January 15, 2004

UCSD Honored At 7th Annual KPBS Patté Awards

By Patricia Quill

Students and faculty of the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of California, San Diego were among those honored at the Seventh Annual KPBS Patté Awards. “I am always grateful for the critical support and celebration of the production work of our faculty and students,” says department chair Walt Jones, “since it is this kind of recognition that brings more people into our theaters to experience our risk-taking first hand.”

Meredith McDonough (MFA 2004) took to the stage to accept an award for Outstanding Ensemble for Angels in America, Part 1. McDonough directed Tony Kushner's award winning play, which featured a company of talented actors, designers, and stage managers drawn from UCSD's nationally acclaimed Graduate Theatre Training Program.

Undergraduate alumna Maria Zamansky (BA 2003) was honored for Outstanding Costume Design for Stage Door, and faculty member Kyle Donnelly (head of the Professional Acting Training Program) received an award for Outstanding Direction for the department's presentation of Three Sisters.

Receiving the Theater Angel Award, former faculty member Arthur Wagner and his wife Molli were honored for their long-standing support of theater and new talent. Dr. Wagner founded the theater department at UCSD in 1971; in 1998, he and his wife Molli created the Wagner Endowed Chair in acting (held by internationally renowned director Kyle Donnelly). In 2000 UCSD opened the spectacular Arthur and Mollie Wagner Dance Facility — home to UCSD's growing dance program.

A special citation was presented to UCSD's Dr. Marianne McDonald (professor of Theatre and Classics), who was recognized for her numerous stirring translations and adaptations of the Greek tragedies. A pioneer in the field of modern versions of the classics, Dr. McDonald is an accomplished scholar who has created two projects that have revolutionized studies in Classics and Irish literature.

In addition, the La Jolla Playhouse's production of Tina Landau's Beauty was honored as one of the Outstanding Productions of the year. UCSD adjunct faculty Shirley Fishman, also the associate artistic director of LJP, accepted the award for Beauty. In her acceptance speech, Fishman lauded the department for bringing Landau to campus two years ago. Landau began to develop Beauty during a five-week workshop, which resulted in this award-winning production that featured five students from the UCSD Graduate Theatre Training Program.

“Most people think of artists as black-clad depressives; and yet, they turn out to be incredibly optimistic,” says Pat Launer, KPBS's theater critic and creator of the Patté Awards. “In terrible times, they keep creating. They keep believing in their artform, they keep writing plays and starting new theaters and taking on productions old or new, provoking, infuriating,
amusing, enlightening or entertaining.” Launer created the Patté Awards in 1997 and since then KPBS has made an ever-expanding celebration of the event. This year's event, held on Jan. 12, will be televised on Jan. 24 at 11:30 pm.

For more information about UCSD's Department of Theatre and Dance, go to http://theatre.ucsd.edu. For more information about KPBS's Patté Awards, go to www.kpbs.org.

Media Contact: Patricia Quill, (858) 822-0661