Camp on the Coast
Summer Theatre Workshop: Camp on the Coast: June 15-27, 2025
About the Camp
The Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi Summer Theatre Workshop is a two-week residential camp designed for high school students seeking a highly intensive and creative theatre experience. Participants will rehearse and perform in a one-act play directed by one of six highly successful theatre educators. Students interested in performance will study acting, improvisation, and movement in morning classes taught by TAMUCC Theatre faculty. Returning campers will take a three-hour master class in acting and movement. Technical Theatre Students will attend classes in design, participate in the creation of each production’s sets, lighting, and costumes, and serve as crew for the shows.
High School teachers who wish to attend will serve as assistant directors for the shows and participate in sessions on directing taught by our guest directors and members of the TAMUCC faculty. Additionally, teachers will observe the acting, movement, and improv classes. Continuing Education Credit will be awarded for workshop hours.
Download Theatre Camp Information Packet soon.
Download Theatre Camp Schedule soon.
Workshop Fees
- Students staying on campus $1,550
- Student Commuters $1,200
- Teachers $1,200
Welcome to the Island University Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is one of the most unique campuses in Texas. It is located on its own private island, just minutes away from miles of Gulf Coast beaches. From palm-lined breezeways to state-of-the-art classroom facilities, A&M-Corpus Christi is a great environment for living and learning. The campus is located at 6300 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, Texas, 78412.
Housing Out of area campers will be housed on the TAMUCC campus in residence halls which offer spectacular bay views. Laundry facilities are available in the dorms. Campers will need to bring their own detergent.
Arrival and Departure Parents (or High Schools) are responsible for transportation to and from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi at the beginning and end of camp. Students arriving at Corpus Christi International Airport need to email Kelly Russell by June 1 to arrange for transportation to campus: kelly.russell@tamucc.edu
STUDENT REGISTRATION WILL OPEN IN 2025
- The A&M System has opened our camp registration portal. Parents: you must register for your camper as there are legal forms that only you may sign. Be sure to save your login and password so you have access to pay any remaining balance.
- A non-refundable deposit of $400 must accompany your application.
- The application deadline is May 16, 2025. The remaining balance is due before registration on June 16, 2025. 120 campers are accepted each summer (60 female and 60 male campers). Capacity is usually reached before the application deadline. Students are accepted on a first come, first serve basis. If the camp is already full when an application is received, we will return the deposit.
Auditions It is not necessary to prepare a monologue for the auditions. All of the directors will conduct theatre exercises and cold-readings to cast their shows.
Commuters Commuters must arrive on time each day for class (9:00 a.m.). If you are not in class at 9:00 a.m. your parents will be notified immediately. You may come earlier and eat breakfast with the rest of camp if you wish—the cost of breakfast is covered in your tuition. Commuters are required to eat lunch and dinner on campus. Once you arrive each day, you MAY NOT drive your car until you leave campus at the end of the session. You MAY NOT, for any reason, transport a residential camper in your vehicle. Doing so will result in your suspension from camp without a refund.
Meals Meals will be provided for all campers, and are included in the tuition price, both for commuters and for those staying in the dorms.
Safety and Camp Guidelines The camp will have strict rules regarding curfew, class attendance, rehearsal etiquette, and behavior. Rule violations may result in a phone call to parents, restrictions on social activities, or suspension from camp. If a student is sent home for rule violations, his/her tuition will not be refunded.
Students will be housed in the TAMUCC campus dormitories. Access to living areas of the opposite gender will be absolutely prohibited at all times. Violation of this rule will result in suspension from the camp.
Individuals staying in the dorms who bring their own cars will surrender their car keys to the Camp Director at Registration. The Camp Director will return keys during check out. Students will never be allowed to ride in a car with anyone other than camp staff...and then only in the case of an emergency (trip to the hospital, doctor, etc.)
