News

Performance major Josue Dooley is one of sixteen seniors selected as Outstanding Seniors for their exceptional achievements in scholarship, honors, awards, leadership and service. You can read more here!

Assistant Professor Renée Brode will design Spamalot for the Stratford Festival, the largest regional theatre in North America. 

You can find the press release announcing the 2023 cast and creative teams here!

OU School of Drama assistant professor, students emphasize consent-based practices in staging theatrical intimacy

Read the OU Daily article here.

Christopher Sadler, associate professor of stage and theatre management, co-edits Off Headset: Essays on Stage Management Life, Work, and Career. 

Read the OU Daily article here.

OU School of Drama alumnus continues 'thirst for knowledge' as 'Chicken and Biscuits' head lighting designer! Read the OU Daily article here.

Congratulations to lighting designer and School of Drama alumnus Adam Honoré, who will deliver the Keynote Address for USITT21 Virtually Anywhere on Friday, March 12th!

Honoré's current project, lighting design for simply sondheim, is streaming online from February 2 – March 26, 2021.

Honoré is also the production designer for Little Shop of Horrors with Out of the Box Theatrics (livestream starts March 15th).

Adam was recently featured on a PLSN Podcast - Let’s Create Theater That Matters – with Adam Honoré, where he discusses influential teachers (SoD's Professor Young made the list!), modern lighting portfolios, technology taught in schools, advice for students of 2020, and more!

You can learn more about Honoré by visiting his website: honorelighting.com. 

For more information about USITT21 Virtually Anywhere, click here!

Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley is a lovely tribute to the works of Jane Austen. It features the beloved characters of Pride and Prejudice in a new holiday story.

Continue reading the
Broadway World Review here!

_{^{ACTORS: Joseph Hoffman, Emma Woodward, Devin Ricklef, and Levi Hawkins
DESIGNERS - Scenic: Cliona Smith; Costume: Emily Cejka; Lighting: Ian Evans
Photo by Richard Sprecker}}

NORMAN, OK—Professor Lloyd Cracknell, associate professor of drama, has been named the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts 2020 Irene and Julian J. Rothbaum Presidential Professor of Excellence in the Arts at the University of Oklahoma.

After a highly successful and lucrative career in the fashion world, Professor Cracknell fell in love with the theatre and teaching. He earned his master of fine arts degree in drama from the University of Oklahoma in 2010 and joined the Peggy Dow Helmerich School of Drama in an interim position that year. 

Each year, professor Cracknell teaches a minimum of 10 classes in the School of Drama and serves as the resident costume designer for OU University Theatre. He designs two to three main stage productions, as well as mentoring student costume designers on five to six college-wide main stage productions and up to four lab productions each season.  

Seth Gordon, director, Peggy Dow Helmerich School of Drama said, “Lloyd is beloved by students, faculty and staff alike. His quiet leadership and mentorship is something I admire. The Rothbaum Award is a fitting tribute to all he has accomplished here, but more so, personally, I’m thrilled to have him as my colleague each day.”

When asked about his teaching philosophy, Cracknell stated, “All of my classes support a journey for the student that encourages the development of self-motivation, innovation, responsibility and creative confidence. The process of becoming a designer or technician is intensely personal, and my courses have been structured to allow for fluidity based on who is on the roster, but my belief is that the process must contain the following: learning how to collaborate and contribute to the production design process, how aesthetic choices combined with script analysis and in-depth research form the design, and learning basic and advanced construction techniques that inform the design.”

Read the OU Daily article here.

NORMAN, OKLA. – A recent gift from Academy Award-winning filmmaker and Oklahoma native Ron Howard will help aspiring actors from rural areas pursue their dream of studying drama and fine arts at the University of Oklahoma.

Howard’s $90,000 gift to the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts at OU establishes a scholarship to support students in the college’s Helmerich School of Drama who hail from rural communities across the United States. 

The scholarship is named in memory of Howard’s parents, Rance
and Jean Howard, both of whom were born in Oklahoma and studied drama at OU before enjoying successful acting careers. In addition to their son Ron, their son Clint Howard and their granddaughters Bryce Dallas Howard and Paige Howard have established notable careers in film and television.

