Carter honored for contributions to theatre

Mississippi University for Women’s David Carter, chair of the theatre department, was recently honored by the Mississippi Theatre Association for his years of dedicated service to the field.

Carter received the Outstanding Contributions to Theatre Award, which is presented to one Mississippi college or university theatre faculty member each year.

“It is an incredible honor. In the past, I’ve seen several revered professors receiving it, and I never thought even remotely that I would be among them,” Carter said.

In fact, he had no idea he was even in the running for the award.

“It was a complete surprise! Each year, the MTA board takes nominations for the award, and then they vote on it. They keep it a closely guarded secret until the awards presentation on the last day of the state theatre festival,” he said.

Carter has taught theatre for more than 22 years, all of which have been at The W.

His areas of specialty include set and costume rendering, scene painting, makeup design and 3D drafting and printing. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre from the University of North Carolina at Asheville and Master of Fine Arts in Scene Design from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Academically, he has mentored students in competitions at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, including one regional winner in Prop Design and one national winner in Sound Design. Former students have gone on to work in such venues as the Goodspeed Opera House, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Olney Theatre and Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia.

The Mississippi Theatre Association was founded in the 1950s and remains steadfast today in its mission to foster appreciation and participation in theatre in the state. MTA offers workshops, auditions and scholarship programs for high school students; workshops for community theatre members; and much more. Visit https://mississippitheatre.org/ to learn more.