UW-Parkside Theatre Arts Alumni Named Award Winners

Two recent Parkside theatre arts alumni, Emmalee Berger (‘20) and Zach Young (‘18), have received a United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) for 2025.

Under the category of Young Designers, Managers, and Technicians (YDMT) awards, Berger won the USITT Makeup Design Award, sponsored by Kryolan Professional Make-Up, and Young won the Bernhard R. Works Master Crafts Award. Both Parkside alumni were transfers from the College of Lake County (CLC) and received their associate’s degrees there before acquiring their bachelor’s degrees in Theatre Arts at UW-Parkside.

Berger is currently in her third and final year at West Virginia University, earning her Master of Fine Arts in Costume Design. She has spent several semesters at this university teaching an introductory theatrical makeup course, hence her award from developing a new additional skill that she enjoys. Berger shares advise for other theatre arts students, saying, “You will never get a job you don’t apply for or win a competition you don’t enter. Anything you can do to improve your craft, and your ability to talk about your craft, is a good use of your time.”

Young is currently a third-year graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin, working on his Master of Fine Arts in Theatre - Live Design and Production. He is grateful to receive such a high honor and explains that the feedback and recognition from a panel of professionals helps him evaluate the quality of his own work. “This industry truly runs on making connections with people,” Young says. “Most folks want to help younger artists, so reach out! Use the networks of people you have access to. Trust your professors; I continue to use the skills I was taught in undergrad.”

Learn more about USITT here: https://www.usitt.org/

Since its founding in 1968, the University of Wisconsin-Parkside has been a trusted partner for the region’s higher educational needs, empowering students to thrive, advancing applied knowledge, and developing talent for the future. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degrees, as well as certificates and pre-professional programs, designed to foster personal and professional growth through real-world and impactful learning experiences. Located in the dynamic Chicago-Milwaukee corridor, UW-Parkside offers unmatched access to world-class internships, professional networks, and endless career-building opportunities, placing students at the center of it all.

Media contact:

Derek Fye
Communications Manager
University of Wisconsin-Parkside
Fye@uwp.edu | (262) 771-5419