Live and on stage
The CSU theater program is growing, up from 62 students majoring in theater last year to 75 majors this year with only three regular, full-time faculty.
January 5, 2008
by Kay Rios
Walt Jones is directing the future of theater
Walt Jones has big plans for his small department. As a start, the director of Colorado State's theater program is looking for what he calls cross-pollinated skills for faculty positions.
"Professional designers with two or more specialties are becoming more common, and it's exciting to think we could graduate students who are that much more skilled," he says. "In the not-so-old days, you'd hire a lighting designer, a costumer designer, a scenic designer. But now, we could get a lighting designer, for example, who also does scenic and sound. That training will make students more desirable to graduate schools."
Meryl Streep was in Jones' class at Yale
He's seen how well that works. As an example, he talks about Meryl Streep, who was in his class at Yale. "She was a costume designer as an undergraduate, but she had to take acting classes to fulfill liberal arts requirements," Jones says.
His acquaintance with Streep isn't the only time he's rubbed elbows with name-brand professionals. His background is, in fact, steeped in top-notch experience. Jones received his undergraduate degree from the University of South Florida-Tampa, then completed graduate work at the University of Florida-Gainesville and the Yale School of Drama. At Yale, he taught acting, directing, and playwriting.
Gypsy director in New York and two decades at U. of Calif.-San Diego
For 10 years following that, Jones was a self-described itinerant gypsy director in New York. He directed twice on Broadway: the Drama Desk Award-nominated musical, The 1940s Radio Hour, which he also wrote, and John Pielmeier's thriller, Sleight of Hand. He also directed six off-Broadway plays and more than 60 plays in regional theatres from Cambridge to Fairbanks including premiere productions of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwrights Sam Shepard (Suicide in B-Flat) and David Mamet (Reunion and Dark Pony).
On stage, Jones directed notables such as Streep, Christopher Walken, Tony Shalhoub, Jason Alexander, Peter Weller, Sigourney Weaver, Nathan Lane, Kathy Bates, and Linda Hunt. But when new adventures called, Jones relocated to California, where he spent two decades at the University of California-San Diego. After serving as department chairman from1997 to 2005, he began looking around again.
Named Colorado State theater director in 2006
"We were expecting a baby, and I was looking for a smaller program, so this (CSU) turned out to be perfect," he says. His wife, Amy, is from Colorado and her family lives in the region, so the position was a natural fit. In August 2006, Jones was named director, and he jumped into the position eagerly, teaching acting, directing, and freshman seminar courses.
The transition hasn't always been easy, though. "Finding resources continues to be the greatest challenge. Colorado is at the bottom in terms of recognizing its responsibility to higher education. But the arts are always a challenge when it comes to raising funds."
Providing rich experiences and opportunities for students
Still, the theater program is growing, up from 62 students majoring in theater last year to 75 majors this year with only three regular, full-time faculty. Jones wants to increase the faculty to seven full-time members. As important, he notes that his role is to provide rich experiences and opportunities for students.
He sees those opportunities in the University Center for the Arts. "Dance and music will be here next fall. Eventually all of the performing arts will be here and some visual arts as well."
That close proximity of the arts will help advance a variety of collaborations. "If you're close together, you're more likely to work together," he says. "We'll do productions that are not discreetly theater, or discreetly music, or discreetly dance. And once we have a critical mass for faculty, we hope theater and dance will become one department. Music will still remain separate, perhaps becoming a school of music, but the chance for that interaction will be there."
Love of teaching
Overall, Jones plans to stay close to teaching. "I love that this is an undergraduate program. The students here are fantastic. It was love at first sight last August when I taught my first day of class. I went home and told Amy, 'We made a good choice.' "
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Originally published in Colorado State Magazine, Winter 2007-2008.
Contact: Jayleen Heft
Email: Jayleen.Heft@colostate.edu
Phone Number: (970) 491-2655
