Professor Ellen Bredehoft of the Mason Gross Theater Department has agreed to serve as the school’s associate dean for Academic Affairs for a three-year renewable term. Her appointment is effective August 1.
Professor Bredehoft has served as chair of the Theater Department since August 2020, first in an interim capacity and then as permanent chair, spurring the department’s revision of its 3.5-year program to a four-year one with more expansive professional training and interdisciplinary opportunities for students. In addition, she has strengthened the department’s long-standing relationship with Shakespeare’s Globe in London, and helped to bring about more inclusive programming and curricula, among other things.
Professor Bredehoft has established an international career in the areas of costume technology, design, and production. She has served as costume tailor and draper for dozens of productions in opera and the stage, including at Glimmerglass, Spoleto, Wolf Trap, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, and other prominent venues across the country. Her work has also appeared on Broadway, most recently in the production of the Tony-nominated musical Shucked, where she served as tailor, draper, and dyer.
In addition, she has worked in television and film, as well as on international projects, including in France and Norway. A highly respected pedagogue, she has served as head of Costume Technology at Mason Gross since 2010, has given invited talks and workshops throughout the country, and has seen her students go on to success in the field. Professor Bredehoft holds a BFA in Costume Design from the University of Idaho and an MFA in Costume Production from Boston University and has previously served in teaching roles at the University of Wyoming, Boston University, and New York University.
“I am confident that Professor Bredehoft has precisely the right set of skills to continue to advance the school down the path set out in our Future Roadmap [PDF],” Dean Jason Geary said, “and I very much look forward to working with her in this new leadership capacity.”