university of mississippi

Our guests today are alums Shelby Grady and Gavin Fields, filmmakers and founders of the Lil Cowboy production company. They will be coming to the University of Mississippi March 6th and 7th to screen their recent film Brutal Season and host a filmmaking workshop. We talked about all that and so much more!

To see the Brutal Season  trailer, please visit: https://vimeo.com/722273848

And to learn more about the film: https://www.brutalseason.com/

For more information about Lil' Cowboy, please visit: https://www.lilcowboy.co/

Also, Shelby was previously featured in an article about some of our graduates who are doing interesting things:  https://news.olemiss.edu/choose-your-own-adventure-with-a-degree-in-theatre-arts/

For tickets to Naomi Iizuka's Polaroid Stories, please visit our website here: http://theatreandfilm.olemiss.edu/

And to learn more about guest director Beth Reeves, please see her website here: https://www.bethreevesartist.com/

For information on the Oxford Film Festival, see their site and schedule here: https://www.ox-film.com/

John Carden joined the Department of Theatre & Film in the fall 2022 semester as our Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre. John comes to us by way of New York — among other places, national and international — with a background in both opera and musical theatre, the latter of which he both performs, composes, and teaches. 

John will also be directing our big spring musical, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, which will take place April 21-23.

For more information about John and his illustrious career, please see his bio on our website: http://theatreandfilm.olemiss.edu/JohnCarden.html

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit: https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm 

In this episode, we talk with Assistant Professor of Acting Dan Stearns, who is directing our upcoming production of "Into the Woods," which runs November 4-6 in Fulton Chapel.

For more information about the show and to get tickets, click here: https://olemissboxoffice.com/

In this episode, we catch up with our brand new Production Manager and Assistant Professor of Stage & Production Management, Raey Bagley.

You'll learn all about Raey and their background, what makes a great production or stage manager, and all the ways theatre training is so useful—in work and in life—both onstage and off.

For more information about Raey and their work, check out this site: https://raeybagley.wixsite.com/portfolio

And for more information about our production of INTO THE BREECHES! and to buy tickets, please visit this link: http://theatreandfilm.olemiss.edu/olemisstheatre.html

Today we're talking with Lindsay Rae Taylor, assistant professor of performance and the director of the final show of our spring 2022 season: William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." This fast-paced, modern retelling is both a celebration of storytelling and a meditation on why we continue retelling this story in particular.

The show runs April 21, 22, and 24, 2022. If you're listening/reading this at that time, you can find more information and purchase tickets at the UM Box Office by calling (662) 915-7411 or visiting https://olemissboxoffice.universitytickets.com/

To learn more about Lindsay and her work here in the department, check out our previous episode with her here: https://stageandscreen.simplecast.com/episodes/lindsay-rae-taylor-assistant-professor-of-performance

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

In this episode we're talking with playwright Anne Marie Cammarato, who was the inaugural recipient of our brand new Emerging Women's Playwriting Fellowship and the author of the play HAZEL, which we are producing in a world premiere February 2022.

For more information about Anne Marie and the fellowship, check out this story: https://news.olemiss.edu/inaugural-playwriting-resident-work-summer-um/

For information about what inspired the playwright to create this new climate crisis drama, read here about Tangier Island, which Anne Marie mentions during our interview: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/climate-change-rising-seas-tangier-island-chesapeake-book-talk

For tickets to see HAZEL, which runs February 25 - March 6, visit the UM Box Office here: https://olemissboxoffice.com/ordering-tickets/ or by calling (662) 915-7411

Elena Ontiveros graduated from our program in 2018 with a BFA in Musical Theatre and a BA in Music. Since then, she's built a very interesting caree—a mix of performance (both on stage and onscreen), teaching, and makeup design, all using a variety of skills she acquired during her time at UM. This is an excellent episode for anyone thinking about a career in theatre and film, because Elena does a wonderful job of explaining the many opportunities in our program and how to make the most of them.

