Brockett Family Endows UT Professorship in Theatre History

From endowments.giving.utexas.edu:

Oscar and Lenyth Brockett Professorship in Theatre History

Description: The Oscar and Lenyth Brockett Professorship in Theatre History was established by the Board of Regents of The University of Texas System on February 6, 2012, to benefit The University of Texas College of Fine Arts. The endowment honors Oscar G. Brockett, Ph.D. and Mrs. Lenyth Brockett. Gift funds were provided by Ms. Francesca L. Brockett and Dr. James J. Pedicano.

The Statesman's arts editor Jeanne Claire van Ryzin writes in the Austin360 Seeing Things blog of April 10,

Brockett’s daughter, Francesca Brockett, and her husband, Jim Pedicano, donated $300,000 to support the professorship will fund faculty and student research in theater history.

The new professorship is the first step toward creating an academic research center named for Brockett, the highly regarded theater historian and UT professor who passed away in 2010 at age 87. His 1968 book, “History of the Theatre,” is still recognized as the highest-selling theater history text to date and is now in its 11th edition.

Upcoming: Memorial at UT for Oscar G. Brockett, December 11, 4 p.m.

Found on-line:

Remembering Dr. Oscar G. Brockett

Public Memorial Celebration at the B. Iden Payne Theatre, University of Texas
December 11 | 4:00 PM

A public memorial celebration for Dr. Oscar G. Brockett will be held on Saturday, December 11, 2010, at 4:00 p.m. in the B. Iden Payne Theatre in the Winship Drama Building. Immediately following the celebration, there will be a reception in the Brockett Theatre/Winship Atrium.

Please know that there will be an opportunity at the reception for friends to speak, if they wish to offer a tribute or share a story about Dr. Brockett.

For more information visit: http://www.finearts.utexas.edu/tad/brocket_memorial.cfm
Theatre and Dance Info Line
inquiry@uts.cc.utexas.edu
512-471-5793
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Oscar Brockett, 1923-2010, by Michael Barnes

Published by the Austin Statesman, November 8:

Oscar Brockett, 1923-2010

By michael barnes

Oscar Brockett, the world’s foremost theater historian and a former University of Texas professor, died early Sunday morning after suffering a massive stroke late Saturday.

Brockett, 87, leaves behind hundreds of former students and colleagues around the world, as well as a daughter, Francesca Brockett, and her husband, Dr. James Pedicano of Austin.

“(He) was an absolute giant in the field of theater history,” said Doug Dempster, dean of the UT College of Fine Arts. “He defined it in many ways. His name is synonymous with the field across several continents. He was a prolific, meticulous scholar into the very last year of his long career. He leaves a legacy that will last as long again as his long life.”

In 1968, Brockett wrote “History of the Theatre.” It has since been translated into dozens of languages, including a suppressed version in Farsi. It is now in its 10th edition and has passed through the hands of almost every American theater student for four decades.

Read full text at Statesman.com . . . .

Book: Making The Scene by Oscar Brockett and Margaret Mitchell, new from University of Texas Press

Found on line:

1/11/2010
Professor Emeritus Publishes New Book

Making the Scene: A History of Stage Design and Technology in Europe and the United States
Oscar G. Brockett and Margaret A. Mitchell
[click image to view larger version]

The University of Texas at Austin Department of Theatre and Dance announces the publication of professor emeritus, Oscar G. Brockett's, new book, Making the Scene: A History of Stage Design and Technology in Europe and the United States.

Co-authored by Margaret A. Mitchell, Professor of Theatre Arts at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas, Making the Scene offers an unprecedented survey of the evolving context, theory, and practice of scene design from ancient Greek times to the present. The work is enhanced by 350 full-color illustrations edited by Linda Hardberger, founding curator of the Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts at the Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.

Read more and view illustrations at AustinLiveTheatre.com . . . .

UT's Emeritus professor Oscar G. Brockett Recognized for Lifetime Achievement

04/17/2009

Professor Emeritus Dr. Oscar G. Brockett has received the USITT Award from the US Institute for Theatre Technology. The USITT Award is the highest honor given by the institute and recognizes a lifetime contribution to the performing arts community. Notable past recipients of this award include Julie Taymor, Robert Brustein, Phillip Glass, Ming Cho Lee, and Harold Prince. Presented annually since 1967, this year's award was presented at the USITT Annual Conference held March 18–21 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Dr. Brockett began teaching in university theatre programs in 1949 and is considered by many to be the world's foremost theatre historian. His book, History of the Theatre, is the top-ranked and highest-selling theatre history text of the 20th century. His most recent literary contribution, A History of Scenic Design and Technology, has been completed with publication projected for 2010.

Upon arriving at The University of Texas at Austin in 1978, Dr. Brockett served as Dean of the College of Fine Arts before stepping down in 1980 to head the Ph.D. in Theatre History program in the Department of Theatre and Dance until his retirement in 2006. A recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and Fulbright Award, Dr. Brockett is a Fellow of the American Theatre at the Kennedy Center and has been awarded multiple Career Achievement Awards from groups like the Association for Theatre in Higher Education and the Texas Educational Theatre Association.