The department awards the following student prizes at an annual commencement ceremony in May.
Please Note: The department only accepts nominations from students for the Mansfield/Sweringen Social Justice Award. Prize recipients are selected by a committee of faculty and staff from eligible TDPS students.
The Departmental Citation for Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies
Departmental Citations are given by each department at UC Berkeley to recognize a student with a distinguished career and accomplishment of amazing work within the department. This award requires both academic and artistic excellence, and is seen as the department’s highest honor to the person who most embodies the values of the Department of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies.
Eligibility:
- TDPS major
- Minimum GPA of 3.5
- Note: The Citation recipient is invited to give a brief address at the department's commencement ceremony in May.
The Larry Belling Promising Writers' Award
This award is presented to a continuing undergraduate student with financial need in memory of Larry Belling, who held nearly every offstage role affiliated with the theater, from playwriting to stage management, from voice work to staffing the box office. The TDPS faculty and undergraduate advisor will identify the awardee based on their written work. This award was funded collaboratively by Larry Belling's family, friends, and Kappa Nu fraternity brothers.
Eligibility:
- TDPS major or minor
- Junior or Senior student status
- Documented financial need
The Roslyn Schneider Eisner Prize for Continuing Creative Achievement
Established in the memory of Rosalyn Schneider Eisner by her mother Mabelle A. Marks, prizes are awarded annually by UC Berkeley for continuing creative achievement in each of the following categories: art, theater, dance, literature, music, film/video, photography, and design. This prize celebrates students who have created a substantial body of creative work during their time here in the Department of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies.
Eligibility:
- TDPS graduate student or undergraduate major
- Note: Recipients are expected to attend a campus awards ceremony in May.
The Mark Goodson Prize for Distinguished Artistic Talent
Mr. Mark Goodson of Goodson-Todman Productions, New York, one of the most successful TV production companies in the US, was a Berkeley graduate. Some years ago he made the first of several donations in order to reward students demonstrating both academic and performative excellence and who reveal a significant interest in theater, dance, motion pictures, or television.
Eligibility:
- TDPS graduate student or undergraduate major
- Minimum GPA of of 3.3
The Michael Mansfield and Randy Sweringen Social Justice Award for Excellence in Creating a More Equitable and Inclusive World
Michael Mansfield and Randy Sweringen created this award to honor a member of the department who creates a public artistic work that intentionally sought to advance social justice through the performance arts. The award winner significantly contributed to the TDPS community, the campus, and beyond through their work. The nomination process encourages the department to reflect upon and live further into its mission statement — "to make diversity and inclusion a key part of our teaching, art making, and public programming." The donors also hope the funds will help the recipient to take their work to "the next stage."
Eligibility:
- The awardee may be any TDPS graduate student, undergraduate major/minor, staff member, or faculty member.
- A call for nominations goes out to TDPS students, staff, and faculty at the beginning of the spring semester. Self-nominations are accepted.
- An awardee is selected from eligible nominees by the department's Equity and Inclusion Committee.
The Mask and Dagger Memorial Prize for Extraordinary Contributions to Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies
In 1946, the Mask and Dagger Dramatics Honor Society here at UC Berkeley established a scholarship fund in the names of members of the Society who had lost their lives in World War II. The scholarships are given to majors and minors who have made extraordinary contributions to Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies.
Eligibility:
- TDPS major or minor
- Minimum GPA of 3.0
The Dunbar Ogden Undergraduate Prize in Theater History
Professor Emeritus Dunbar Ogden created this prize to honor undergraduate research and academic excellence in theater history, dance history, and performance studies.
Eligibility:
- The awardee must have written a relevant essay for a TDPS undergraduate class in the current academic year.
- Essays are nominated by TDPS faculty and awardees are selected by the department's subcommittee on Performance Studies.
The Dunbar Ogden Graduate Prize in Theater History
TDPS Professor Emeritus Dunbar Ogden created this prize to honor graduate research and academic excellence in theater history, dance history, and performance studies.
Eligibility:
- The awardee must have written a relevant essay for a TDPS graduate class in the current academic year.
- Essays are nominated by TDPS faculty and awardees are selected by the department's subcommittee on Performance Studies.
Award for Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor
Each year graduate students are asked to teach courses for the department and the campus, allowing them time to gain skills and experience as an educator in the classroom, while simultaneously completing their work as a researcher and student themselves. This award is given to graduate students who come to be known as outstanding graduate student teachers.
Eligibility:
- The awardee must be a Graduate Student Instructor who has taught in TDPS in the current academic year.
- The awardee is selected by the Graduate Program Executive Committee.
The Julia Payne Dance Scholarship
This prize was established to honor an undergraduate student who demonstrates outstanding accomplishment in dance scholarship and performance.
Eligibility:
- TDPS major or minor
- Minimum GPA of 3.3
- Female-identifying
The Grace Sprague Pillsbury and Josephine Park Pillsbury Award for an Actress of Excellence
Mr. Edwin S. Pillbsbury, a former lawyer of San Francisco, established this award in the names of his mother, Grace Sprague Pillsbury, and his wife, Josephine Park Pillsbury, both of whom were very committed to the theater. He hoped that the winners would make a career of acting and performance.
Eligibility:
- TDPS graduate student, major, or minor
- Female-identifying
The Florence Schwimley Memorial Scholarship in the Performing Arts
In 1975, The Zonta Club of Berkeley established a scholarship fund in the name of Florence Schwimley, a well-known Berkeley resident who was active in the theater and dance world. The scholarship is awarded to honor undergraduate students who have excelled in their craft of theater and dance this year, while simultaneously keeping high academic standing.
Eligibility:
- TDPS major or minor
- Not graduating in the academic year that the award is given
- Minimum GPA of 3.3
The Sara Huntsman Sturgess Memorial Prize for Outstanding Artistic Accomplishment in Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies
This prize was first awarded in 1966, by friends and former students of the late Sara Huntsman Sturgess, for students achieving outstanding artistic accomplishment in theater, dance, and performance studies. Professor Sturgess was a member of the Department of Public Speaking and taught drama and directed productions when the department presented shows in Wheeler Hall.
Eligibility:
- Graduate or undergraduate student
The Jean Wilcox Scholarship for Artistic Talent
In 2022, members of Drama Association of Rossmoor brought this award to the Department of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies. The Jean Wilcox Scholarship is intended to encourage a theater arts student who is excelling in their artistic work at the university level by helping them commit to pursuing a professional career in the performance world.
Eligibility:
- TDPS major or minor
- Graduating in the academic year that the award is given
- Documented financial need
- Note: The awardee is expected to give a presentation and/or performance at an award ceremony hosted by the Drama Association of Rossmoor in Walnut Creek, CA.