News & Events

Dean Martine Kei Green-Rogers named President-Elect of
the Association for Theatre in ​Higher Education​

​The Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) members voted The Theatre School at DePaul University's Dean Martine Kei Green-Rogers President-Elect of the ATHE. Dean Green-Rogers' election was announced at the group's national conference, “Building from the Rubble: Centering Care," in Austin, Texas. Green-Rogers will serve as President-Elect of the ATHE until 2025. She will then serve as President of the ATHE until 2027.

Dean Martine Kei Green-Rogers comments, “I have been a member of ATHE longer than I can remember and after several years of running, or serving for, non-profit service organizations in our field (including LMDA, ATHE, ASTR, and others), I am excited about the prospect of leading ATHE. I am hoping to lead with the wisdom of my past experiences, the guidance of my current work as a Dean, and the heart of an advocate for those of us in higher education who study and/or make art in this time of uncertainty."

Other 2023 ATHE Elected Officials include Concordia University's Bryan Moore (Vice President for Advocacy), BMCC/CUNY's Karl O'Brian Williams (Vice President for Awards), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's Kirsten Pullen (Vice President-Elect for Conference 2025), William & Mary's Omiyẹmi (Artisia) Green (Vice President for Professional Development), Florida International University's Brian Valencia (Member-at-Large for Operations), Utah State University's Amanda Dawson (Member-at-Large for Outreach), and New York Historical Society's Kelly Aliano (Member-at-Large for Focus Groups).

About the ATHE: Founded in 1986, the ATHE is a nonprofit advocate for the field of theater and performance in higher education. Serving the interests of its diverse individual and organizational members, the group is an intellectual and artistic center for producing new knowledge about theater and performance-related disciplines. For more information, visit athe.org.

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​​​​​​Coya Paz named recipient of the 2023 Innovations in Institutional Leadership Award

​The Theatre School's Coya Paz is the recipient of the 2023 Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) Award for Innovations in Institutional Leadership. On Friday, August 4, 2023, Coya was recognized for her leadership in community-based theatre and civic engagement at the group's national conference, “Building from the Rub​​ble: Centering Care," in Austin, Texas.

​​The ATHE comments, “Coya positions the work of​ community-making, resiliency building, and mentorship as art forms themselves that are insep​arable from the public-facing performance work. Coya has spent her life centering other people's work and voices. With this award, ATHE has the exquisite opportunity to center hers."​​​

Coya is a writer, director, scholar, and arts administrator with a deep commitment to racial and economic equity in the arts. She currently serves as an Associate Professor at The Theatre School at DePaul University, where she is the Dean for Curriculum and Instruction. She is also the Director of Strategy for Free Street Theater​, a nonprofit focused on creating affordable, inclusive, and innovative theatre in communities across Chicago.​​​

​ATHE's Award for Leadership in Community-Based Theatre and Civic Engagement honors an individual or theatre company that has demonstrated sustained commitment and a significant impact in the field for a minimum of ten years. Other 2023 honorees include Washington University's Ron Himes, the founder and producing director of The St. Louis Black Rep; and the nonprofit Donkey Saddle Projects.

About the ATHE: Founded in 1986, the ATHE is a nonprofit advocate for the field of theater and performance in higher education. Serving the interests of its diverse individual and organizational members, the group is an intellectual and artistic center for producing new knowledge about theater and performance-related disciplines. For more information, visit athe.org.

Coya Paz receives the 2023 ATHE Award for Innovations in Institutional Leadership.pdf

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Meet Theatre Industry Leaders Martine Kei Green-Rogers, Khalid Y. Long, & DeRon S. Williams at Book Signing Event, The Understudy, July 31, 2023​

​​Theatre industry leaders and editors of “Contemporary Black Theatre and Performance: Acts of Rebellion, Activism, and Solidarity" Martine Kei Green-Rogers​ , Khalid Y. Long, and DeRon S. Williams will be welcomed to The Understudy for a book signing on Monday, July 31^st.  The event will run from 7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. Doors will open at 7 p.m., and seating is limited. Interested parties can RSVP here​​.

Theatre School Alumni Adam Todd Crawford (BFA Acting, 2020) and Danny Fender (BFA Stage Management, 2019) opened the doors of The Understudy, Andersonville's new theatre bookstore and cafe, in March of this year. Join them in welcoming three editors of “Contemporary Black Theatre and Performance." Signed copies will be available for purchase at the event. The Theatre School would also like to recognize adjunct faculty members Willa Taylor​ and Quenna Barrett​, who are featured in the publication.​

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The Theatre School at DePaul University awards the 2023 Cunningham Commission for Youth Theatre to Jeremy Ohringer ​

The Theatre School Dean Martine Kei Green-Rogers​ comments, “The Theatre School strives to challenge, entertain, and stimulate the imagination of families and young audiences through the commission and production of new plays. We are excited to commission Jeremy for this new, innovative work that reflects our audience's experience in an urban, contemporary, and multi-racial environment."

Ohringer comments, “I have always wanted to write a play for young people. Before I attended graduate school, I worked as a teaching artist for folks from 4 to 16 years old. While my focus is now with college-age students, I find that I am still incorporating activities and perspectives I used with younger folks. When I consider why this might be, I immediately think of my own reason I go to the theatre: wonder." 

Jeremy embraces wonder and theatricality in his writing, drawing inspiration from his experience seeing A Midsummer Night's Dream at Lincoln Park Zoo as a child. 

“From seeing A Midsummer Night's Dream by the Lincoln Park Zoo in 1996 to this moment, I am chasing the full-body experience of wonder that theatre is so adept at cultivating. It was theatre, in part, that gave me hope as a young queer kid. Through theatre, I could ask big questions while finding a sense of community, and in some cases, empowerment. I believe in the power of theatrical experiences to empower young people without being patronizing or didactic. I still remember how challenging I found A Midsummer Night's Dream in that park. I also remember how inspired I was and how included I felt." 

Jeremy currently serves as an assistant professor at North Central College and as an adjunct professor at The Theatre School at DePaul University. He will develop his play over the next year with input from The Cunningham Commission Committee, composed of Theatre School faculty members Coya Paz​, Jeff Mills​, and Michelle Lopez-Rios. 

The Cunningham Commission​​

The Cunningham Commission for Youth Theatre was established at The Theatre School to honor the memory of the Rev. Donald Cunningham, a Chicago priest, playwright, and lover of theatre. The purpose of the commission is to encourage the writing of dramatic works for young audiences that affirm the centrality of religion, broadly defined, and the human quest for meaning, truth, and community. Playwrights from the Chicagoland area and alumni of The Theatre School are eligible to apply.

“Each year, we receive incredible proposals. It is always an incredibly difficult decision. It has been joyous to produce two Cunningham Commissions in the last two seasons." said Lopez-Rios, the artistic director of Chicago Playworks.

The 2022 Cunningham Commission was awarded to Theatre School alumna, Lavina Jadhwani (BFA Directing, 2015). Jadhwani's play, The Secret Garden, is a textually faithful adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett's novel that re-imagines the Craven and Lennox families as Indian and was a semi-finalist for the 2022 National Playwrights Conference at the O'Neill.

Chicago Playworks

The Theatre School intends to produce the plays created through this commission in its highly celebrated Chicago Playworks for Families and Young Audiences​ series. Founded as the ​Goodman Children's Theatre in 1925 and recognized as a pioneer of theatre for families, Chicago Playworks welcomes more than 25,000 students and families to its productions each season. Once completed, Jeremy Ohringer's new play will be considered for The Theatre School's 2024-2025 season.