemporary drama, will take place Tuesday, April 26, in the Studio Theater of Waller Hall.

Posted on 4/19/2016 11:50:18 AM

Gretta Invited to Teach at National Theater Convention

From March 3–6, 2015, IUP Theater professor Rob Gretta taught a well-attended musical theater workshop as well as auditioned high students for possible recruitment at the Southeastern Theater Conference annual convention in Greensboro, N.C.

Posted on 3/28/2016 12:14:23 PM

Pipkin-Hutchinson Presents on Sustainability in Costume Design

Professor Nancy Pipkin-Hutchinson was a member of the Sustainable Costume Design Round Table at the 2016 United States Institute of Theatre Technology annual conference in Salt Lake City on March 16–19.

Posted on 3/25/2016 3:24:22 PM

Cole Presents on “Staging Moby Dick in Space”

Carrie Cole recently presented her paper, “A Mad [-Cap] Captain’s Quest for Revenge: Staging Moby Dick in Space” at the 37th annual International Conference for the Fantastic in the Arts in Orlando, Florida, which took place March 16–20, 2016.

Posted on 3/23/2016 3:19:19 PM

“Soldier’s Heart” Invited to Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival

Theater-by-the-Grove is invited once again to the KCACTF, this time to perform last season’s “Soldier’s Heart” onJanuary 14.

Posted on 12/17/2015 5:44:59 PM

Palamides the Voice of Buttercup on Cartoon Network

IUP Theater graduate Natalie Palamides (2012) will be the voice of Buttercup on Cartoon Network’s reboot of The Powerpuff Girls.

Posted on 8/3/2015 12:02:08 PM

Daras and Gretta Invited to Teach at National Theater Convention

On March 4–7, 2015, IUP Theater professors April Daras and Rob Gretta taught three exciting and well-attended workshops at the Southeastern Theater Conference annual convention in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Posted on 3/16/2015 11:48:00 AM

Schwartz Contributes Chapter to New Book About Aspects of Play

Michael Schwartz, assistant professor in the Theater and Dance Department, has written a chapter for the recently published book Play, Performance, and Identity: How Institutions Structure Ludic Spaces.

Posted on 3/10/2015 3:43:27 PM

Kemp Awarded Fellowship to Salzburg Global Seminar on Neuroscience and Art

Professor Rick Kemp, head of Acting and Directing in the Department of Theater and Dance, was selected to join other innovators in neuroscience and the arts to participate in an international seminar on the sources of creativity and innovation.

Posted on 3/9/2015 4:48:04 PM

Theater Professor Goes to The Mountaintop

Rob Gretta, assistant professor in the Department of Theater and Dance, will direct an Equity-staged reading of the Katori Halls Broadway hit The Mountaintop as part of the Red Moon Theatre Festival in Jacksonville, Fla. on February 27, 2015.

Posted on 2/24/2015 1:06:36 PM

Four Theater Students Receive Awards at Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

Amos Glass, Sarah Fabiani, Kim Siegle, Chelsea Kikel, Shane Malachow, and Kaitlyn McGilvray received awards for their abilities indesign, technology, stage management and directing.

Posted on 1/14/2015 2:59:20 PM

Theater Student Chelsea Kikel Wins Major Award in Sound Design at Festival

Student actor and sound designer Chelsea Kikel won the Kennedy Center Award for Sound Design from Region 2 of the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival in January 2015.

Posted on 1/14/2015 2:54:03 PM

Professor Daras Receives Innovative Teaching Award

Professor April Daras received the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival’s Innovative Teaching Prize for her recent workcrafting new courses and performance opportunities through applied theater at IUP.

Posted on 1/14/2015 2:46:16 PM

IUP Alumna Receives Emerging Leader Award

Ashley Tait Weller was selected for the Emerging Leader Award for 2014.

Posted on 12/15/2014 10:12:40 AM

Faculty-Student Present Labanotation Research

Professor of Dance Holly Boda-Sutton and one of her former students presented “Labanotation: a Fun Tool forIncorporating Movement Into the Physical Education Class” to the ArtsEducation Collaborative by invitation after their presentation at the ArtsEducation Symposium in Harrisburg.

Posted on 12/13/2014 4:17:40 PM

Seeking Child Actors for IUP Theater Production

The IUP Department of Theater and Dance is seeking two male child actors, ages 10–14, to fill acting roles in the upcoming IUP Theater-By-The-Grove production of “Soldier’s Heart.” Actors of diverse ethnicity are encouraged to audition.

Posted on 10/27/2014 12:31:50 PM

Theater Alumna Battestilli is New General Manager of Pasion y Arte Flamenco

Alumna Nicole Battestilli, who graduated with honors in 2012, has leveraged her theater degree and prodigious planning ability to become the new general manager of Pasion y Arte Flamenco in Philadelphia.

Posted on 10/27/2014 9:27:24 AM

Theater and Dance Alumna Kaniasty Debuts Film at Indiana Theater

Natalia Kaniasty, an alumna of the Department of Theater and Dance currently enrolled in NYU’s graduate film-making program, is screening her pre-MFA thesis film Home Range at the Indiana Theater on Saturday, October 25, at 4:00 p.m.