To see some of Elena's work, check out her Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emontive/

Also, here's the trailer for her upcoming film Dark Entities, which is slated to come out in fall 2021: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eS5jb7chlDw

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit: https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

Lauren Ray graduated from our program in 2009 with a B.A. Theatre Arts and French, and she's now a teacher and speech and debate coach at Northwest Rankin High School in Flowood, MS. She also serves on the board of the Mississippi Theater Association as the Youth Co-Vice Chair for Individual Events. 

Lauren and I had a lot to talk about, so our conversation was spread across two episodes. In the first episode, we discussed her time at UM, her thoughts on the importance of community theatre (in particular in Mississippi) and a special play-reading project she set up for herself. If you missed that one, do yourself a favor and go back and check it out! In this episode, we talked about the value of immersing oneself in other cultures, Lauren's work with the Mississippi Theater Association, and advice for young theatre hopefuls.

For more information about the Mississippi Theater Association, please visit http://www.mta-online.org/

For more about Lauren Ray, visit her website here: https://www.anotherlaurenray.com/

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

Lauren Ray graduated from our program in 2009 with a B.A. Theatre Arts and French, and she's now a teacher and speech and debate coach at Northwest Rankin High School in Flowood, MS. She also serves on the board of the Mississippi Theater Association as the Youth Co-Vice Chair for Individual Events. 

Lauren and I had a lot to talk about, so our conversation will be spread across two episodes. In this episode, we'll discuss, of course, her time at UM, as well as her thoughts on the importance of community theatre (in particular in Mississippi) and a special play-reading project she set up for herself.

For more information about the Mississippi Theater Association, please visit http://www.mta-online.org/

You can learn more about Lauren's play-reading project and read her reviews of the plays she's read (and enjoy bonus cat photos!) here: https://www.facebook.com/FiftyTwoByTwelve/

For more about Lauren Ray, visit her website here: https://www.anotherlaurenray.com/

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

Christina Tompkins graduated from our BFA Musical Theatre program in 2009, and since then has been on stages across the country—most recently as part of a national tour of "The Sound of Music."  She was an offstage swing for that tour, and over the course of two-plus years got to perform every track in the show.

We talked about how this native New Yorker ended up at the University of Mississippi (and why she stayed), the role of swing and the skills needed to perform so many different parts on-demand, and why those skills also make her a good company manager. She also shared some advice for theatre hopefuls and let us in on what she has coming up with another alum from her graduating class.

For more information about Christina, visit her website at: https://www.christinatompkins.com/

Follow along with her adventures on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/tina_tompkins/

The Sound of Music on Tour: http://thesoundofmusicontour.com/

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit: https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

Madison Morrow graduated from the University of Mississippi with dual degrees in theatre arts and general business—in the spring of 2020, when the global COVID-19 pandemic was upending everyone's post-graduation plans. Fast forward a little over a year, and Madison has just finished the first year of a master's program in arts management at Carnegie Mellon University.

During this episode, Madison mentioned what a great time she had as assistant director for Chicago. And though Madison most often found herself in the role of stage manager for our productions, she also took a turn as scenic designer for The Wolves, which you can read about here: https://news.olemiss.edu/wolves-delivers-adolescent-reality-soccer/

Madison also mentioned the important role competing in pageants has played in her life—despite the fact that she got into them only recently and somewhat on a whim. Follow along on her journey as Miss Moraine State here: https://www.instagram.com/missmorainestatepa/

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

In this episode we talked with another recent graduate, Elizabeth Burrow of Pascagoula, who just received her BFA in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Musical Theatre. Elizabeth's story is pretty interesting because it opens with a twist: She had originally come to college with a totally different career path firmly in mind, but within a semester had decided to pursue her love of performing.

Over the course of the episode, we discussed a couple of things that might benefit from further explanation.

First, Ole Miss Student Dance or OMSD is, like it sounds, a student-run dance organization that students from every part of the university (and of course, many from our department) participate in. We have many dance classes within our program, and this is a way for dancers to be even more involved. 

