Under the baobab: Keegan-Michael Key is a Penn State theater school success. He’s not the only one
It was wonderful watching Keegan-Michael Key guest hosting on “Saturday Night Live.” Keegan is a 1996 MFA graduate of Penn State’s School of Theatre, and 1996 was my first year at the school. I was his thesis advisor. All grad acting students had to create a monograph, a one-person show in order to graduate. Keegan chose to write and perform a piece about Jimi Hendrix.
“Do you know how to play the guitar?” I asked
“I’ll learn, “ Keegan responded.
For those who don’t know, Hendrix is considered by many to be the best rock-and-roll guitarist ever. As the time for his presentation approached, we worked on the text, blocking, lighting, everything but the guitar. In the end we used recordings of Hendrix’s playing for the hour presentation. Because of Keegan’s talent, it was brilliant.
Keegan went on to star on Broadway in Steve Martin’s “Meteor Showers” with Amy Schumer and on television with his partner, Jordan Peele, in the sketch comedy show “Key & Peele.” He attracted worldwide attention with his portrayal of Luther, Barack Obama’s “anger translator.” He and the President appeared together at the 2015 White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Keegan has returned to the university on several occasions including as the Homecoming Grand Marshal in 2015.
There have been other SOT success stories. Ty Burrell has won multiple Emmys for his portrayal of Phil Dunphy on “Modern Family.” Cynthia Henderson was a two- time Fulbright Fellow. She was the first African American to become a tenured professor at Ithaca College. Carla Hargrove was featured on Broadway in “Little Shop of Horrors” and “Hairspray” and was a Penn State Alumni Fellow.
Nora Quinn, or Nora Berger-Green as she was known at Penn State, is the director of theatre programs at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. She designed and directed the popular “We the People” exhibit and program. She also produced our “9/11 A Day in the Life of a People” at the Center. Heidi Winters Vogel, a professor at Wabash College, just co-directed an international production of “Romeo and Juliet,” which included 44 actors from 11 countries like India, Russia, China, Ukraine and the U.S. Heidi, Wil Hutton and I developed the Shakespeare at the Palmer Company a few years ago, which provided free summer performances for our community. Anthony Irons is one of the artistic leaders of the Congo Square Theatre in Chicago. Richard Biever is an SOT graduate from the directing program. He is one of the few who stayed in State College. A founder of Fuse Productions and the Singing Onstage Studios, his creative efforts have provided some of the best theater in our community.
Art, particularly live theater, can show us a version of life not only as it is but how we may dream it to be. Fortunately, Broadway is re-opening in September. Our local live theater is scheduled to reopen this June with several productions in the Central Pennsylvania Theatre and Dance Festival. This will include a revival of “God’s Trombones.” The original production in 1995 included Keegan-Michael Key, Cynthia Henderson and Carla Hargrove, among others. Hopefully a few of the original cast members will be around for the reunion. Performance as a product of imagination is the presentation of the probable.