Adams shares career advice with student writers and recent graduates hoping to work in the industry
Earlier this year, BYUtv audiences entered the wonderful world of “Dwight in Shining Armor” — a world of magic, whimsy and unlikely heroes from the minds of BYU theatre alum LeeAnne Hill Adams and her husband and writing partner Brian J. Adams. The scripted comedy adventure — which premiered its second season in September — follows Dwight, a 21st century teen who inadvertently awakens a warrior princess and a host of other fantastical characters from a thousand-year slumber. The development of the show has been a full circle experience of sorts for Adams, who saw some of her earliest work produced at BYU during her master’s studies in theatre theory and criticism. After receiving her undergraduate degree in playwriting from the University of Utah, Adams found herself drawn to the BYU Department of Theatre and Media Arts in part because of the program’s tradition of workshopping student plays. “It’s so valuable for a writer to get to hear an actor read their lines and to work with a director in the development part of the process,” said Adams. “Many writers never get that experience. For a theatre program at a university to throw that kind of support behind a student’s work is incredibly rare.” Adams ultimately had two plays workshopped and produced at BYU, helping prepare her for many of the projects and experiences she would later take on in her career. “My first training ground was at BYU, and I’ll always be grateful for that experience,” said Adams. “Going through the workshop and seeing the finished product was so helpful, especially in showing me a best-case example of how collaboration can work well. It was a glimpse into the future of what it would be like to work collaboratively with other artists to bring something into production professionally.” Read the full story at the Department of Theatre and Media Arts website.