Posted on 10/23/2014 6:35:47 PM

Musical Theater Alumnus York On Next Leg of Creative Career

Joe York (IUP ’12—Musical Theater)recently moved back to Pittsburgh after living in NYC for two yearspursuing/receiving an MFA in musical theatre writing from the Tisch School of the Arts.

Posted on 9/28/2014 6:55:48 PM

New Musical Theater Scholarships

Two new scholarships are available to freshmen majoring in musical theater beginning in fall 2015.

Posted on 9/15/2014 6:56:04 PM

Dean of Croatian Academy of Dramatic Art to Visit IUP

On Thursday and Friday, September 18–19, 2014, the Department of Theater and Dance welcomes Professor Borna Baletic, dean of the University of Zagreb Academy of Dramatic Art.

Posted on 9/15/2014 9:38:39 AM

New Musical Theater Degree Approved

The University Senate approved the new BA in Musical Theater program, replacing the Department of Theater and Dance’s Interdisciplinary Fine Arts–Musical Theater Track. The new program integrates a more comprehensive degree and includes four new courses designed for the actor-singer-dancer.

Posted on 9/12/2014 4:12:04 PM

Kemp to Discuss Neuroscience, Acting Theory, and Practice at Cambridge University

Professor Rick Kemp, Department of Theater and Dance,will join Professor Vittorio Gallese, the discoverer of mirror neurons in primates, in a chaired discussion on Neuroscience, Acting Theory, and Practice at Cambridge University’s Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities.

Posted on 9/10/2014 12:17:03 AM

Footlight Players Brings “The Dream” to the Pittsburgh Fringe Festival

Footlight Players, the youth theater company of the Department of Theater and Dance, performed Shakespeare’s most popular comedy, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” at the inaugural Pittsburgh Fringe Festival, May 10–11, 2014.

Posted on 5/19/2014 1:23:04 PM

Schwartz’s Book Explores Broadway’s Depictions of Industrial Workers of the World Union

Michael Schwartz, Department of Theater and Dance, will publish Class Divisions on the Broadway Stage: The Staging and Taming of the I.W.W. in July 2014.

Posted on 4/24/2014 10:45:04 AM

Collecting Pajamas for Local Children

The Pajama Program is an organization thatcollects new books and pajamas for local, underprivileged children and theirfamilies. This drive is being conducted in the Indiana community and on the IUP campus.

Posted on 4/9/2014 11:27:36 PM

Alumnus Named to Position With New York Public Theater

Marquez Andrews (IUP ’04 in Theater) was recently named the new corporate relations manager for New York’s legendary Public Theater.

Posted on 2/1/2014 5:36:09 PM

Aerial Silks Master Class

Theater alumna Beth “Contessa” Hinderliter shared her cirque performance talents with theater and dance students in a master class over the weekend of January 31–February 1, 2014, in Waller Hall’s main theater space.

Posted on 2/1/2014 3:40:08 PM

Actors and Dramaturgy Student Recognized at KCACTF Festival

Thirty students from IUP’s Department of Theater and Dance performed and presented design and dramaturgical displays at the Region 2 Festival of the American College Theater Festival, January 15–18, 2014.

Posted on 2/1/2014 3:29:32 PM

Faculty Offer Workshops to Maryland Thespians Festival

IUP professors Nick Quinn, Mike Schwartz, and Brian Jones traveled to the Maryland Thespians Festival in Huntingtown, Md., on January 25–26, 2014, to offer theater workshops and adjudicate scholarship competitions.

Posted on 2/1/2014 2:49:09 PM

IUP Theater Alumna Returns to Glee Tonight

Trisha Rae Stahl's recurring character Millie Rose will return to Glee tonight. Watch and tweet your support to #IUPglee.

Posted on 11/20/2013 4:39:22 PM

Theater Alumna on “American Horror Story”

Check out “American Horror Story” on Wednesday, November 6, and you’ll see IUP Theater alumna Jennifer Lynn Warren doing her own stunts as the character Borquita LaLaurie.

Posted on 11/2/2013 4:10:17 PM

Dance Educator and Student Present in Harrisburg about Dance Education Endorsement

Theater and Dance Department professor Holly Boda-Sutton spoke about moving toward a teaching endorsement in dance for the state of Pennsylvania.

Posted on 10/31/2013 3:26:38 PM

Open Auditions for Fall Theater-by-the-Grove Productions

Theater-by-the-Grove will hold auditions for three productions this Fall: “The Optimist,” “The Brothers Karamazov,” and “A Christmas Carol,” all on the first night of classes in a unified audition.

Posted on 8/19/2013 11:46:45 AM

Gallagher Wins O’Neill Theater Center Award at Kennedy Center Festival

Joshua Gallagher, senior Theater major, was awarded the O’Neill Design Fellowship at the 2013 Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival in Washington, D.C. for his set design for the play In Quietness.

Posted on 4/20/2013 4:07:27 PM

Schwartz to Publish “Class Divisions on the Broadway Stage”

Michael Schwartz, Theater and Dance, will publish a book on the representation of the Industrial Workers of the World on the American stage. It is scheduled for publication in early 2014.

Posted on 2/19/2013 3:21:08 PM

Footlight Players Perform at Indiana Library February 23

Louder Than Words is a laugh-out-loud comedy telling the story of a kingdom where books have been banned and the world’s greatest authors from across time have been exiled to a far-away, barren land.

Posted on 2/7/2013 6:34:03 PM

Van Dyke and Boda-Sutton to Present “The Art of Empowerment Through Ballet and Literature”

Associate professor of Dance Joan Van Dyke’s abstract for her paper, “‘The Red Shoes Project’: The Art of Empowerment through Ballet and Literature in the 21st Century,” was accepted to be presented in the MELUS conference on March 14–17, 2013.

Posted on 1/25/2013 2:12:32 PM

Gibson and Glass Receive Regional Awards

Region 2 of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival awarded Theater major Lydia Gibson the National Playwriting Project award for “best performance in a concert reading” in January 2013. Maggie Glass was recognized for exceptional stage management service by Stage Directors and Choreographer’s Fellowship.

Posted on 1/25/2013 1:28:19 PM

Students Awarded Fellowships by American College Theatre Festival

Theater majors Josh Gallagher and Morgan Chase were both awarded fellowships to attend the American College Theatre Festival at the Kennedy Center in April 2013.

Posted on 1/25/2013 12:53:24 PM

Grove, Dance Arts Undergraduate Student, to Present Work at Conference

Lyndsey Grove, an interdisciplinary Fine Arts-Dance Arts major, has been invited to present her creative work, "Dance It, Movie It, Learn It," at the Easter District Association of American Alliance of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance conference in Valley Forge in February. Grove is one of only two students who were selected to present.

Posted on 12/19/2012 9:29:07 AM

Boda-Sutton Receives Service Award From Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance Association

Dance Professor Holly Boda Sutton continues to rack up the awards from the Pennsylvania State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Her latest recognition, The Ethel G. Encke Service Award, comes to Boda Sutton for her years of

Posted on 11/27/2012 10:14:57 AM

Alumnus Brandon Burk Making News in Las Vegas

Theater alumnus Brandon Burk (’02) is making news in Las Vegas with his upstart production of Sweeney Todd.

Posted on 11/27/2012 10:06:28 AM

Wisnicki’s Livingstone Discovery is Subject of Dramatic Interpretation

The Livingstone Project, a new work about David Livingstone, the celebrated Victorian abolitionist, missionary, and explorer of Africa, will come to life December 6–8, 2012, in Waller Hall, presented by Theater-by-the-Grove.

Posted on 11/12/2012 4:17:44 PM

Free Reading of New Play, “Spark,” by Obie-Winning Playwright

Obie-winning playwright Caridad Svich’s new play, Spark, will be given a reading Friday, November 9, 2012, at 8:00 p.m. in Waller Hall’s Studio Theater. Admission is free.

Posted on 11/5/2012 2:55:38 PM

Playwright Anna Moench Offers Talk-Back for “In Quietness” Opening

Guest playwright Anna Moench will offer a “talk-back” after the opening performance on Thursday night, November 1, 2012, of In Quietness at IUP’s Theater-by-the-Grove.

Posted on 10/29/2012 6:41:20 PM

Footlight’s “Midsummer Night's Dream” Tour to Begin at IUP Waller Studio

Shakespeare’s most popular comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, kicks off Footlight Players’ first ever theater-for-youth tour, with a limited engagement at IUP before touring to schools in central and western Pennsylvania. November 11–12, 2012.

Posted on 10/29/2012 3:21:53 PM

Theater Alumni Getting Good Press in Philly

IUP Theater alumni Brenna Geffers and Johnny Smith are getting good press in their work with EgoPo Classic Theater company.

Posted on 10/18/2012 11:51:15 AM

Theater Department Receives Grants from National Endowment for the Arts and from United Way

Footlight Players has received an ArtWorks grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support their summer youth theater program in 2012–2013, and also a grant from the United Way to provide funding for four young people to attend Footlight at a deeply reduced cost.

Posted on 10/9/2012 12:21:46 PM

Reading of Play, Written by Obie Winner, to Honor War Veterans

Obie-winning playwright Carid Svich’s new play, Spark, will be read at IUP’s Studio Theater in Waller Hall on Friday, November 9, 2012, as part of a national play-reading to honor war veterans in time for Veterans Day and the national elections.

Posted on 10/4/2012 2:44:23 PM

Comedian Phil Keeling ’05 at KCAC for Homecoming

Theater alumnus Phil Keeling returns to IUP for Homecoming weekend, October 5, 2012, with a performance at the Kovalchick Complex of stand-up material that he's developed as an extension of his playwriting craft.

Posted on 10/2/2012 11:50:52 AM

Alumna Trisha Stahl Lands Recurring Role on “Glee”

Trisha Rae Stahl (Theater ’98) made her debut in the season opener of Fox Networks’ Glee on Thursday, September 13, 2012. She will appear in a recurring role.

Posted on 9/12/2012 7:54:32 PM

Schwartz Discusses “The Productions of Robert Griffith” at Theatre in Higher Education Conference

At the 2012 Association for Theatre in Higher Education conference in Washington, D.C., Michael Schwartz, Department of Theater and Dance, participated in a roundtable discussion panel entitled “The Most Fabulous Producers: A Re-evaluation of Producers’ Innovations and Achievements in American Theatre.”

Posted on 9/11/2012 5:40:29 PM

Theater Honors Project to feature “Bent,” starting September 14

The Acorn Honors project at Indiana University of Pennsylvania will present “Bent,” a play about members of the LGBT community living through the Holocaust.

