Columbia College Chicago Theatre and Audio/Music Alumni and Faculty Nominated for Jeff Awards

PhotoThe 2025 Jeff award nominations highlight Columbia's ongoing influence on the city’s creative community and its commitment to preparing students for real-world success.
Columbia College Chicago alumni and faculty from the schools of Theatre and Dance and Audio and Music have earned nominations for the Jeff Awards, which celebrate excellence in Chicago theatre.

Columbia College Chicago Theatre and Music alumni and faculty are making waves in Chicago's theatre scene with multiple nominations for the 2025 Non-Equity Joseph Jefferson ("Jeff") Awards. The Jeff Awards recognize outstanding work in Chicago's non-Equity theatre community, and this year’s nominees include performers, designers, directors, and composers from Columbia’s School of Theatre and Dance and School of Audio and Music.

Notable Nominations:

  • Tyler Anthony Smith ’17 (BA, Acting) – Performer in a Principal Role – Musical for Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Haven Chicago)

  • Mikha’el Amin (former Theatre student) – Performer in a Principal Role – Play for Topdog/Underdog (Invictus Theatre Company)

  • Tamarus Harvell (former Theatre student) – Performer in a Principal Role – Play for Native Son (Lifeline Theatre)

  • Dakota Hughes ’15 (BFA, Musical Theatre Performance) – Performer in a Supporting Role – Musical for The Secret Garden (Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre)

  • Aaron Reese Boseman ’12 (BA, Theatre Directing, current faculty) – Director – Play for Topdog/Underdog (Invictus Theatre Company)

  • Rose Johnson ’21 (BA, Theatre Design and Technology) – Scenic Design for Bottle Fly (Redtwist Theatre)

  • Kevin Rolfs ’17 (BA, Theatre Design) – Scenic Design for Topdog/Underdog and Network (Invictus Theatre Company)

  • Hannah Wien ’21 (BA, Theatre) – Lighting Design for The Tragedy of Macbeth (Invictus Theatre Company)

  • D.J. Douglass ’12 (BA, Musical Theatre) – Projection Design for Network (Invictus Theatre Company)

  • Petter Wahlbäck ’00, MFA ’08 (Music, current faculty) – Sound Design for The Tragedy of Macbeth (Invictus Theatre Company)

  • Philip Seward (School of Audio and Music faculty) – Artistic Specialization for Murder in the Cathedral (City Lit Theater)

  • Patti Roeder (former Theatre Program faculty) – Costume Design for Murder in the Cathedral (City Lit Theater)

The 51st Annual Non-Equity Jeff Awards ceremony will be held on March 24, 2025, at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance in Chicago.

For more photos and information, see the Theatre Department blog.

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