Slam Narrative: How Slam Poetry and Theatre Collide!
Monday, February 26
6:30-8:00 pm | Clarence Brown Theatre (main stage) | Admission is Free
Sponsored by the UT Division of Access and Engagement and the Department of Theatre.
Learn More
The American Soldier
MARCH 8
A solo show starring Douglas Taurel
7:30pm | Clarence Brown Theatre | Free General Admission
The American Soldier has been nominated for the Amnesty International Award. A play that Douglas Taurel wrote to honor Veterans and their families. It is based on actual letters from veterans and their families that span from the Revolution through the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Douglas Taurel will stay after the performance for a Q & A.
Othello: A Reading and Symposium
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5
12:00 – 2:00 PM | Student Union Room 169
Join us for a reading of scenes and discussion exploring William Shakespeare’s OTHELLO with two of our nation’s finest Shakespearean actors John Douglas Thompson and Jacob Ming-Trent.
Gulliver’s Travels, A Freely Adapted Comedy
Written by Zack Fine
A work-in-progress sharing
Friday, November 3, 2:00pm HPER room B020
Gulliver’s Travels is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan Swift, satirizing both human nature and the “travelers’ tales” literary subgenre. Swift claimed that he wrote Gulliver’s Travels “to vex the world rather than divert it.” The book was an immediate success and has been hailed as a seminal work in the canon of English literature. This is exactly why Zack Fine, a middle-aged regional theatre actor who has lately been out of work and struggling to pay his bills, attempts to adapt Gulliver’s Travels. He’s pretty sure that this will be his ticket to the success that has eluded him for most of his career.
The reading will feature the first-year MFA Acting graduates in their first public performance.
Career Conversations
Entertainment: Production & Performance
Wednesday | Ocober 18 | 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM | Carousel Theatre
Join us NEXT WEDNESDAY starting at 1:00 pm
Are you passionate about the magic of theatre, filmmaking, television, and creative storytelling?
Are you an aspiring performer with a burning passion for the stage? Looking to break into the glamorous world of Entertainment Careers?
Join industry pros as they share their success stories, valuable experiences, and insider tips for making it big in the entertainment sphere. Whether you dream of becoming a captivating actor, or a multi-talented all-around performer, this event is for you!
Register Below! (Not required to attend).
Career Conversation: Entertainment – Production & Performance
October 18, 2023 • 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm EDT
Theater of the Oppressed Training Workshop
October 4-6, 9am to 2pm Grad Acting Studio HPER-B020
Using strategic theatre games and exercises, this three-day workshop teaches participants practical ways of addressing the socio-political problems of the world.
Open to All: Students, Faculty, Staff
To Register: tiny.utk.edu/training-workshop
Registration Ends October 1
Details: Shinnerrie Jackson | sjacks22@utk.edu
GEO BRITT Founder and Member of the Coordination Board of the Escola de Teatro Popular-ETP. He worked at the Centro de Teatro do Oprimido-CTO for 32 years, 20 of them with Augusto Boal. He has given lectures, workshops and presentations in dozens of countries. He has a Master’s degree in Arts from UFF, a PhD in Theater from USP and is the father of twins. Instagram and ETP address: @britto.geo @escoladeteatropopular
Clarence Brown Film Festival
Friday, August 18, 2023
Come and celebrate our theatre’s namesake and renowned film director, Clarence Brown, as we kick-off the 50th anniversary of the Clarence Brown Film Festival dedicated to highlighting some of his most acclaimed films. Nominated for 8 Academy Awards, Clarence Brown used the engineering skills he gained at UT to make significant contributions to the film industry. His illustrious film career spanned the silent era into the Golden Age of Hollywood. He never forgot Knoxville and its due to his generosity that the Clarence Brown Theatre not only exists but continues to thrive today.
Department (Re)Orientation Meeting
When: Tuesday, August 22, 2023, 1:00pm
Who: All Theatre Department Faculty, Staff, and Students
Where: Lab Theatre
Come find out about all the exciting new things that are happening in and around the Department of Theatre for the coming academic year! Audition information, updates on department spaces, and more! Meet friends, new and old, and lets celebrate the beginning of the new school year together!
Frozen Treats available following the meeting! Mmmmmm!!
The Hollywood Reporter Ranks UTK 23 in the World
FROM THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER | BY CAITLIN HUSTON | JUNE 16, 2023 9:00AM
You Wanna Be an Actor? THR’s 2023 Top 25 Drama Schools in the World
Trod the same boards as Cate Blanchett, Michaela Coel and Matthew Macfadyen as their schools, from Los Angeles to London, emphasize job placement, self-taped auditions and representation.
Drama schools worldwide were able to achieve a degree of stability in the past academic year as productions and classes largely went on as scheduled (though, in some cases, programs still felt lingering effects from COVID-19). Coming out of the pandemic, schools are pushing forward with a greater emphasis on diversity within the classes, faculty and coursework. Students are learning how to create the best self-taped auditions and coming out of school with jobs booked…
Kenneth Martin, formerly of the University of Missouri —Kansas City, took over as the new head of the department of theater in August 2022 and also helms the affiliated Clarence Brown Theatre as its artistic director. The school offers a BA in theater and an MFA in acting, with the latter provided tuition-free (undergrad cost $31,664 for out-of-state students in 2022-23).
UT Theatre Program, Ranked 23 in the World by The Hollywood Reporter
…The Hollywood Reporter consulted with educators and industry execs to determine its annual ranking of the best schools for an acting degree. Tuition, when applicable, is listed on an annualized basis and pertains to the upcoming academic year, unless otherwise indicated. Most schools offer some form of financial assistance
Student Excellence at Industry Conferences
The Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) is a nonprofit theatre membership organization with a full spectrum of services for members and organizations across 10 states in the southeast region of the United States and beyond. Every year, students from the theatre department attend the conference to participate in — and sometimes present — workshops, interview at the largest theatre job fair in the country, and submit their projects in the design competition.
Winners from this year’s SETC Conference Competition were:
Sound Design
- 3rd place – Amoirie Perteet, Blood at the Root
- 2nd place – Allison Bucher, Men on Boats
Projection Design
- 2nd place – DJ Pike, She Kills Monsters
Graduate Scenic Design
- 2nd place DJ Pike, Murder on the Orient Express
- 1st place Sophie Smrcka, Men on Boats
Graduate Lighting Design
- 2nd place- Joshua Mullady, Trouble in Mind
Graduate Costume Design
- Honorable Mention- MJ Hromek, Murder on the Orient Express
- 3rd place- Alex Heder, Adaptive Radiation
- 2nd place- Kaelyn Williams, Men on Boats
Founded in 1960 to promote dialogue, research, and learning among practitioners of theatre design and technology, the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) is the leader in life-long learning opportunities for the entertainment design and technology industry. It connects performing arts design and technology communities to ensure a vibrant dialog among practitioners, educators, and students.
At the annual conference, students who are in the last year of their training or have graduated from a program in the last year, are given the opportunity to submit for a Young Designers, Managers, and Technician Award. Each design area offers a nationally recognized sponsored award. Students separately submit to participate in the juried Emerging Creatives Showcase. Students and professionals alike can enter the Design Expo for a chance to be one of ten designs to be featured in the TD&T Summer Issue.
This year’s winners of USITT competitions were:
Zelma H. Weisfeld Costume Design and Technology Award: MJ Hromek
Emerging Creatives Showcase: DJ Pike & Kaylin Gess
Design Expo selections to be featured in TD&T Summer Issue: Joshua Mullady, DJ Pike & MJ Hromek