Posted on 9/7/2012 3:57:46 PM

Kemp Receives Grant for Study of Video Technology in theater and Arts Courses

Richard Kemp, Department of Theater and Dance, received an award from the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education for his project, “Feasibility Study for the Incorporation of Video Technology in Content and Delivery of Theater and Arts Administration Courses at IUP and SRU.”

Posted on 6/29/2012 1:53:23 PM

Who Is Sylvia? Keystone Repertory Theater Opens With “The Goat”

IUP Theater majors bring you a production of Edward Albee’s The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? in the Studio Theater at Waller Hall on June 1–3, 2012, with a “brownbag lunch” preview on May 31 at noon.

Posted on 5/25/2012 12:19:04 PM

Auditions for Theater-by-the-Grove Fall Productions

IUP’s Theater-by-the-Grove will be holding auditions for all interested students for both of our Fall 2012 productions during the week of April 29 through May 3.

Posted on 4/13/2012 11:18:44 AM

Musical Theater Student Benefits From Visiting Artists

Clowns Dave and Cherie shared skills-building techniques with Musical Theater major Matt Spencer in a session on the art of clowning in a visit ahead of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus shows at Kovalchik Complex.

Posted on 4/6/2012 9:46:56 AM

Dance Professor Boda-Sutton Receives Honor Award

Holly Boda-Sutton received the 2012 Honor Award from the Eastern District Association of the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance at the annual convention on March 15, 2012.

Posted on 4/6/2012 9:20:29 AM

RWS and Associates Auditions at IUP

RWS and Associates, a New York-based live entertainment producer, will hold auditions at IUP for singers, dancers, actors, and musicians on February 13, 2012, by appointment only.

Posted on 2/10/2012 8:38:33 AM

Blackledge Receives Highest Honor at Kennedy Theater Festival

Professor Barb Blackledge, former chair of the Department of Theater and Dance at IUP, was awarded a prestigious 2012 Gold Medallion Award at last week’s Region 2, Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) hosted by IUP. Each year, the

Posted on 1/20/2012 12:23:02 PM

Eight Theater Performances Open to Public during Regional Theater Festival at IUP, January 11-16

The public is invited to see full productions of eight plays presented by eight universities, including IUP, January 11–16, 2012, as part of the annual Region Two American College Theater Festival, hosted by the IUP Department of Theater and Dance.

Posted on 1/3/2012 11:32:27 AM

Theater Production “Desdemona” Opens This Week

Desdemona, a play about a handkerchief opens this Thursday in Waller Hall. Directed by Barb Blackledge, this comedy provides a unique counterpoint for the women in Shakespeare’s tragedy, Othello.

Posted on 10/16/2011 9:30:55 PM

Integrating the Arts with Women’s Studies

On September 30, 2011, Professor Joan Van Dyke, Department of Theater and Dance, attended “Making the Cultural Shift to Embodied Voices and Virtual Selves,” sponsored by Indiana University of Pennsylvania along with Clarion University women’s studies programs.

Posted on 10/12/2011 5:10:11 PM

Auditions for Fall 2011 Theater-by-the-Grove Productions

Auditions for three major TBTG productions will be held the evening of the first day of classes, Monday, August 29, in the Waller Hall Mainstage Theater. These auditions are open to all IUP students.

Posted on 8/24/2011 8:16:54 AM

New Musical “Discovering Eden” Presented by Keystone Repertory Theater

The new musical Discovering Eden will be performed August 4–6, 2011, at 8:00 p.m. on the Waller Hall Mainstage of the IUP Performing Arts Center, presented by Keystone Repertory Theater.

Posted on 7/12/2011 12:00:49 PM

“Evil Dead: The Musical”

Keystone Repertory Theater presents Evil Dead: The Musical in the Studio Theater at Waller Hall, June 3 through 5 at 8:00 p.m. Attend summer theater at IUP without fear!

Posted on 5/23/2011 12:22:00 PM

Stage Combat Skills Test Open to Public

Michael Hood’s Combat for the Stage class will participate in a skills proficiency test at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, May 6, 2011, on the Waller Hall mainstage. Part one of the test is open to the public.

Posted on 5/3/2011 9:01:37 AM

Brown Welcomed as Musical Theater Professor

The Department of Theater and Dance proudly announces that Ms. Jeannie-Marie Brown will be the new professor of Musical Theater at IUP.

Posted on 4/21/2011 1:39:06 PM

“Comedy of Errors” Opening April 14

Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, opening April 14, 2011, on the Waller Hall Mainstage in the IUP Performing Arts Center, is the last show in the Theater-by-the-Grove’s season.

Posted on 4/6/2011 4:44:56 PM

Ault Publishes Translation of Rousseau’s “On the Paris Opera 1760”

Theater and Dance faculty member Dr. C. Thomas Ault’s translation of Jean-Jaques Rousseau’s “On the Paris Opera 1760” was recently published in the Winter 2011 edition of Theatre Design & Technology.

Posted on 3/14/2011 4:23:01 PM

IUP Joins National Theatre Conference Initiative to Celebrate American Women Playwrights

To open the 2011–2012 season, Theater-by-the-Grove will produce Pittsburgh playwright Tammy Ryan’s play Lindsay’s Oyster under the direction of Jason Chimonides.

