College of Arts and Humanities Spotlight
Edward EmanuEl honored with Fresno State’s Provost Award for Teaching Excellence and Creative Activity
Edward EmanuEl joined the faculty of the Department of Theatre Arts in 1969 and during his tenure of forty years at Fresno State, Dr. EmanuEl has taught acting and directing, dramatic literature, theatre history, screenwriting and drama appreciation. He is renowned for his course, Theatre Today, that fills within days to room capacity of 267. Alumni fondly remember his classes long after graduation as one of their most transforming and unforgettable learning experiences at Fresno State. It is estimated that Dr. EmanuEl has touched the lives of over 22,000 students over the course of his forty-year teaching career.
A gifted actor and director, Dr. EmanuEl has directed over forty plays for the Department of Theatre during his distinguished career at Fresno State. He has been a guest artist and director in England, Wales, Scotland, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Monterey, New York City and Washington D.C. He has directed at Lincoln Center in NYC, The Westwood Playhouse in LA, and The Hong Kong Academy For The Performing Arts.
In addition to his exceptional teaching, Dr. EmanuEl is also a prolific playwright and director, having written thirty-six original plays and screen plays. One of his more recent plays was Sun Yat Sen in The Mouth of the Dragon, for which he received numerous awards and recognition at the national and international levels. Dr. Emanuel’s screenplays have been seen by over a hundred million people worldwide.
His list of honors and awards is remarkable. Professor EmanuEl was the first recipient of the California State University System’s Stanley Wang Family Award for Educational Excellence in the dramatic literature and performing arts category, the first such award presented by Chancellor Charles Reed. His distinguished list of awards and honors continues with the Mark David Cohen National Award in Playwriting for the Best Original Play 2000, presented by the American College Theatre Festival and the J.F.K. Center for the Performing Arts. Earlier, he was the recipient of an international Fulbright Award for A Study of Sun Yat Sen taken in Taipei, Taiwan. He was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in Drama by the World Journal Newspaper for his original production of Sun Yat Sen in The Mouth of the Dragon and received the Excellence in Humanities award presented by the Ministry of Education, Taipei, Taiwan. In 1985, Dr. EmanuEl was named Distinguished Professor at California State University Fresno.
Twice winner of the Edinburgh International Festival of the Arts, Dr. EmanuEl received the Fringe First Award for his Guys Like Me And Bogey, and Conquest of My Brother. He was also twice recipient of the Laureate Production Award, National American College Festival in Washington, D.C., and received the JFK Center for the Performing Arts Gold Medal of Excellence. He was also the recipient of the Exceptional Achievement Award from Fresno State President Norman Baxter and was nominated for an Emmy Award for his PBS docudrama, Conquest of My Brother.
Finally, Dr. EmanuEl has published two theatre arts textbooks: Action and Idea: The Roots of Entertainment and An Introduction to Theatre and Drama: Act I. His articles have appeared in the Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives and other scholarly journals and by the Dramatic Play Publishing Company. But more importantly, Professor EmanuEl has touched the lives of thousands of our students over the years and given the gift of theatre appreciation to large audiences and students throughout his career.
Programs in the College of Arts and Humanities
Programs in the College of Arts and Humanities provide you with the base of humanistic studies and creative expression essential to the understanding of contemporary civilization. Reflect critically on questions of belief, values, and the nature of human existence. Expand your imagination and creativity. Develop an appreciation and understanding of the great works of human imagination.
Message from the Dean
Is an education in the Arts and Humanities worth anything? At times I run across this question — perhaps less bluntly put — in conversations with parents or students. It actually might be more appropriate to ask . . . read more
