Chair, Division of Theatre, Head of Acting, Professor

A two-time Fulbright Scholar, Blake Hackler has appeared in productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway and in regional theatres throughout the country, working with such acclaimed directors as Michael Mayer, Scott Ellis, Alex Timbers and Mike Alfreds. In New York, he worked with theatres including Playwrights Horizons, York Theatre, The Ohio, and Roundabout, as well as creating the role of Moritz Stiefel in the original New York workshop of the Tony-award winning musical Spring Awakening. In Dallas, Hackler is a member of the Brierley Resident Acting Company at the Tony Award-winning Dallas Theater Center.

As a playwright, Hackler’s work has been seen across the U.S. He is a lifetime member of the esteemed BMI/Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Writing Workshop and was the 2009 recipient of the Harrington Award for Excellence in Musical Theatre Writing. His plays have twice been nominated for the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Award.

Hackler has directed nationally and internationally and was a 2023 Lunt-Fontanne Fellow.

Adjunct Professor, Acting

As an actor, Reiko has worked with leading playwrights and directors including Lyle Kessler, Anna Deavere Smith, John Patrick Shanley, Eric Bogosian, Marshall Mason, Jo Bonney and Robert O’Hara. She has been a series regular, recurring or guest star on over 150 TV episodes and numerous films, her most notable role being Michelle Dessler on the hit show 24. She also had recurring roles on Damages, Lost, Revolution, ER, Hawaii 5-0 and Scorpion. Upcoming: the independent film, Lou Lou, and an ongoing voiced role on the Marvel animated series, Hit Monkey.

As a director, her comedic short film, Veronica, was screened at 19 festivals and won several awards. She then directed a dramatic short film, I Was A Stranger, which received international screenings, including at the Bentonville Film Festival, helmed by Geena Davis.

She received her MFA in theater pedagogy from CSULB.

Adjunct Professor, Movement & Acting

Tiana Kaye Blair is a director, actor, educator, and culture worker based in the Dallas-Forth Worth metroplex. She is a certified SoulWork practitioner and facilitator, and a member of the SoulWork Studio Faculty. SoulWork is a comprehensive performance making methodology and pedagogy rooted in Black American performance traditions that trains artist to use the fullness of identity and social consciousness to activate creative power. Trained by Dr. Cristal Chanelle Truscott, the creator of SoulWork and founder of SoulWork Studio, Blair has extensive training in the methodology and is the first person certified to teach, as well as the co-developer of the movement discipline.

Blair is a recipient of the 2023 Juanita J. Craft Residency Grant, a member of the Progress Theatre touring ensemble, and an Artist in Residence with the Dallas Theater Center. Her directing work includes Spell 7 (Prairie View A&M University), Dutchman (Metamorphosis Theatre), Mlima’s Tale and Libra Season (Second Thought Theatre), Working: A Musical and Trouble In Mind (Dallas Theater Center); and Hurt Village (Southern Methodist University). Some of her acting credits include: penny candy, Steel Magnolias, In The Heights, The Great Society, Hair, and The Mountaintop. Blair holds a Bachelors of Arts in Theatre from Prairie View A&M University and a Masters of Fine Arts in Acting from Southern Methodist University.

Adjunct Professor, Acting

Rob Clare is an internationally recognized Shakespeare specialist whose credentials include the RSC, the UK’s National Theatre, and Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre Company. His academic credentials include work at Oxford University and University College Dublin. He established the MA Classical Acting course at London’s Central School of Speech and Drama, and has directed and/or taught Shakespeare in Ireland, Austria, Germany, Australia, China, and the USA. For India’s National School of Drama, he directed Hindi productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Julius Caesar and Romeo and Juliet. Before moving to the US, he worked regularly for a decade as a specialist verse and text coach with the RSC’s core acting ensemble, leading annual masterclasses and workshops. In the US he has been visiting faculty at UCLA, The Juilliard School, Yale Drama, Brown, USC Los Angeles, CSU Long Beach, NYU Tisch (both graduate and undergraduate acting) and now SMU. He has directed numerous Shakespeare productions throughout the US, and forthcoming projects will include Twelfth Night for Shakespeare Dallas. As a freelance practitioner, he also runs a portfolio of private online Shakespeare workshops.

Though still a British citizen, Rob Clare is a green card holder and permanent US resident. He is married to Reiko Aylesworth.

https://www.robclare.com

Associate Professor, Business and Professional Aspects

Benard Cummings, an actor turned director, has showcased his versatile talents in Off Broadway productions like "Normalcy" and "Harvest." In the D/FW area, he directed August Wilson's "Radio Golf" for The African-American Repertory Theatre and "Split Second" at Jubilee Theatre in Ft. Worth. His directorial expertise extends to colleges and universities with productions like "Dark of the Moon" and "Flying West." As an actor, he's graced Off Broadway stages in "Eye of God" and "Willie’s Cut and Shine," and his regional theater credits span renowned venues such as Yale Repertory Theatre and Arena Stage. A playwright and staff member at The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Benard has also taken on the role of Interim Artistic Director at Jubilee Theatre in Ft. Worth, Texas.