Posted on 3/2/2011 9:41:10 AM

“The Crucible” a Hot Ticket

Audiences have been larger than usual for The Crucible. Tickets remain available for performances at 8:00 p.m. in Waller Hall of the IUP Performing Arts Center on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, February 24–26, 2011.

Posted on 2/24/2011 10:05:47 AM

IUP Dance Theater to Perform at “Day of Dance for Health”

The IUP Dance Theater company will perform its “’50s Dance” piece from the repertory for the “Day of Dance for Health” on Saturday, February 26, 2011, at 10:00 a.m. in the Indiana Mall.

Posted on 2/24/2011 9:22:41 AM

Theater and Dance Students Selected as Provost Scholars

Five Department of Theater and Dance students were selected as Provost Scholars in December 2010.

Posted on 1/11/2011 3:07:28 PM

Theater and Dance Students to Present at Kennedy Center Region II Festival

Thirty-two students from IUP’s Department of Theater and Dance have been invited to present at the Region II Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival in Baltimore, Md., January 11–15, 2011.

Posted on 1/5/2011 10:40:59 AM

Alumnus Mack Adds Film Credit to His Young Career

Brett Mack (Theater ’05) was cast as a central character in the independent film Knight to D7 in summer 2010.

Posted on 1/4/2011 5:00:12 PM

Dance Company Master Class at Marion Center High School

The IUP Dance Theater Company held a master class for students at Marion Center High School on December 22, 2010.

Posted on 1/4/2011 2:55:21 PM

“The Punxy Movie” in Editing

Several Theater and Dance alumni, under the direction of Ryan Hetrick (IUP ’07), have created The Punxy Movie. The film will be entered in various film festivals.

Posted on 12/17/2010 4:06:53 PM

Eight Student Win Pig Iron Scholarships

Eight IUP students have won internal scholarships to attend three days of classes with Pig Iron Theatre of Philadelphia.

Posted on 12/17/2010 4:03:10 PM

Fine Arts Dean to Teach Stage Combat in Spring

Michael Hood, dean of the College of Fine Arts, will offer a course in stage combat during the Spring semester for the Department of Theater and Dance.

Posted on 12/17/2010 12:56:02 PM

Van Dyke is University Dance Teacher of the Year

The Pennsylvania State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance honored IUP Professor Joan Van Dyke with the prestigious Dance Teacher of the Year award at the university level for 2010.

Posted on 11/29/2010 4:47:59 PM

Student Director Provokes Discussions on Art and Society

IUP senior Theater major Nick Hrutkay’s production of The Shape of Things concluded the "I Am An Artist" initiative on November 16-18, 2010.

Posted on 11/19/2010 10:09:28 AM

Kemp to Present on Cognitive Principles and Jacques Lecoq

Rick Kemp, Department of Theater and Dance, will present his paper, “Movement, Metaphor, and Meaning: Cognitive Principles in the Work of Jacques Lecoq,” at the national conference of the American Society for Theatre Research on November 18–21, 2010.

Posted on 11/18/2010 3:40:19 PM

Theater Professor’s “Lady with All the Answers” Reopens in Scranton

Barb Blackledge, professor of acting and directing in the IUP Department of Theater and Dance, is the lone actor in “The Lady with All the Answers,” running in November 2010 at the Electric Theatre Company in Scranton, Pa.

Posted on 11/16/2010 4:57:46 PM

Art Meets Science Sideways

Thursday night, November 11, 2010, is the last performance of Pig Iron Theatre’s Chekhov Lizardbrain. This amazing show takes place at 8:00 p.m. in Waller Hall’s Theater-by-the-Grove.

Posted on 11/10/2010 8:59:09 AM

Indiana Area School District Brings Gifted Program to IUP

Deborah Sorce of the Indiana Area School District chose the Department of Theater and Dance for an enrichment field trip on October 1, 2010.

Posted on 10/5/2010 1:41:47 PM

Student Actors Featured in Public Service Commercial

IUP Theater majors Kelsey Peterson and Caleb Fiegles were featured in the public service commercial “You’re Going Out, So Are We.” The commercial is part of a media campaign by the Armstrong-Indiana Drug Free Communities Coalition.

Posted on 10/3/2010 7:50:58 PM

Kemp Stars in “faustUS” at Pittsburgh Cultural Trust

IUP Theater professor Rick Kemp is starring in “faustUS” at the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust from now through August 1, 2010.

Posted on 7/26/2010 10:01:02 AM

Footlight Players Theater-for-Youth to Be Discussed on Radio

Brian Jones, Department of Theater and Dance, will discuss the Footlight Players theater-for-youth program and its upcoming shows during an interview Tuesday, July 6, 2010, at 7:45 a.m. on WDAD-AM 1450.

Posted on 7/1/2010 3:30:51 PM

Keystone Repertory Theater Presenting Two Shows in June

Keystone Repertory Theater will produce two very different plays this summer related to old media (you know—newspapers!). Both will be performed in Waller Hall’s Studio Theater during the first Summer Session 2010 of classes at IUP.

Posted on 5/18/2010 12:56:12 PM

Footlight Players Seeks Children and Teens For Summer Plays and Workshops

Indiana’s theater-for-youth company, Footlight Players, still has twelve spots open for children and teens to register for the 2010 program that runs June 14 to July 12.

