Professor Emeritus of Theatre
R. Rex Stephenson earned his Ph.D. in educational theatre at New York University. He has more than a dozen plays published, and has won two major playwriting contests, the American Alliance for Theatre and Education and the National Archives Play Writing Contest. In 1996 he received the Jean Ritchie Fellowship to research and write plays on John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church. He was awarded the 1997 East Central Theatre Conference’s Award for Theatrical Excellence. In 2007 he was awarded the prestigious SETC Sara Spencer Child Drama Award. Rex is considered one of the most published children’s playwrights in Virginia.
Rex is the creator and artistic director of the Jack Tale Players, a touring company that continues to delight audiences of all ages after nearly five decades. He teaches courses in improvisation, theatre history, and performance, and directs plays and musicals at the Blue Ridge Dinner Theatre. Recent directing credits include Nunsense; No, No, A Million Times No; and Steel Magnolias.
