Theater and Dance

Tress Kurzym (she/her) is a multi-hyphenate theatre creator, educator, and intimacy director dedicated to shaping the next generation of socially conscious theatre artists and teachers. She leads Theatre Education and Teacher Training in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where she mentors emerging educators and promotes inclusive, trauma-conscious, student-centered approaches to performance and pedagogy.

Tress holds an MFA in Theatre Education from Mississippi University for Women and a BFA in Directing from Stephen F. Austin State University. Her artistic and educational work has intersected throughout her career, creating a deep commitment to arts education and community engagement, with collaborations both regionally and internationally at Manhattan Theatre Club, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, First Stage Theater Academy, and Houston’s Alley Theatre—where she deepened her commitment to arts education and community engagement. Bobbindoctrin Puppet Theatre, the Institute of Contemporary Arts, and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Recent intimacy direction credits include POTUS (Tesseract Theatre), Waitress (The MUNY), and Twelfth Night (St. Louis Shakespeare Festival).

Before transitioning to higher education, Tress led secondary theatre programs recognized at the state for their artistic excellence, innovative curriculum, and student achievement. She continues to support the field through professional development for current PK-12 theatre educators and their students by presenting workshops and training sessions at state and national festivals and conferences. She also founded StagePlay Learning, a company devoted to using theatre skills as life skills, providing training for elementary-aged students that bridges creative practice with personal growth and classroom success.