Posted on 5/13/2010 9:54:17 AM

Footlight Players Presents Activities at HeyDay

IUP Theater majors Nick Hrutkay and Hayley Faight presented the activity “How Light Are You on Your Feet?” for HeyDay, serving students at the Indiana Area Junior High School on Friday, May 7, 2010.

Posted on 5/11/2010 12:25:28 PM

Blackledge Receives Raves as “Lady with All the Answers”

Professor of Theater and former chair of the department Barb Blackledge is “the lady with all the answers” at the Electric Theater Company in Scranton, where she performed in a one-woman show of the same name—a monodrama about Eppie Friedman, also known as advice columnist Ann Landers.

Posted on 5/5/2010 6:30:25 PM

Theater Alumni Create BareShakespeare Productions

Department of Theater alumni Emily Ehlinger (’05) and Caitlin Simkovich (’06) will be two of eight actors portraying twenty-seven characters in BareShakespeare’s production of the Bard’s little-seen comedy All’s Well That Ends Well.

Posted on 5/5/2010 6:26:17 PM

Van Dyke to Present Workshops at International Festival of Making Theatre

In summer 2010, associate professor of Dance Joan Van Dyke will travel to Athens, Greece, to present “Alignment for Character” for the Sixth International Festival of Making Theatre at the International Theatre of Changes.

Posted on 5/5/2010 6:20:29 PM

Kemp Receives Distinguished Faculty Award in Creative Arts

Associate Professor of Theater Rick Kemp was awarded the IUP Distinguished Faculty Award in the Creative Arts in a special ceremony on March 28, 2010.

Posted on 4/28/2010 12:21:40 PM

Award-Winning Student Director to Direct “Bat Boy” at IUP

Theater major Nick Hrutkay traveled to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., this month as the Region II representative in directing for the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.

Posted on 4/28/2010 12:19:31 PM

Theater Student Selected as Commencement Speaker

Theater major Jessica Sabol has been selected by the College of Fine Arts faculty to address the May 2010 IUP Commencement ceremony as speaker for the graduating class.

Posted on 4/28/2010 12:16:13 PM

Chimonides Selected for Lincoln Center Director’s Lab

Assistant Professor Jason Chimonides has been selected for the Lincoln Center Director’s Lab, June 15–July 6, 2010, in New York.

Posted on 4/28/2010 12:13:19 PM

Chimonides Receives Teaching Excellence Award

IUP’s Center For Teaching Excellence announced that Assistant Professor Jason Chimonides has been awarded a Teaching Excellence Award for his approach to the large course sections of Introduction to Theater.

Posted on 3/30/2010 7:48:02 PM

Footlight Players Announces Summer 2010 Program Dates

Registrations are now being taken for Footlight Players’ popular Theater-for-Youth program beginning June 14, 2010, at Theater-by-the-Grove on IUP’s campus. All school-age children and teens are eligible for this fun summer program.

Posted on 3/23/2010 12:11:56 PM

Sweet Role for Erika Pealstrom

Erika Pealstrom came to IUP three years ago looking for a dynamic musical theater program that would give her creative and academic opportunities. This week, that dream becomes a reality when the Bob Fosse musical Sweet Charity opens on the Fisher Auditorium.

Posted on 2/24/2010 9:28:02 AM

Dance Performance at Carnegie Museum Rescheduled

Due to weather conditions, the workshop and performance by the IUP Dance Theater at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History for February 6, 2010, was postponed and is now rescheduled for Saturday, February 20, 2010. The student dance ensemble will perform scenes from Out of the Deep, a work originated by choreographer Holly Boda-Sutton in collaboration with poet Rosaly Roffman and composer David Berlin.

Posted on 2/16/2010 11:55:09 AM

IUP Dance Company Invited to Perform at Carnegie Museum

The Carnegie Museum of Natural History has invited the IUP Dance Theater Company to perform scenes from Out of the Deep during its “Whale of a Day” event February 6.

Posted on 12/23/2009 9:15:29 AM

Auditions for Spring 2010 Theater-by-the-Grove Productions

Auditions for all three major spring productions for Theater-by-the-Grove will be held on Sunday, November 6, 2009, for the musical Sweet Charity, and on Monday, November 7, for the classic comedy The Servant of Two Masters and the contemporary drama Asylum. These auditions are open to all students at IUP.

Posted on 10/29/2009 1:43:15 PM

Auditions for 2009 Ten-Minute Play Festival

Auditions for ten short plays scheduled for Saturday, October 24, 2009, will be conducted from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the Waller Studio Theater. Auditions are open to all IUP students.

Posted on 10/16/2009 1:55:35 PM

An “Earnest” Season Opening

The Theater-by-the-Grove season kicked of with a sold-out performance of The Importance of Being Earnest on October 1, 2009. Performances continue Wednesday, October 7, through Saturday, October 10, at 8:00 p.m. in Waller Hall.

Posted on 10/7/2009 11:50:43 AM

Student Lighting Technicians Working the G-20 Summit

Lighting the Cathedral of Learning and other work at the G-20 Summit is keeping two IUP Theater and Dance majors busy this week.

Posted on 9/23/2009 11:58:59 AM

Broadway Hit “A Year with Frog and Toad” Coming for Young Audiences

Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Department of Theater and Dance will present “A Year with Frog and Toad,” a musical by Robert and Willie Beale, which runs October 16, 17, and 18, 2009.

Posted on 9/23/2009 11:52:18 AM

Kemp Performs “faustUS” in Pittsburgh

IUP Theater and Dance faculty member Rick Kemp is performing in a production of faustUS at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater in Pittsburgh, September 8 through 12, 2009.

Posted on 9/10/2009 2:54:11 PM

Footlight Players Performing Stories of Roald Dahl

Footlight Players is celebrating its sixth birthday in Summer 2009 with two productions that put the familiar lyric “Come with me, and you’ll be, in a world of pure imagination!” into practice.

Posted on 7/2/2009 4:13:18 PM

Footlight Players Hosting Giant Puppet Parade at Picnic in the Grove

Footlight Players Theater-for-Youth will host a giant puppet parade at IUP’s Picnic in the Grove this Wednesday, July 1, 2009. The parade will feature the award-winning puppetry of Cheryl Capezzuti.

Posted on 6/29/2009 2:45:02 PM

Blackledge Invited to Contribute at 2009 ATHE Conference in NYC

Barb Blackledge, Director of Production for the Department of Theater and Dance, has been invited to share her expertise at the national convention for the Association for Theatre in Higher Educaton (ATHE) in New York City from August 8-11, 2009.

Posted on 6/23/2009 12:29:15 PM

Hood’s “MacBeth 3” Theater Production Praised

Michael Hood’s adventurous production of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, titled Macbeth 3—for the three actors that play all the roles—has received praise from the Pittsburgh Tribune Review and the City Paper.

Posted on 6/11/2009 2:42:09 PM

Footlight Players Begins Sixth Summer Program

Footlight Players Theater-For-Youth begins its sixth summer enrichment program for young people in the greater Indiana community on Monday, June 15, 2009.

Posted on 6/8/2009 11:45:59 AM

Kemp Receives Innovation Grant

Rick Kemp from the Department of Theater and Dance has received an Innovation Award from the Academic Excellence and Innovation Award Committee at the IUP Research Institute.

Posted on 6/8/2009 11:16:44 AM

Boda-Sutton Is Pennsylvania Representative to AAHPERD Conference

On May 2, 2009, IUP Associate Professor of Dance Holly Boda-Sutton traveled to Boston to attend the Eastern District Association Conference of the American Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance as Pennsylvania’s representative.

Posted on 5/7/2009 10:22:44 AM

Theater-By-The-Grove Auditions for Fall Productions

Auditions for four IUP of the Department of Theater’s Fall 2009 productions are scheduled for Monday, April 20, 2009.

Posted on 4/9/2009 4:48:56 PM

Footlight Players Theater-for-Youth Summer Program

The Theater and Dance Department’s community outreach program, Footlight Players, has announced its summer plans for the community. Registrations are now being taken for the popular summer program that will begin on June 15 at Theater-by-the-Grove on IUP’s campus.

Posted on 3/21/2009 12:47:05 PM

Ault Receives Greggs Award from U.S. Institute for Theater Technology

Dr. C. Thomas Ault will receive the Herbert D. Greggs Award at the annual conference of the U.S. Institute for Theater Technology for his article, “Color in Sixteenth and Seventeenth Century Italian Stage Design.”

Posted on 3/5/2009 10:30:47 AM

Theater Majors Win Regional KCACTF Awards

Megan Miller, Grace Maberg, and Kate Smith are all winners in Philadelphia theater festival.

Posted on 1/27/2009 2:11:15 PM

“Violet Sharp” at KCACTF Festival in Philadelphia

Violet Sharp performance is a hit at the festival!

Posted on 1/27/2009 2:01:36 PM

Special “Violet Sharp” Open Dress Rehearsal

Acclaimed production of Violet Sharp — open dress rehearsal January 11 at 8:00 p.m. in Fisher to public before heading to Philadelphia for an invited performance at the Region II Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival next week.

Posted on 1/9/2009 10:12:14 AM

Boda-Sutton Awarded Dance Educator of the Year

Professor of Dance Holly Boda-Sutton was awarded Dance Educator of the Year by the Pennsylvania State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance at their Awards Luncheon in Pittsburgh on November 21.

Posted on 12/24/2008 11:30:27 AM

Gretta Invited to Present Workshop at SETC

Rob Gretta was invited to present a musical theater workshop at the sixtieth annual Southeastern Theatre Conference Convention in Birmingham in March 2009.

Posted on 11/26/2008 2:42:23 PM

Theater Alumna Performing in “Romeo and Juliet” in NYC

Caitlin Simkovich, an IUP theater alumna, is performing Juliet in Romeo and Juliet at the Manhattan Rep in New York City.

Posted on 11/26/2008 12:25:17 PM

Production of “Violet Sharp” Invited to Major Regional Theater Festival

Department of Theater and Dance production of William Cameron’s new play, Violet Sharp, is one of only nine productions invited to KCACTF festival from a five-state region.

Posted on 11/26/2008 11:53:52 AM

Students and Faculty Receive Awards for “Violet Sharp”

Theater majors Scott Fetterman and Jessica Sabol as well as theater professor Barb Blackledge earned Certificates for Meritorious Achievement in from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival for their work on Violet Sharp.

Posted on 11/20/2008 1:50:11 PM

Blackledge Cochairing KCACTF Acting Competition

Professor Barb Blackledge is associate chair of the Irene Ryan Acting Competition at the Region II Festival of the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.

