UMKC Theatre

Last updated
UMKC Theatre
UMKC Theatre logo.jpg
Former names
Department of Speech, Department of Speech and Theatre
Established1954 (1954)
Affiliation University of Missouri-Kansas City
ChairTom Mardikes
Location
Kansas City
,
Missouri
,
United States

UMKC Theatre is a graduate and undergraduate academic department of the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) that provides both educational and professional training in multiple areas of theatrical production, including acting, scenic design, lighting design, costume design, sound design, dramaturgy and historical research, playwriting, and stage management, [1] and maintains a strong connection with the Kansas City Repertory Theatre (KCRT), the leading regional theatre in the Kansas City area. [2] [3]

An academic department is a division of a university or school faculty devoted to a particular academic discipline. This article covers United States usage at the university level. In the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries, universities tend to use the term faculty; faculties are typically further divided into schools or departments.

Acting impersonation of a fictional character

Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor or actress who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode.

Scenic design creation of theatrical or film scenery

Scenic design is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but in recent years, are mostly trained professionals, holding a B.F.A. or M.F.A. degrees in theater arts. Scenic designers design sets and scenery that aim to support the overall artistic goals of the production.

Contents

History

Theatrical production at the University of Missouri-Kansas City began almost immediately after the institution was founded as the University of Kansas City in 1933. [4] The first play produced on the university campus was Rachel Crothers' Mary the Third in the summer of 1934, followed by Sophocles' classic tragedy Antigone in the winter of that same year. [5] In 1948, a permanent theatre structure was constructed on campus by adapting an abandoned camp theatre building left over from a deactivated United States Air Force base, and Dr. John Newfield was hired to serve as the first professional director of the new University Playhouse. A former director of theatre and opera whose work had been produced throughout New York City and Europe, Newfield inaugurated the university's first Master of Arts degree in Theatre as a component of its Department of English upon his arrival. [6]

Rachel Crothers American theatre director

Rachel Crothers was an American playwright and theater director known for her well-crafted plays that often dealt with feminist themes. Among theater historians, she is generally recognized as "the most successful and prolific woman dramatist writing in the first part of the twentieth century." One of her most famous plays was Susan and God (1937), which was made into a film by MGM in 1940 starring Joan Crawford and Fredric March.

Sophocles ancient Athenian tragic playwright

Sophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than or contemporary with those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides. Sophocles wrote over 120 plays during the course of his life, but only seven have survived in a complete form: Ajax, Antigone, Women of Trachis, Oedipus Rex, Electra, Philoctetes and Oedipus at Colonus. For almost 50 years, Sophocles was the most celebrated playwright in the dramatic competitions of the city-state of Athens that took place during the religious festivals of the Lenaea and the Dionysia. He competed in 30 competitions, won 24, and was never judged lower than second place. Aeschylus won 13 competitions, and was sometimes defeated by Sophocles, while Euripides won four competitions.

United States Air Force Air and space warfare branch of the United States Armed Forces

The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial and space warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the seven American uniformed services. Initially formed as a part of the United States Army on 1 August 1907, the USAF was established as a separate branch of the U.S. Armed Forces on 18 September 1947 with the passing of the National Security Act of 1947. It is the youngest branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, and the fourth in order of precedence. The USAF is the largest and most technologically advanced air force in the world. The Air Force articulates its core missions as air and space superiority, global integrated intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, rapid global mobility, global strike, and command and control.

However, it was not until the university hired Dr. Patricia McIlrath in 1954 as Newfield's replacement that an academic department sovereign from the Department of English was established to take on the dual responsibility of producing theatre on campus and training students in the history and methodology of theatrical production. [7] Initially serving as chair of the Department of Speech, McIlrath was selected to lead a newly formed Department of Speech and Theatre after the private University of Kansas City was inducted into the public University of Missouri system in 1963. [8] A fully independent Department of Theatre was established at UMKC in 1972. [9] As the head of UMKC Theatre, McIlrath played a paramount role in the development of regional theatre in the Kansas City area, founding the UMKC Summer Repertory Theatre in 1964. [10] The company, which changed its name to the Missouri Repertory Theatre in 1968, [11] and once again to the Kansas City Repertory Theatre in 2004, [12] quickly gained Equity status to emerge as one of the leading regional theatres in the American Midwest. [13] In addition, UMKC Theatre became a founding member of the National Association of Schools of Theatre in 1965 and a founding member of the University/Resident Theatre Association in 1969, two institutions with which it still maintains accreditation. Following McIlrath's retirement as Founding Chair of the UMKC Theatre in 1984 and Founding Artistic Director of the Missouri Repertory Theatre in 1985, the responsibilities of leading the academic department of UMKC Theatre and of directing the professional company of Missouri Repertory Theatre (Kansas City Repertory Theatre) were separated, but the two institutions remain closely linked to this day. [14]

