Announcing the 2026 Lee Playwriting Prize for New Canadian Plays
2026 Lee Playwriting Prize for New Canadian Plays has been awarded to Jean-Michel Cliche for his play "Ifrit".
Drama News
Recent Posts
Announcing the 2026 Lee Playwright in Residence: Brad Fraser
The University of Alberta Drama Department is pleased to announce that Brad Fraser has been chosen as the 2026 Lee Playwright in Residence.
A new voice for Cyrano de Bergerac at Edmonton's Citadel Theatre
Playwright and actor Jessy Ardern (BFA Acting 2016) has re-written the classic French drama of unrequited love, hidden identity and a 17th century writer with a large nose and sharp wit.
Deserters: the alternate reality of Kenneth T. Williams’ new play, at U of A Studio Theatre.
“Very early on in my career I learned that you need to find people who are really smart artists and you let them be the smart people they are. They bring their magic with them. And it lifts stuff up!”
Drama Alumnus Brian Webb Inducted to the Dance Collection Danse 2025 Hall of Fame.
Congratulations to Drama Alumnus Brian Webb (BFA Acting, 1973) on his induction into the Dance Collection Danse 2025 Hall of Fame. Dance Collection Danse is the national, Toronto-based, non-profit charitable corporation dedicated to Canadian dance history. The ceremony took place Nov. 9 in Winnipeg.
OISTAT recognizes Department of Drama Chair April Viczko
April Viczko has received the Award for Outstanding Achievement from the International Organisation of Scenographers Theatre Architects and Technicians (OISTAT).
Celebrating the Recipients of the 2025 Faculty Excellence Awards
Join us in congratulating Selena Couture on receiving the 2025 Henry Marshall Tory Chair award.
Announcing the winners of the inaugural Gerda Hnatyshyn Launch Grants
BFA Acting ('21) Alumnus Maxwell Hanic has received an inaugural Gerda Hnatyshyn Launch Grant of $10,000 from the Hnatyshyn Foundation. Max's practice is in the discipline of Contemporary Dance. "Max is forever grateful to the incredible teachers he has had, most notably his first dance teachers Lin Snelling and Marie Nychka."
The history of clothing is more unisex than you might think
“If we go back in the historical record, we have many societies where dress is interchangeable between genders, or how they construct genders,” says Robert Shannon, associate professor of Theatre Design in the Department of Drama. "Fashion tends to start with something that’s functional."
Announcing the 2025 Lee Playwriting Prize for New Canadian Plays
2025 Lee Playwriting Prize for New Canadian Plays has been awarded to Ken Beatty for his play War Artist.
LISTEN: Life after a theatre degree
Most people who study theatre at college or university won't become famous. But many will go on to use their skills in other careers. Melanie Dreyer-Lude is a drama professor at the University of Alberta. She has a new book out called The Adaptable Degree. It delves into what theatre students do after they graduate.
Stage setter: Theatre education cultivates skills for any career
The fine art of drama may be the “secret sauce” for developing the adaptability students need to thrive in diverse fields.