Also, Elizabeth talked about her experience choreographing our spring production of Urinetown, and there were references to it being "virtual" and "remote." In order to stay safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, rehearsals were conducted distanced and with masks, and then for the actual performance, each actor was filmed individually so they could perform without masks, and everything was edited together to make it appear as if they were all sharing the stage. It was quite something! You can learn more about the show and how it was done here: https://news.olemiss.edu/musical-theater-and-film-blend-to-take-audiences-to-satirical-dystopia/

As ever, the Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit: https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

In a continuation of our series of interviews with graduating seniors, today's episode features Catherine Long, a recent BFA graduate from our Acting for Stage & Screen program.

The Georgia native knew early on in high school that she wanted to come to the University of Mississippi and study theater, but she didn't know how much she'd excel as a performer or that she'd discover a talent for comedy. Along the way, she developed a passion for diversity and inclusion, accessibility, and community engagement.

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm.

Continuing our series highlighting graduating seniors, this episode features Gregor Patti and Keeton Landfair, who have an interesting perspective because they went to high school together and have now been through our BFA Acting for Stage & Screen program together.

Gregor and Keeton talk about why they came to the University of Mississippi, life and theatre in a pandemic, perks of the program, and more.

In the fall 2020 semester, Gregor helped to develop and performed in an original work of devised theatre called Near/Far, which you can watch here: https://youtu.be/TAYcLtW8rX8

Gregor and Keeton both recently appeared in our innovative theatre-meets-film production of Urinetown, and you can see them in our trailer here: https://youtu.be/O8l-V3wk6Vw

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

Our guest today is graduating senior Gianna Schuetz, a Huntsville, Alabama native who came to the university to pursue a complicated dual degree in Managerial Finance and Theatre Arts. Along the way she got involved in just about everything she could—including nearly every departmental production, student government, and our student theatre organization, Ghostlight Repertory Theatre.

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit  https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm.

Today's guest is Micah-Shane Brewer, assistant professor of musical theatre and director of our spring-season production of Urinetown: The Musical, which will be available for streaming April 9-11. Micah-Shane discusses the enduring relevance of this show, as well as the ins and outs of directing a large-scale musical during a time when safety prevents a large cast from sharing the stage.

To learn more about Micah-Shane and his career, please visit his website: https://www.micahshanebrewer.com/

If you like to sing along to musicals, watching at home means you can do so without annoying a theater full of people! Brush up on the lyrics with the original Broadway cast recording here: https://open.spotify.com/album/3Gckm2aWdGEXhVco2dklC6

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit: https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm

Dan Stearns, assistant professor of acting, discusses our spring-season production Pop-Up Shakespeare, which he is directing, as well as his background in Shakespearean performance.

To learn more about Dan and his work, visit his website http://www.danstearns.net/ or his IMDb page https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2111108/

To keep up with announcements of dates and locations for our Pop-Up Shakespeare performances, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter @theatrefilmatum

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm.

On today's episode, we talk with Jaye Davidson, a recent addition to the faculty in our BFA Film Production program. Jaye will talk about her past and current projects, the Atlanta filmmaking scene, and filmmaking in the South.

Many of Jaye's short films, including Missile Crisis, which she discussed in this interview, can be found on her website:

http://davidsonvisual.com/new-gallery-1/2019/4/14/missile-crisis

The trailer for The Lady Edison, Jaye's newest project, can be viewed here:

https://youtu.be/4z73x92pJpc

As ever: The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm.

Welcome back to Stage & Screen! In this episode, we're visiting with new faculty member Cody Stockstill, who is as Assistant Professor of Scenic Design. Cody talks about his career trajectory — which, in addition to scenic design, includes everything from costume design to puppetry and beyond — and shares his thoughts about what makes theatre in Mississippi unique.

To learn more about Cody and see some of his designs, visit https://codystockstill.com/

There are two ways to watch the referenced production NEAR/FAR, an original work of Mask theatre that was developed, performed, and produced remotely by Theatre & Film at the University of Mississippi. 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theatrefilmatum/posts/4073596689336384

YouTube: 

The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm.