Roger Gross, Shakespearean Scholar and Longtime Department of Drama Faculty Member, Dies at 86

Photo by Patricia Relph

Roger Gross, professor emeritus, Department of Theatre

Roger Gross, professor emeritus in the Department of Drama, now the Department of Theatre in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, passed away on April 23, 2017. He joined the University of Arkansas in 1980 as the first chair of the Department of Drama.

Although drama classes and activities had been around since the earliest days of the university, they had always been under the umbrella of the Department of Speech, or later Speech and Dramatic Art. Gross began a new era with the newly formed department that offered B.A. and M.A. degrees, supported a lively production program and included five full time faculty members in addition to himself.

Gross served as chair of the department for five years, and continued to teach until 2011. During his 31 year tenure, he directed 48 productions for the department, several of which were successful entrants in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.

He was a champion of new works and directed upward of a dozen, including new scripts by Steven Sater (award-winning playwright of Spring Awakening) and Kent R. Brown. He was also one of the co-founders of the Mount Sequoyah New Play Retreat. Over the course of its nine-year year run, playwrights and professional mentors were brought together for three weeks each summer to write new plays, see them developed by a company of experienced actors and ultimately receive staged productions for public audiences.

It was his work with the Mount Sequoyah project that led to the creation of the M.F.A. playwriting track within the department's new Master of Fine Arts degree program. Gross was one of the faculty who helped create the M.F.A. program in 1995 and was active in it until his retirement. Over a dozen students completed their M.F.A. playwriting degrees under Gross' mentorship, including the writing and production of several plays each. And the majority of those graduates are actively writing and/or teaching today.

A true generalist within the area of theatre education, with equal competence in all the performance and scholarly arenas, Gross was most closely connected to mentoring new playwrights, teaching dramatic theory and criticism and, especially, working with the performance and literary aspects of William Shakespeare's drama.

"Acting Shakespeare" was always a popular course that included intensive training in speaking Shakespeare's verse. His work in the classroom extended to the stage whenever he directed one of Shakespeare's plays, eight during his tenure here, including detailed language guides for the actors and meticulous attention to the rhythms of the verse.

Gross was a prolific scholar with countless articles and conference papers on his resume. His creative, research and academic reputation led him to become National Chair of the University/College Theatre Association. His book, Understanding Playscripts: Theory and Method, was also a well-reviewed text.

He was also active as a performer, composer, playwright and musician. Audiences in greater Northwest Arkansas remember his performance in the title role of King Lear, produced by the Department of Drama and directed by the late professor Patricia Romanov. Gross also performed that same role shortly after in a professional production in the San Francisco Bay area.

Additionally, Gross wrote musical scores for many of his productions, new adaptations of the eight Shakespeare plays he directed, and several adaptations of works by other European writers. He also acted in a number of local productions and was cast in several major motion pictures that were filmed locally.

His commitment to his students, play production, scholarship and the profession are legendary. Over his 50 years of teaching – 31 at the U of A – directing and creative endeavors, he made a powerful impact on his students, the faculty, his professional colleagues and the community. His presence will be missed. Gross was 86.