TADW Featured in CSUN Video about Summer Programs

State Theatre Group Honors CSUN’s Acclaimed Teenage Drama Workshop

Cal State Northridge’s acclaimed Teenage Drama Workshop (TADW)—an intense summer program that immerses teenagers in the day-to-day reality of a professional theater troupe—has been hailed by the California Educational Theatre Association for its contributions to theater education. READ THE FULL BLOG POST FROM THE CSUN NEWSROOM.


Pictured at left: CSUN theater professor and TADW executive director Doug Kaback and director Cork Dominguez.

Memory Lane: The First TADW - Summer 1957

Click the picture to get a good look at this archive photo from CSUN's Department of Theatre from the very first TADW in the summer of 1957.  Special thanks to Theatre Manager Bill Taylor for this one!

TADW on CSUN's Blog

The Teenage Drama Workshop is featured on Cal State Northridge's blog today. Link to the story here.

Awards to Kailey Short, Wesley Rodriguez

The Teenage Drama Workshop presented two awards at Munch & Crunch on Aug. 2 to students who will attend California State University, Northridge to study theatre. Winning the Alan Oldham Award was Kailey Short. Winning the Dr. William Schlosser Award was Wesley Rodriguez. Both awards include $1,200 scholarships for CSUN tuition provided students major in theatre and maintain a minimum GPA. (Pictured from left: Kailey Short, Wesley Rodriguez, Prof. Doug. Kaback.)

Dean's Reception Honors TADW Donors

Robert Bucker, Dean of the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media & Communication at CSUN, hosted a reception for donors to the Teenage Drama Workshop on Saturday, July 25.

TADW benefactors were honored at the event, which was held in the striking Organ Room in Nordhoff Hall. Honorees included acclaimed actor Allan Rich; actress and philanthropist Nancy Cartwright and Christine Loeb, mother of the late Sam Loeb, for whom the Sam Loeb “Spirit of TADW” scholarship is presented each year.

Speaking to the group, Dean Bucker said each donor was making “a great investment” in the arts and in the lives of local children by supporting TADW. At the event, members of “The Wiz” cast performed a rousing version of “Brand New Day”. Guests included members of the board of directors from the Devonshire PALs (Police Activity League Supporters), and representatives from Pio Pico School and LAUSD’s Migrant Education Program. Thanks to generous donors, all three organizations received tickets to TADW performances this year for use by low-income children.

Following the reception, guests were invited into the Little Theatre where they watched a terrific performance of “Pinocchio”. For more information on how you can support TADW please contact Doug Kaback at doug.kaback@csun.edu.

Pictured from left: Prof. Beth Lasky, Allan Rich, Dean Robert Bucker, Christine Loeb, Nancy Cartwright, Prof. Doug Kaback and Brent Rosen.

TADW Benefactor Allan Rich Cares About Kids

Allan Rich, one of Hollywood’s busiest and most recognizable character actors, is also one of its most generous donors. The Teenage Drama Workshop at CSUN is just one of many youth-focused organizations supported by Rich and his nonprofit foundation, We Care About Kids.

This summer, Rich and We Care About Kids cofounder Peter Antico provided generous funding for TADW scholarships through their nonprofit filmmaking company. Rich and his wife Elaine also donated to TADW’s ticket-gifting program, allowing low-income children to attend performances of “The Wiz” and “Pinocchio.”

“Sharing what I have learned about theater and film with young people is the most important work I do,” Rich said. “That’s why having this small involvement with TADW and Doug Kaback’s students is so fulfilling to me personally.”

Known for his roles in feature films like “Amistad,” “Disclosure” and “Quiz Show”, and for his many television appearances in shows like “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “NYPD Blue” and “CSI,” Rich is a long-time friend and mentor to Professor Doug Kaback, director of CSUN’s Teenage Drama Workshop.

“Allan inspires a real appreciation for teaching the art of acting to young people, and most importantly to making a commitment to actually helping young people through his nonprofit organization,” Kaback said. “This was a great opportunity for us to invite him to take part in the workshop, and we are so thrilled to have him helping with scholarships and financial assistance this year.“

Blacklisted in the 1940s, Rich left the entertainment industry for a time to pursue a career as a stockbroker and a highly successful contemporary art dealer. He returned to acting in the early 1970s and hasn’t stopped since.

Rich established We Care About Kids to produce short films that address societal ills such as racism, drugs and smoking. The films are shown to schoolchildren who are then invited to engage in a dialogue about what they viewed.

Rich is also the author of “A Leap from the Method: An Organic Approach to Acting.” He enjoys sending signed copies to acting students.

Rich will be one of several TADW donors honored July 25 at a special reception hosted by Robert Bucker, Dean of the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media and Communication at CSUN. Cast members from TADW’s production of “The Wiz” will perform at the reception. Afterward, the VIP guests will then attend the evening performance of “Pinocchio”.

Nancy Cartwright, Voice of Bart Simpson, Gives TADW a ‘Standing Ovation’

She’s the talented actress behind one of the world’s most recognizable characters. But to the Teenage Drama Workshop at CSUN, performer, author, philanthropist and community leader Nancy Cartwright is also one of our most generous benefactors.

In addition to supporting TADW financially, Cartwright, who voices Bart Simpson on “The Simpsons,” is mom of first-time TADW student Jackson Murphy, 17, who is playing Gepetto in "Pinocchio".

For 2009, Cartwright provided funding for several scholarships that allowed low-income students to take part in the 52nd Teenage Drama Workshop. Additionally, she provided funding for tickets that will be used by underprivileged youth from the Devonshire PALs (Police Activity League Supporters).

"I believe that art has the power to change the world,” Cartwright says. “It is the aesthetics in life that move us to emotions and levels of expression that would otherwise be untapped.“

“Young people today have many more challenges and distractions that I didn't have when I was their age,” she adds. “With iPods, videos and the Internet, etc., it is very easy and all-too-tempting to become a spectator in life, rather than to celebrate the muse in yourself.”

“The Teenage Drama Workshop is an amazing program that gets kids working their artistic muscles and finding out that they have the power within themselves to create great art that could inspire others to a better life,” she says. “I not only applaud the program, I give it a standing ovation!"

Cartwright will be one of several TADW donors honored July 25 at a special reception hosted by Robert Bucker, Dean of the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media and Communication at CSUN. Cast members from TADW’s production of “The Wiz” will perform at the reception. Afterward, the VIP guests will then attend the evening performance of “Pinocchio”.

Dean Bucker Visits TADW

At this morning's Company Meeting of the 52nd Teenage Drama Workshop, Robert Bucker, Dean of the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media and Communication at California State University, Northridge, came to visit with the students.

Dean Bucker will host a reception for TADW donors on July 25. He told the students that he plans to attend both "Pinocchio" and "The Wiz".

Pictured below: Dean Bucker (left) speaks with students of the 52nd Teenage Drama Workshop.