Academy and four-time Emmy Award winner Aaron Sorkin (“The Social Network,” “The West Wing,” Broadway’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”) will join Tony and Emmy Award winner Kristin Chenoweth (“You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown,” “Wicked,” “Pushing Daisies”) to present guest lectures for the newly created Master’s in Screen Acting program from Oklahoma City University, OCU School of Theatre Dean Mark Parker announced.
The two-year program will feature master classes led by industry professionals, including Sorkin and Chenoweth, an OCU alumna. The program, which will prepare graduates to work professionally in film, television and other recorded media, will begin in January 2021.
Students will learn how to develop, pitch, and produce their own content and gain invaluable experience working alongside and networking with industry professionals (actors, directors, casting directors, agents, and producers).
Applications are being accepted at this time. Details for submission of an audition and materials can be found at www.okcu.edu/mfa-screen-acting.
“I am so thrilled to have Aaron Sorkin join OCU’s invaluable Master’s in Screen Acting program,” Chenoweth commented. “With his incredible success writing for stage, screen and television, I know he can provide students with his unique perspective on adapting to the very different skills required for each format.”
Sorkin won the Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, BAFTA and Writer’s Guild Awards for “The Social Network” and received Academy Award nominations for his screenplays for “Molly’s Game” and “Moneyball.” His other films include “Steve Jobs” (Golden Globe Award), “Charlie Wilson’s War,” “The American President,” “Malice” and “A Few Good Men.” His television credits include “The West Wing” (Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series for four consecutive seasons), “The Newsroom,” “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” and “Sports Night.” His Broadway credits include “A Few Good Men,” “The Farnworth Invention” and “To Kill a Mockingbird.”
Chenoweth’s career spans film, television, voiceover and stage. She is an Emmy Award winner for “Pushing Daisies” and a Tony Award winner for “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.” She was also nominated for Tony Awards for “Wicked” and “On the Twentieth Century.” She has been nominated for two Emmy Awards and a People’s Choice Award for her role on “Glee.” Her additional television credits include “The West Wing,” “The Music Man,” “GCB,” “The Good Wife,” “Hairspray Live!” “Trial & Error,” “BoJack Horseman,” “A Christmas Love Story,” and “The Biggest Star in Appleton.” Her film credits include “Running with Scissors,” “Stranger than Fiction,” “The Pink Panther,” “RV,” “Hard Sell” and “The Witches.”
Additional guest speakers include: Krystal Joy Brown, currently playing Eliza Hamilton in “Hamilton” on Broadway; Emma Ago, director of development at MadRiver Pictures; Austin Leshay, talent agent at Hyperion; Mark Morikawa, manager at MGMT Entertainment; Dia Frampton, recording artist and actress; Siena Oberman, producer at Artemis Pictures; Aaron Brown, manager at Avalon Management; Nora May, manager at 3 Arts Entertainment; McCrae Dunlap, manager of development at FanFare; Sean Woods, manager at Fourward; and Erin Dicker, producer at BrooklynWorks Films.
OCU has also partnered with Jesse|James Films, the production company headed by Jesse Murphy and James Sears Bryant. The university will work with the production entity to provide first-hand experiences for the students with industry professionals.
For more information, contact [email protected] or visit www.okcu.edu/mfa-screen-acting.
