Jomary Pena Wins Scholarship to Attend National Conference

2015 Mar 17

SUNY Oneonta Theatre major Jomary Pena of the Bronx, NY, has been awarded a Tayneshia Jefferson Mentorship scholarship to attend the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) national conference in Cincinnati, Ohio, this week.

In addition to the all-expense-paid trip to the USITT 55th Annual Conference & Stage Expo from March 18-21, Pena will receive a one-year student membership in the USITT. While in Cincinnati, she will be partnered with a mentor to guide her through the conference experience.

"This conference will really open Jomary's eyes to the larger arts management world at a critical moment in her development," said Department of Theatre chair Patrice Macaluso, who nominated Pena for the scholarship and will accompany her to the conference. "I think it will give her the confidence and some important initial connections to make a successful transition from college to work in the coming year. As Jomary is planning to return home to New York after she graduates in May, I've asked that her mentor be a professional Equity stage manager currently working in the city."

Macaluso said the event is the pre-eminent professional conference for all elements of the "live performing arts technology, design and management universe," encompassing educational, commercial and nonprofit theatres and all aspects of manufacturing, design and technology.

Pena, a senior, has been an active member of SUNY Oneonta's Mask and Hammer theatre club, both behind the scenes and on the stage. Last year, she served as assistant stage manager for the club's production of "Water by the Spoonful." This past fall, she was stage manager for "Design for Living" and she acted in the student-directed thriller "9 Circles." She will appear in another student-directed show, Federico Garcia Lorca's "The House of Bernarda Alba," from March 26-29 in the college's Hamblin Theater.