“Our mom and dad were from small-town, rural America,” Ron Howard explained. “Their ability to afford to be the first in their families to pursue a career in the arts at OU changed their lives, as well as the course of our family history. They met on campus, made lifelong friends and career connections there, and affirmed the viability of their dreams. Our family wants to help support that dream for students from similar circumstances who make the excellent choice to attend the University of Oklahoma for drama and fine arts.”

Mary Margaret Holt, dean of the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts, said, “We are honored that beloved American filmmaker and actor Ron Howard has chosen to memorialize his parents through this generous scholarship fund in support of students in the Helmerich School of Drama. Students come to our school from across the country, from a variety of communities and circumstances, all sharing the dream of a career in acting that Rance and Jean Howard cherished and achieved. The scholarships provided by this fund will support students from rural areas and small communities who might otherwise be unable to pursue a degree in drama. We are deeply grateful to Ron and his family.”

Ron Howard first came to prominence as a child actor, guest-starring in several television series, including an episode of The Twilight Zone. He gained national attention for playing young Opie Taylor in the sitcom The Andy Griffith Show from 1960 through 1968, along with prominent roles in the films The Music Man and American Graffiti. In 1974, Howard became a household name for playing Richie Cunningham in the sitcom Happy Days, a role he would play for the next six years. 

The 1977 comedy Grand Theft Auto marked his directorial debut; and in 1980, he left Happy Days to focus on directing. During the past 43 years, he has directed more than 30 films, including the 1985 science fiction/fantasy Cocoon, the 1995 historical docudrama Apollo 13, the 2006 thriller The Da Vinci Code and the 2018 science fiction/fantasy Solo: A Star Wars Story.

For the 2001 biographical drama A Beautiful Mind, Howard won two Academy Awards – Best Director and Best Picture. In 2003, he received the National Medal of Arts, and in 2013, he was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. Howard has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the television and motion picture industries.

Seth Gordon, director of the Helmerich School of Drama, expressed his appreciation to the Howard family.

“I am immeasurably grateful to Ron Howard and his family for this generous gift,” Gordon said. “I have been director of the Helmerich School of Drama for one year, and in that short time I have witnessed very quiet and unassuming acts of heroism on the part of so many of our students. They often work multiple jobs to cover their tuition, and they’re at school, working hard, all day and all night. 

Gordon continued, “This important gift makes it clear that their determination is seen and heard. The arts are essential to any thriving society and with this gift, Ron Howard makes it possible for the finest theatre artists of tomorrow to make their contribution. The hearts of everyone at the Helmerich School of Drama are full.”

Professor Christopher Sadler, associate professor of drama, has been named the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts 2019 Irene and Julian J. Rothbaum Presidential Professor of Excellence in the Arts.

Professor Sadler joined the University of Oklahoma in 2005. Since his arrival he has been a tireless educator, revising the stage management curriculum to reflect an ever-changing profession and creating new courses (ranging from music notation to dramatic literature) to enhance students’ education. One former student remarked of Professor Sadler: “His classes are spaces conducive to discussion and debate, especially about challenging ideas, and they remain safe spaces to share and discuss because Chris prioritizes respect, leading by example.”

When asked about his leadership in arts education, Sadler said, “In 2005, I became the first faculty member at OU dedicated to the teaching of stage management. From the beginning, I was determined to make the bachelor of fine arts degree in stage management prominent regionally and nationally."

School of Drama 2014 graduate Paul Kim received a Jefferson Award Monday night in Chicago for his Costume Design for The Explorers Club at the Citadel Theatre. You can read more about the Jeff Award here. To learn more about Paul's work, visit his website.

Congratulations, Paul! Boomer!

The Stage 100 is an annual list of theatre's most influential people, and our own A. Max Weitzenhoffer's Nimax ranked at number 6. Read about Nimax's ranking here.

The Huffington Post featured Helmerich School of Drama alumn Wes Aderhold! Read the full article here.

The Peggy Dow Helmerich School of Drama at the University of Oklahoma is one of the top 10 Bachelor of Fine Arts theatre design and technology programs in the nation, according to OnStage. You can read the article here.

The Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts and the Helmerich School of Drama would like to congratulate the Class of 2016! We are so excited to see where life takes you!

Students from the Peggy Dow Helmerich School of Drama at the University of Oklahoma won numerous top honors at the recent Region 6 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in San Angelo, Texas.

                    Read the full story here.