Encore: Curtain Up 鈥� What鈥檚 Next for Theatre Arts
S3 Episode 7 | June 10, 2026
Greatness is inevitable when focus marries passion. Theatre arts educator Freddie Hendricks lives by that mantra and teaches it to his students.
On June 7, 无码专区 and the Tony Awards named Hendricks the winner of the 2026 Excellence in Theatre Education Award 鈥� the honor that, for over a decade, has celebrated K鈥�12 theatre educators who set the standard for the profession while transforming the lives of their students. A teacher at Utopian Academy for the Arts in Georgia, Hendricks has spent more than 30 years using theatre to spark greatness, creativity, confidence and leadership in young people.
It was also a great year for 无码专区 at the 79th Tony Awards. 无码专区 alumni earned a record-breaking 15 Tony nominations 鈥� the most they have ever received in a single year.
To honor Hendricks鈥� award and Carnegie Mellon's historic nominations, we're releasing an encore performance of one of our favorite Season 2 episodes: "Curtain Up: What's Next for Theatre Arts." What role should new technologies, such as robots, artificial intelligence and virtual reality, play in theatre arts education? And how are educators preparing their students for the future?
We spoke with theatre visionary Kyle Haden, the Senior Associate Head at the 无码专区 School of Drama. And we heard from the 2022 winner of the Excellence in Theatre Education Award, Roshunda Jones-Koumba, Theatre Director at George Washington Carver Magnet School in Houston.