Patricia McIlrath American theatre director

Patricia Anne McIlrath was an American educator and theatre director who was pivotal in the founding of the Missouri Repertory Theatre and in the development of Regional Theatre within the area surrounding Kansas City, Missouri.

A regional theatre, or resident theatre, in the United States is a professional or semi-professional theatre company that produces its own seasons. The term regional theatre most often refers to a professional theatre outside New York City. A regional theatre may be a non-profit, commercial, union, or non-union house.

Actors Equity Association American labor union

The Actors' Equity Association (AEA), commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance, as opposed to film and television performance. However, performers appearing on live stage productions without a book or through-storyline may be represented by the American Guild of Variety Artists (AGVA). As of 2010, Equity represented over 49,000 theatre artists and stage managers.

Since its establishment in the 1960s, the department has had numerous alumni go on to find success in the fields of stage, film, and television. In addition, numerous professional theatres in modern-day Kansas City were founded by former students or employees of UMKC Theatre. [15] Performances at the UMKC University Playhouse ceased production in the 1970s. [16] Today, the mainstage performance space of the university is the Helen F. Spencer Theatre, a 630-seat proscenium space located in the James C. Olson Performing Arts Center and shared with the Kansas City Repertory Theatre. [17] UMKC Theatre also regularly stages productions in Studio 116, a blackbox performance space located within same building. With a training mission of serving as a teaching hospital for the theatre, UMKC Theatre frequently engages in co-productions with various professional theatre companies throughout the Kansas City area, including the Kansas City Repertory Theatre, the Unicorn Theatre, the Coterie Theatre, and Kansas City Actors Theatre, and has presented theatrical works at multiple off-campus venues in recent years, such as the City Stage Theatre in Union Station (Kansas City) and the J.C. Nichols Theatre at the National World War I Museum. [18]

Kansas City Actors Theatre (KCAT) is a non-profit theatre in Kansas City, Missouri. Started in 2004, Kansas City Actors Theatre was founded in order to “challenge and enlighten the Kansas City community by producing classic and modern-classic plays using Kansas City theatre artists.” The company presents a collection of plays that are integrated either over a season or in rotating repertory, in order to deepen the appreciation of each play. The theatre is also known to be a place for young local actors to obtain experience in a professional setting. The artist-led theatre company often collaborates with theatre students from the UMKC Theatre. This Mission was exemplified when they were the first theatre company to run Lanford Wilson’s Tally Trilogy in repertory.

The current chairperson of UMKC Theatre is Professor Tom Mardikes, who has served as chair of the department since 2001. [19]

Anastasios "Tom" Mardikes is an American sound designer and theatre educator. He currently serves as Professor and Head of Graduate Sound Design for UMKC Theatre, an academic department of the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Degrees Offered

The UMKC Theatre offers degrees at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Its Bachelor of Arts degree program in Theatre focuses on providing undergraduate students with a broad educational experience that includes all aspects of theatrical production, but allows students to select a specific field of emphasis, such as performance or design. In the early 1980s, the University of Missouri-Kansas City was granted the authority to offer the only Master of Fine Arts degrees in theatre in the State of Missouri. [20] Terminal MFA degrees are available to graduate students seeking to obtain professional educations in acting, costume design, lighting design, scenic design, sound design, stage management, or technical direction. In addition, the department offers a Master of Arts degree with an emphasis in either playwriting or in theatre history and dramatic literature to graduate students interested in either a literary or research-oriented education in the theatre arts, and in obtaining practical experience in dramaturgy. [21]

A Bachelor of Arts is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, sciences, or both. Bachelor of Arts programs generally take three to four years depending on the country, institution, and specific specializations, majors, or minors. The word baccalaureus should not be confused with baccalaureatus, which refers to the one- to two-year postgraduate Bachelor of Arts with Honors degree in some countries.

