Donovan Shaw

Donovan Shaw has known for quite a while that his desired end game is to have an on-stage career in musical theatre. To work toward that goal, he attended the R.J. Kinsella Magnet School of Performing Arts in Hartford, about 30 miles from where he grew up in Bristol. During his senior year, like many 2020 high school graduates, Shaw was faced with the worldwide pandemic and another harsh reality: Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre programs are extremely competitive.

“I applied to the University of Hartford, the Boston Conservatory, Marymount Manhattan and Western Connecticut State University,” Shaw said. He was waitlisted everywhere, which was extremely disappointing for the aspiring performer. But one school offered an alternative: enroll as a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Performance major with the opportunity to re-audition for the B.F.A. in the future. It was an offer he felt he couldn’t refuse, so Shaw enrolled in WestConn’s School of Visual, Performing, and Communication Arts B.A. program.

“When I first saw the Visual and Performing Arts Center, I thought oh my gosh, I want to go there,” Shaw said. “WestConn has a competitive theatre program at a small university. I got here in the middle of the pandemic when everything was changing. My high school was an inner-city school in Hartford, a very black and brown school, which was not the case when I got here, and it was a bit of a culture shock. It provided me a great opportunity to be a leader, to let diverse visibility start with me. I wanted to make it easier for future black and brown students to have leadership opportunities.”

Donovan Shaw speaks at a campus diversity event.

Shaw, who is biracial, said that when he graduates in May 2025, he will be the first person on the black side of his family to get a college degree. “My family gave me the building blocks and all the generational things,” he said. “I’m proud of where I came from, I’m proud of my community and I’m proud to be queer. People that look like me haven’t always gotten a seat at the table, and I’m proud that WestConn gave me so many opportunities to build on that foundation from my family.”

He’s taken his leadership role on campus seriously. Shaw has served as president of CenterStage, vice president of the Student Government Association, chair of the WCSU Philanthropy Committee, and he founded The Fourth Wall – the Theatre Arts Diversity Council, which he serves as vice president. He also organized a dinner theatre cabaret on campus as soon as Covid restrictions lifted.

“There are huge possibilities at WestConn,” Shaw said. “Coming to campus not as a B.F.A. major like I had hoped and during the pandemic, I wasn’t sure what I was doing. But there are so many opportunities if you’re hungry enough and ask questions, because the faculty will help you find your way.”

Donovan Shaw with Associate Professor of Theatre Arts Dr. Don Gagnon at a performance of “The Wiz.”

One faculty member who has made a strong impression on Shaw has been Associate Professor of Theatre Arts Dr. Don Gagnon. “He took me under his wing as a person of color and showed me that black visibility is possible in the arts,” Shaw said. “We’ve attended some Broadway shows together, and he’s taught me that a good actor is history-informed and politically active. We both enjoy theater that pushes the envelope. Dr. Gagnon is an example of the best shoes to fill. Gagnon repaid the compliment. “In all of our dealings, I have often felt as if Donovan’s learning has also fed significantly into my own continuing education.”

Under his professor’s tutelage, Shaw has emerged as a successful dramaturg, a specialist who provides expertise on the text, history, and context of a play, assisting the director and other production members in bringing the play to life. And while his heart has led him to want to be on stage, Shaw said he has learned “before I’m a performer, I’m an artist.”

Not that he has been without stage credits. Shaw portrayed Belize in the WestConn productions of “Angels in America” Parts I and II, and Marat in “Marat/Sade.” As a result, Shaw said he’s learned how history repeats itself. His pivotal monologue as Belize is extremely pertinent now, he said, even though “Angels in America” is reflective of the AIDS epidemic in the early 1980s. “Belize was black and queer and people were dying all around him,” Shaw explained, “And I realized that the monologue is really significant now, too. As an artist, my creativity doesn’t stop once I step off the stage, and I transitioned from that to working on dramaturgy.”

Shaw’s next campus role as dramaturg is for the university’s upcoming production of “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.” “I’m glad I can help the cast and crew understand the great historical weight of the time period,” he said. His efforts have earned him the Theatre Arts Dramaturgy Award at the university’s recent Honors Convocation Award Ceremony. “I was not expecting the award, and I’m so grateful,” Shaw said. “All of the things I have discussed with Dr. Gagnon about what art has to say have resulted in this honor.”

Donovan Shaw as Belize in “Angels in America.”

In response, Gagnon said, “Donovan’s exemplary work as dramaturg — as a student of theatre in general, and not only of performance technique — has often illustrated just how valuable the study of theatre arts is in general. While some people can easily feel that our students are trained only for showbiz success, Donovan’s research and writing and exploration of the cultural and creative contexts of theatrical subjects articulates the profound and multi-valent value of critical thinking, the exploration and comprehension of context, and the practiced verbal and written ability to put synthesized ideas into work that results in action and positive results. Donovan practiced and developed those skills through his passion for and the study of theatre arts, and they will ensure success in whatever field he settles into.”

Gagnon continued, “As our program continues to grow and its national recognition expands, thanks to the fine work of my faculty and staff colleagues, Donovan’s work, both on and off stage, will exist as example and precedent for how students can create themselves as valuable, informed, and proactive members of their personal and professional communities.”

After graduation, Shaw hopes to find an agent and continue his stage career. In the meantime, he will work as an operations lead/event coordinator this summer at Yale University. “My first love is to be on-stage, but I have grown to love being behind-the-scenes as well,” Shaw said.

“I would encourage anyone entering higher education that feels like their identity hasn’t been defined or feels like an outsider to eat ‘NO’ for breakfast,” Shaw said. “What I mean is, don’t take no for an answer, pursue your dreams and find another way around.”

For the record, Shaw took advantage of the opportunity and re-auditioned at the end of his sophomore year. He will receive his coveted B.F.A. in Musical Theatre next month.

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