The 2019-2020 George R.R. Pflaum Memorial Lecture at Emporia State University will be presented by Alum Drew Shirley (BFA, 2007). Drew is an actor and director who lives in Chicago with his wife Erika. He appeared in numerous ESU Theatre productions including The Laramie Project, Our Town, Footloose, Proof, The Cocoanuts, Arms and the Man and Bus Stop. He was the artistic director for Zoiks! improv comedy for three years. After graduating from ESU, he earned his MFA in acting at the University of Illinois. After stints in California, Utah and Arizona, he settled in Chicago where he currently resides.
Most recently he served as guest director for Shakespeare’s Macbeth at Southwest Shakespeare in Mesa, Arizona. In Chicago he has worked with several companies, including Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Erasing the Distance, Theater Wit, and One Year Chekhov. He has created a podcast called “DMDrew” where Chicago actors play Dungeons and Dragons. He has also worked with the Utah Shakespeare Festival, Shakespeare by the Sea, Kingsmen Shakespeare Company, The Hermosa Beach Playhouse, Fraud & Phony, and Little Fish Theatre.
While visiting Emporia, Drew will meet with students, have lunch with the faculty, visit classes, and attend the fall production of The House of Blue Leaves. He will present the Pflaum memorial lecture on Saturday, November 23 at 2:00 pm in the RQ Frederickson Theatre in Roosevelt Hall. After his remarks, he will take questions from those in attendance. His appearance at the university is sponsored by the Department of Communication and Theatre as well as ESU Special Events.