We have an excellent faculty and staff that will supervise the campers at all times. College counselors will accompany campers to the dining hall, rehearsals, the dorms, and social activities. At no time during the day will students be left un-chaperoned. A strict dorm curfew will be enforced, and an adult dorm supervisor will be on-site throughout the camp, along with the counselors.
Contact Information Kelly Russell, Camp Director—kelly.russell@tamucc.edu
Faculty/Staff
Kelly Russell (Camp Director/Acting Instructor) is a Professor of Theatre at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi and has served as Camp on the Coast Director since its beginning in 2005. He received a BFA in Acting from Texas State University and an MFA in Directing from Baylor University. In his ten years as a high school teacher, four of his one-act plays advanced to the UIL state meet, winning 1st in 2001 and placing 2nd in 1996, 2000 and 2002. He has been honored with four A&M Chancellor’s Awards for Teaching Excellence and was named TETA University Educator of the Year in 2012.
Alison Frost (Director) currently serves as Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance at Texas A&M University—Corpus Christi. She’s directed over 200 plays and musicals at the professional, collegiate, and high school level--including 4 one-acts that competed at the UIL State 5A Division. She holds an an MFA in Directing from Florida State University, an M.Ed from Sam Houston State University and a BFA in Directing/Design from Baylor University. She was also certified in the inaugural Contemporary Theatre program at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. In 2016, she was awarded Outstanding University Educator from the Texas Educational Theatre Association.
Andy Reynolds (Guest Director)has been the Head Drama Director for Waxahachie High School for the past 20 years. He graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington with a BFA in Theatre Arts in Acting & Directing. Seven of his one-act plays have advanced to the UIL State Meet, four of them placing in the top three. The Waxahachie High School Musical has garnered eight nominations for Best Musical at the Broadway Dallas High School Musical Theatre Awards, winning the coveted prize of Best Musical in 2016 (SPAMALOT) and in 2021 (MATILDA). In 2019, Reynolds was the recipient of the first Broadway Dallas Outstanding Educator Award.
Daniel Gambill (Guest Director) is the Director of Theatre at Sunnyvale High School, where he also serves his students as UIL Academic Coordinator and Speech coach. He has had numerous state finalists in Prose and Poetry Interpretation including the 2018 4A Prose State Champion. In his eight years of directing UIL One Act Plays, he has directed multiple state finalist shows including the 2018 4A State Champion production of The Book of Everything. He is also a two-time recipient of the White House Presidential Service Award.
Kathy Powdrell (Guest Director) has over 30 years experience as an actress, singer, director and teacher. Mrs. Powdrell graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the College of Education and Theatre at the University of Houston. She has completed studies at London's Globe Theatre after winning a fellowship from the Houston Branch of the English Speaking Union. Mrs. Powdrell has directed numerous plays and musicals as the Director of Theatre at Friendswood High School and has been the recipient of the Lillian B. Rhoades Texas Excellence Award as an outstanding high school teacher.
Demond Wilson (Guest Director) is the founder and president of The Perfect Performance LLC, a nationally recognized communication and theatrical consulting company. Since 2002, he has traveled nationwide to provide hands-on coaching, curriculum development, and workshops for students and educators. A visionary leader in arts education, Demond founded the National Individual Events Tournament of Champions (NIETOC) in 2009, where he led strategic initiatives, raised over $500,000 in scholarships, and garnered national recognition for his pioneering contributions to student and teacher excellence. Demond has directed 6 state championship one-act plays in three different states and helped over 30 plus students win National and State Championships. Demond’s passion for student success and dedication to mentoring future generations have earned him numerous accolades, including the Hall of Fame induction from the National Speech & Debate Association in 2024, and the Connie Magee Educator of the Year Award in 2004..