A Master of Fine Arts is a creative degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts administration. It is a graduate degree that typically requires two to three years of postgraduate study after a bachelor's degree, though the term of study varies by country or university. The MFA is a terminal degree. Coursework is primarily of an applied or performing nature with the program often culminating in a major work or performance. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Master of Fine Arts was the University of Iowa in 1940.

Notable faculty

Related Research Articles

Kansas City, Missouri City in western Missouri

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Theodore "Ted" Swetz is an American actor, theatre director, and educator. He currently serves as the Head of Acting at UMKC Theatre, an academic department of the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

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References

  1. ↑ The University of Missouri-Kansas City. "2013-2014 UMKC Catalog, College of Arts and Sciences, Theatre."
  2. ↑ The Kansas City Repertory Theatre. "Company History". Accessed online at http://www.kcrep.org/about/history on 10/3/2013.
  3. ↑ ^ Raymond R. Gould. "Department of Theatre, University of Missouri in Kansas City, A History of Productions." pg. 1. Located within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013.
  4. ↑ Felicia Hardison Londré. "A Brief History of the UMKC Department of Theatre." Archived within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013
  5. ↑ Raymond R. Gould. "Department of Theatre, University of Missouri in Kansas City, A History of Productions." pg. 1. Located within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013.
  6. ↑ Felicia Hardison Londré. "A Brief History of the UMKC Department of Theatre." Archived within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013
  7. ↑ Jim Lapham. "The Woman Behind Missouri Repertory Theatre." The Kansas City Star Magazine. June, 1974.
  8. ↑ Raymond R. Gould. "Department of Theatre, University of Missouri in Kansas City, A History of Productions." pg. 34. Located within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013
  9. ↑ Raymond R. Gould. "Department of Theatre, University of Missouri in Kansas City, A History of Productions." pg. 48. Located within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013
  10. ↑ "Repertory Team is Recruited by U. M. K. C." The Kansas City Star. June 21, 1964. p. 2E.
  11. ↑ Giles M. Fowler. "Of Growth and Goals...Missouri Rep for '68." The Kansas City Star. Jan. 21, 1968.
  12. ↑ The Kansas City Repertory Theatre. "Company History." Accessed online at http://www.kcrep.org/about/history on 10/3/2013.
  13. ↑ Alice M. Robinson, Vera Mowry Roberts, and Milly S. Barranger, eds. "Patricia McIlrath," located in Notable Women in the American Theatre: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Press, Westport, CT: 1989. Pgs. 618-621.
  14. ↑ Felicia Hardison Londré. "A Brief History of the UMKC Department of Theatre." Archived within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013
  15. ↑ Rebekah Presson. "An Atmosphere of Genius." Forum Vol. 14, No. 1. Jan/Feb. 1989: 9. Print.
  16. ↑ Tara Kloeppel. "Playhouse marks birth of UMKC theatre." University News. Jan. 26, 2009: pg. 9.
  17. ↑ The Kansas City Repertory Theatre. "Spencer Theatre." Accessed online at http://www.kcrep.org/about/Spencer/ on 10/3/2013.
  18. ↑ Robert Trussel. "Theatre, museum become allies for 'Billy Bishop'." The Kansas City Star. Feb. 8, 2012. Accessed online at http://www.kansascity.com on 10/3/2013.
  19. ↑ Felicia Hardison Londré. "A Brief History of the UMKC Department of Theatre." Archived within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013.
  20. ↑ Felicia Hardison Londré. "A Brief History of the UMKC Department of Theatre." Archived within the Patricia McIlrath Center for Mid-American Theatre, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO, 64110, Room 408. Accessed 10/1/2013.
  21. ↑ "2013-2014 UMKC Catalog, College of Arts and Sciences, Theatre."
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