Posted on 11/20/2008 1:48:10 PM

Kemp Performing in “Museum of Desire”

Professor Rick Kemp is performing in The Museum of Desire at the Frick Art and Historical Center in Pittsburgh, November 6 through 23. Produced by Quantum Theatre, Kemp cocreated this production with an ensemble cast under the direction of Dan Jemmitt.

Posted on 11/20/2008 1:44:54 PM

Passing of Professor Emeritus Malcolm Bowes

Professor Malcolm “Mal” Bowes passed away October 26. His life was celebrated with a funeral mass at St. Thomas More University Parish.

Posted on 11/20/2008 1:22:10 PM

Kemp Codirector of Squonk Opera’s “Astro-Rama”

Kemp codirects Astro-rama with Pittsburgh’s Squonk Opera. Performed in October 2008, this newest rock-opera played to responsive audiences at Schenley Park.

Posted on 11/16/2008 2:17:06 PM

Kemp Performing in Quantum Theatre’s “Museum of Desire”

Rick Kemp is performing in Quantum Theatre’s Museum of Desire November 6–23. This devised theater project, created by the company, involves theater, art, and music in a multidimensional experience.

Posted on 11/16/2008 1:49:56 PM

Theater and Dance Presents Picnic in November 2008

The Department of Theater and Dance will present the 1953 Pulitzer Prize-winning play Picnic on November 6, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, and 15 at 7:00 p.m. and November 9 at 2:00 p.m.

Posted on 10/30/2008 11:20:43 AM

Dance Theater Presents “Babes in Toyland”

IUP’s Dance Theater will present Babes in Toyland from Oct. 24–26 at the dance studio in Zink Hall.

Posted on 10/23/2008 1:47:07 PM

Blackledge Offered Season Contract at Electric Theatre Company

Barb Blackledge has been offered a nine-month position in the 2009–10 resident theater company of the Electric Theatre Company (formerly the Northeast Theatre) in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Posted on 10/18/2008 8:25:20 PM

Gretta Hired for 2009 Season at Post Playhouse

Rob Gretta is contracted as both a director and an actor for the 2009 season at the Post Playhouse, an Equity professional theater company in Fort Washington, Nebraska.

Posted on 10/18/2008 8:16:57 PM

Boda-Sutton and Dance-Theater Company Perform in Pittsburgh

Professor Holly Boda-Sutton took the IUP Dance-Theater Company to Pittsburgh where they performed their new work “Furoshiki,” at the invitation of the 2008 Regional Arts and Technology Mini-Conference.

Posted on 10/14/2008 12:15:55 PM

Dance Theater Presents Babes in Toyland October 24-26

IUP's Dance Theater will present “Babes in Toyland” by Victor Herbert and Glen MacDonough and adapted by IUP dance faculty member Holly Boda-Sutton Oct. 24-26.

Posted on 10/13/2008 10:39:08 AM

Blackledge to be Mentor at Leadership Development Institute

Barb Blackledge was invited to be a mentor at the ninth Leadership Development Institute in Denver, Colorado, presented by the Association for Theater in Higher Education.

Posted on 9/4/2008 12:00:47 PM

Van Dyke choreographs and stages DARSA at Dubrovnik International Festival

Joan Van Dyke choreographed and staged Matko Srsen’s DARSA at the Dubrovnik International Festival this summer in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Posted on 9/2/2008 9:37:58 AM

Ault Publishes Article on Italian Stage Design

C. Thomas Ault had his article “Color in 16th and 17th Century Italian Stage Design” published in the Summer 2008 edition of Theater Design and Technology.

Posted on 8/29/2008 8:36:07 AM

Gretta Performs Leading and Supporting Roles for Post Playhouse in Nebraska

Robert Gretta performed leading and supporting roles for Post Playhouse in Nebraska, which sold out its season for the first time ever.

Posted on 8/28/2008 9:01:19 AM

Kemp Performs as Numerous Characters in Cymbaline

Rick Kemp performed as numerous characters in Quantum Theatre’s production of Cymbaline by William Shakespeare.

Posted on 8/22/2008 9:15:26 AM

2008–2009 Theater-by-the-Grove Season

Theater goers can expect a very exciting next season.

Posted on 6/2/2008 1:24:09 PM

Professor’s Plays Published and Premiered

One of Professor Jason Chimonides’ plays will be published, while two others are now being presented to audiences.

Posted on 6/2/2008 1:18:11 PM

Acorn Project Spring Schedule

Theater-by-the-Grove’s Acorn Project showcases the work of students in four productions this Spring.

Posted on 4/4/2008 2:13:21 PM

Henry IV, Part 1

Shakespeare’s historical masterpiece brilliantly balances the pomp of the royal court and the rowdiness of tavern life in this dramatic and often comedic adventure.

Posted on 4/4/2008 2:08:24 PM

Floyd in Pink

The music of Pink Floyd takes over this year’s spring dance performance, giving the audience a spectacle of motion, sound, and lights.

Posted on 4/4/2008 2:06:07 PM

Threepenny Opera Performed in February 2008

The brutish and sinister world of Mack the Knife haunts 1920s Germany and IUP’s Waller Theater in this joint production of the departments of Theater and Dance and Music.

Posted on 2/13/2008 4:21:58 PM

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