Madeleine Moore Burrell Playwriting Fellowship Created
Photo courtesy of the artist.On January 16, 2019, Columbia College Chicago announced the creation of the Madeleine Moore Burrell Playwriting Fellowship. According to the announcement, sent from Rosita Sands, Interim Dean of the School of Fine and Performing Arts, the new academic residency is for playwrights whose work demonstrates a commitment to communities of color. The purpose of the fellowship is to:
- Advance Columbia College Chicago student learning;
- Support new play development by providing resident playwrights with resources and time to write; and
- Strengthen Columbia’s commitment to cultural inclusion by exposing faculty and students to a broad pool of playwrights, particularly those representing communities of color.
From the announcement:
I want to thank Columbia Trustee Madeleine Moore Burrell and Tom Burrell for their vision and support of this important program in its inaugural year. I also want to express my gratitude to our Theatre staff and faculty member Dawn Renee Jones for her leadership in creating and overseeing this new program. It is my pleasure to welcome Kristiana Rae Colón as the inaugural Burrell Fellow in 2019.
Colón is a playwright, poet, actor, and educator. She is a Cave Canem Fellow, creator of #BlackSexMatters, and co-director of the #LetUsBreathe Collective. She was awarded the 2017 Best Black Playwright by The Black Mall. Colón is an alum of the Goodman Theatre's Playwrights Unit where she developed her play florissant & canfield, which debuted at University of Illinois at Chicago in February 2018. Colón’s writing, producing, and organizing work has focused on efforts to radically reimagine power structures, acknowledge our complicity in them, and speak to visions for liberation. During the residency, Colón will conduct periodic talks or readings open to the Columbia community and the general public. More information on these events will be shared soon.
We are excited to provide opportunities for our Theatre students to engage in academic and mentoring opportunities that have resonance with their respective histories, experiences, and post-graduation aspirations. And, we look forward to Colón’s presence on our campus as the inaugural Burrell Playwriting Fellow.