Drama Faculty

Shawtane Bowen is a writer, actor, and producer. He is a founding member of Astronomy Club, the first all-Black house team at the Upright Citizen's Brigade Theater in New York. Their series, Astronomy Club: The Sketch Show, debuted in Fall 2019 on Netflix to much critical acclaim. 

A dramaturg, theater historian, and author of American Cinderellas on the Broadway Musical Stage (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015), Maya Cantu specializes in twentieth-century American theater.

Michael Giannitti has extensive professional experience as a lighting designer and educator. He has designed lighting at many of the most prestigious venues around the country and has taught abroad as a two-time Fulbright Specialist Grant recipient.

Kirk Jackson is an actor/director with four decades of experience on and off Broadway and regionally. A graduate of the Yale School of Drama, he has assisted Ivo van Hove on multiple productions in New York City and, recently, began to direct operas.

Dina Janis is the Artistic Director of the Dorset Theatre Festival where she directs for their Main Stage, in addition to overseeing their acclaimed New Play Development Programs including DTF Women Artists Writing Group, Pipeline Series of New Plays, and the Commissioning and Fellowship Program.

Celebrated playwright Sherry Kramer believes every play is created in the audience, and her classes are a treasure hunt to discover how a play shapes our experience and how it makes things matter.

Jean Randich is an award-winning director, writer, and librettist specializing in new works, musical theatre, opera, and re-envisioned classics. She is cofounder and co-artistic director of Collider Theater in New York City.

Sue Rees has exhibited her set designs, animations, installations, and video works worldwide and has worked collaboratively with choreographers, directors, and musicians in the United States, Europe, and India.

Jennifer Rohn has appeared in theatre productions on and off Broadway, in the United States and Europe, and in films and television, collaborating extensively with the renowned director Robert Wilson.

Charles Schoonmaker is an Emmy Award-winning costume designer for theatre, dance, opera, and television.

Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig is a dramatist who writes for audio, stage and screen. Her play Snow in Midsummer was recently produced by Oregon Shakespeare Festival and the Royal Shakespeare Company and will be staged in New York by Classic Stage Company in the summer of 2022.

Michael Sylvan Robinson '89 (he/they) is an internationally-exhibited genderqueer fiber artist, activist, and leader in arts education; their contemporary fiber art intersects fashion, sculpture, street art and queer activism through innovative use of textile collage and text-based art techniques.

Oliver Wadsworth is an award-winning actor and writer who has worked extensively throughout the U.S. His upcoming projects include plays at Living Room Theatre and The Rep in Albany.

With a focus on Scenic Design, Seancolin Hankins takes a comprehensive approach to scenic production, working concurrently in concept, design, construction, and scenic painting. His drive for compelling visuals is paralleled by his commitment to responsible and resourceful use of materials.

Richard MacPike brings his experience working on Broadway shows such as The Lion King and companies like the Santa Fe Opera and Glimmerglass to his work as costume shop manager at Bennington.