Lewis University honors Keith White for a lifetime of dedication to theater and education – Shaw Local

The former Lewis University professor and theater director has been named Romeoville University's first recipient of the Dean's Lifetime Excellence Award.

Keith White of Joliet, who retired from Lewis University in May 2020, received the award on March 22. White said he was “really touched” by the honor, especially since he is so proud of his years at Lewis University.

“Due to COVID-19, there were no faculty retirement dinners or speeches. Nothing was said and nothing was done,” White said. “I received a gold watch in the mail. But there was no 'goodbye.'

Mark Swain, interim dean of the College of Humanities, Arts, and Communication, said the 13-white committee chosen embraced Lewis University's mission and cared deeply about its students and theater program.

“Students really want to go there, and that's half the battle. And they know who they are a little bit more than high schoolers. As humans, they know who they are. They know what they want. It's not as strict as classes, so it's easier to talk to them as humans.”

— Keith White of Joliet, Professor Emeritus and former Theater Chair, Lewis University in Romeoville

“He injected the energy we needed into the theater department to keep everything running smoothly and keep everyone on their toes,” Swain said. On average, Mr. White directed five “high quality” films a year.

“One of the interesting things about the theater program is that you don’t have to be a theater major to audition for productions,” Swain says. “So he had to juggle a non-theatre major, maybe an aviation major, in his first play. That's difficult, so we honor his contributions to the program and to Lewis University.” I just expressed it.”

But White originally wanted to teach at the high school level. White said her eighth-grade class at the former St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Grade School in Joliet went on a field trip to see “Finian's Rainbow.” White said the work was so inspiring that he decided to teach rather than become a Lutheran minister. .

The “magical” reason

White said she participated in theater and swing choir as a student at the former Joliet East High School and loved learning from Joliet Township High School District 204 voice teacher Arlyn Nuti.

According to his 2018 obituary, Nuti was known for producing “authentic, near-professional Broadway musicals” to conclude each school year.

By the time she was a junior, White said she was attending “magical” productions held at Lewis College's old Tangerine Tent on Route 53. White said Tangerine Tent was a community theater program that lasted about four years.

The summer before White enrolled at Lewis, he played Motel in “Fiddler on the Roof,” he said. The director was Chet Kondratowicz, former dean of the Lewis University School of Drama, who became White's mentor and friend.

White said it was easy to respect and trust Kondratovich.

“He was an excellent teacher and treated his students well,” he said.

Barbara Eberhardt of Joliet, a Lewis University graduate and friend of Mr. White, said she created and glued all the beards for the men in “Fiddler on the Roof” and then glued them to the actors. She said it was so hot in the tent that White was “singing his heart out” when he grew a beard.

In his speech at White's awards ceremony, Eberhardt said, “My beard slowly slipped away from my cheeks and slid down until it dangled from my face.” “But he kept singing…When he came off stage, I thought he was definitely going to be mad, but Keith, being easygoing, thought it was funny.”

White said he was a student when Lewis University built the Philip Lynch Theater in the university's old hangar after the aviation department moved to a new building.

When he was still a student, he studied ballet with Claudette Soltis. He was a movement instructor and choreographer in Lewis' theater department at the time and a director of the Joliet Ballet Society. It wasn't just because he enjoyed movement and dancing.

“She approached me because she was teaching all the girls in the studio. But she needed a male partner to work as a partner,” White said.

He said he enjoyed the “Zen-like” aspects of the art form, dance, and focus. “He's never been in better shape than when he was doing ballet,” White said.

From performer to professor

White's first job after graduation was with the Indianapolis Ballet in the fall of 1977. White said the people at the ballet company were great, but she missed theater.

So White returned to Joliet and became a full-time substitute teacher at Washington Middle School for the spring semester.

For the next two years, White worked as an Equity actor at Chicago's Candlelight Dinner Playhouse. That's when White said he realized that even though “he was making good money,” he wanted to teach.

“Your schedule is the opposite of everyone else's schedule around the world,” White said. “You work nights and do two shows on Saturday and two shows on Sunday. I never saw anyone except the people I was performing with, and they were great. Great. But performing wasn't for me at all, I liked being with my family. I liked my friends.”

So when Lewis University opened a theater manager position, White applied and got the job. She said Ms. White was happy to direct the production and that she taught dance, makeup and movement classes for eight years.

However, White wanted a full-time teaching position, so he dropped out to pursue a Master of Fine Arts in Theater at Northern Illinois University. White then returned to Lewes as a theater manager for three more years and became a full-time faculty member in 1994, discovering that Lewes undergraduates make great theater students.

“Students really want to be there. This is half the battle,” White said. “And they know who they are a little bit more than high schoolers. As humans, they know who they are. They know what they want. It's not as strict as classes, so it's easier to talk to people.”

White has taught acting, directing, musical theater performance, and text analysis for many years. According to White's biography on Lewis University, White has since directed more than 30 productions at the Philip Lynch Theatre, founded the Heritage Theater Company (Lewis' alumni theater company), and performed at Lewis, Rialto Square Theatre, He played leading roles in several productions at NIU. Website.

In 2004, Lewis University awarded Mr. White the De La Salle Medallion for exemplary volunteerism in the faculty department.

Upon White's retirement, the Philip Lynch Theater celebrated his acting accomplishments on its YouTube page.

White said he advised theater professors to “keep the passion alive” despite the challenges, “keep the joy of theater alive” and embrace the technology that has changed lighting and sound in amazing ways.

Mr. White told his students not to rely on natural talent.

“It takes a certain amount of natural talent,” White said. “But to get better at it, it needs to be refined and trained. It doesn't come naturally.”