Assistant Professor, Voice & Speech

Kristi Dana is the Director of mVm Miller Voice Method’s Teacher Certification Program, a certified mVm teacher, and is a member of the mVm faculty. She holds a certificate of completion from the Michael Chekhov Association (MICHA) and is on MICHA faculty. She is certified in Knight-Thompson Speechwork (KTS).

As an actor, Kristi’s Dallas credits include: Undermain Theatre—Bondage by Star Finch, so go the ghosts of méxico, part three by Matthew Paul Olmos and Red Chariot by Gordon Dahlquist; Kitchen Dog Theater—Alabaster by Audrey Cefaly.

Kristi’s scholarly and creative research focuses on the integration of mVm Miller Voice Method and the Michael Chekhov Technique. Her two-part “Unearthing Vocal Transparency” article series can be found in Routledge’s Voice and Speech Review journal. Kristi has presented her work and research at numerous Voice and Speech Trainers Association (VASTA) and Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) conferences.

Adjunct Professor, Movement

Carter Gill, with a 15-year career in Off-Broadway and regional productions, notably starred in Punchdrunk NYC’s Sleep No More and performed at esteemed venues like Lincoln Center, Playwrights Horizons, and Theatre for a New Audience. Regionally, he's graced stages at The Berkshire Theatre Festival, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and more. As an accomplished educator, Gill teaches Bayes Technique, drawing from Le Coq, Grotowski, and tailored for American actors. Trained by Christopher Bayes at The Juilliard School and Yale School of Drama, he also instructs in clown, commedia, and actor-generated work at institutions such as Southern Methodist University and New York University. Gill holds a BFA in Theatre Studies from Southern Methodist University and an MFA in Acting from the Yale School of Drama.

Associate Professor, Movement

Sara J Romersberger, movement specialist (dance/fight/clown/intimacy) and director, is Associate Professor of Theatre/Movement. She holds a Certificate École Internationale De Théâtre Jacques Lecoq, Paris and works and teaches in Dallas/ Fort Worth, nationally and internationally.

With strong roots in modern dance and jazz, Romersberger choreographed over 70 university and professional musical theatre productions. She directed and performed her own brand of movement theatre in off-Broadway productions in New York at The Mint Theatre and Primary Stages and danced with New York-based companies.

Nationally, Romersberger was president of the Association for Theatre Movement. International production credits assistant direction for the opera Hangman, Hangman! /The Town of Greed, at Teatro de la Zarzuela, Madrid and Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona, Spain.

With a specialty in the clowns of Shakespeare, Spring 2022 she just completed a short film as part of her upcoming book by the same title Wise Enough to Play the Fool.

Associate Professor, Voice & Speech

Anne Schilling, Associate Professor of Voice and Speech, holds a master's degree with distinction in Voice Studies from The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London, and teacher certifications in Alba Method and Fitzmaurice Voicework®. Her background includes professional actor training at Circle in the Square Theatre School (NYC), and residencies at multiple Shakespeare Festivals.

As a vocal coach, she has contributed to over 125 productions in the U.S. and U.K., working with theaters, such as, East West Players (LA), Native Voices at the Autry (LA), La Mama Experimental Theatre (NYC), and locally with Dallas Theater Center, Undermain, and Kitchen Dog.

Schilling's research focuses on extended voice practices, utilizing cultural rituals as models to facilitate effective vocalization within heightened emotional states. Her publications and presentations have concentrated on lamentation rituals and somatic approaches to affective states in performance. Anne has led workshops nationally and internationally, including in England, South Africa, Ireland, Canada, and Singapore

Assistant Professor, Acting

Kara-Lynn Vaeni, a playwright, and seasoned theatre and opera director, is dedicated to fostering anti-racist and anti-oppressive spaces in the arts and education. Her commitment is evident through ongoing engagement in anti-racist theatre education and expertise in theatrical intimacy best practices. Vaeni's written works, featuring diverse women of all ages, races, and body types, defy physical norms. Her debut play, "Shape," earned an NEA grant, Kilroys List recognition, and premiered to acclaim under her direction at the Kitchen Theatre in June 2021. As a faculty member at Yale University and SMU, Vaeni combines her passion for education with directing at esteemed venues like Dallas Theater Center and Stage West.

Distinguished Professor of Theatre

Stan Wojewodski, Jr., Distinguished Professor of Directing at Southern Methodist University’s Meadows School of the Arts, became chair of theatre in 2010. Joining SMU in 2005 as Distinguished Artist-in-Residence, he was later named Distinguished Professor. Formerly, he served as artistic director of Yale Repertory Theatre and dean of the Yale School of Drama from 1991-2002. His career includes over 40 productions at Baltimore’s Center Stage and staging works at renowned theaters like the Abbey Theatre in Dublin and Guthrie Theater. Wojewodski's impact extends to board roles, including Theatre Communications Group, and participation in NEA panels and the League of Theatre Training Programs.