Cy Scroggins (Guest Director) has been the theatre director/ UIL coordinator at Canyon Randall High School for 11 years and before that he taught in Sonora. He has directed nine one act plays that reached the State finals including three state championships with Darkside in 2013, Never the Sinner in 2019, and A View from the Bridge in 2023. Cy is a graduate of West Texas A&M University. He was the award recipient for the 2016 Teacher Excellence at Randall and the 2023 UIL Sponsor Excellence Award.
Kati Grimmer (Assistant Camp Director/Movement Instructor) has known that she would be an actor and director since 6th grade when she was asked by her English teacher, Mrs. Elms, to write an essay entitled, “What Will You Do When You Grow Up?”. Kati graduated with honors from Texas Tech University in 1991 with a BA in Theatre and a BA in English. She was trained by Dr. George Sorenson who helped her evolve into the educator that she is today. Kati began teaching and has been involved in the instruction and direction of young Thespians since 1990. She has taught every grade level from 5th to 12th. Kati was proud and honored to be Teacher of the Year in 2020 and to have placed in the top 5 Secondary Educators of the Year for Keller ISD for the 2019-2020 school year. She also received K-12 Educator of the Year from Texas Educational Theatre Associate in 2019 and Secondary Theatre Educator of the Year from The Live Theatre League in 2022. She is a proud educator and will soon retire after 32 years of service in public education.
Dr. R. Scott Allen (Assistant Camp Director/Dorm Supervisor) serves an arts education nonprofit, Arts Schools Network (ASN), as Managing Director. He retired in August of 2021 after thirty years in public education, serving twelve and a half years as Principal of Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (HSPVA) in Houston, TX. He holds a BFA in directing from Texas State University and a master's and doctorate in educational administration from Sam Houston State University. Scott continues to be active in the Texas UIL One Act Play Competition, serving as an adjudicator each spring. He is currently the President -Elect for the Texas Theatre Adjudicators and Officials (TTAO). Of the honors he has received, Scott is most proud of the TxETA Administrator of the Year (2019). He has also received the Arts Schools Network Jeffrey Lawrence Award (2018), was named the Texas H-E-B Excellence in Education State Secondary Principal of the Year (2013), and the Sam Houston State University Distinguished Educator of the Year (2019).
Reed Chappell (Master Class Instructor) is a theatre teacher with a decade of experience, currently serving as the lead Theatre Teacher at Aledo High School. Reed received a degree in Theatre from Texas A&M University--Corpus Christi with a focus on theatre education. Over his career, he has directed six shows that performed at the State UIL One Act Play contest, receiving second runner-up twice.
Kevin Loeffler (Design/Tech) is Director of Theatre in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi. At TAMUCC, Kevin teaches courses in design and collaboration while also designing scenery for the main-stage season. Kevin received his MFA from the University of Iowa and his BFA from the University of Evansville. Professionally, Kevin has worked as a Scenic Designer for Hope Summer Repertory Theatre and the Las Vegas Academy and as a Scenic Artist for the Santa Fe Opera and the Utah Shakespeare Festival.
Alex Mason (Design/Tech Instructor) is a theatrical lighting designer who freelances extensively in opera and musical theatre throughout the United States. He holds an MFA in lighting design and technology from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Alex teaches courses in lighting and sound design at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi. Originally trained as a musician, Mason also holds degrees in violin performance and conducting and worked extensively as a music director, vocal coach pianist, and violinist in musical theatre before turning to lighting design.
Meredith Melville (Improvisation) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre & Dance at TAMUCC. She received her M.F.A. in Directing from the University of Memphis. She spent ten years prior working in the improv and sketch comedy world in Chicago. She was the Artistic Director for the Alliance Sketch Group, taught improv at the Actor's Garden, and was an original member of the Musical Improv House Ensemble at the Second City Training Center. She loves to bring Viewpoints, improvisation, and comedy to the workspace. Recently, Meredith has been developing new devised theatre works.
Marco Muñoz (Acting Instructor) is an Assistant Professor for the Department of Theatre and Dance at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. He premiered Off-Off Broadway in 2016 in a play called "Flip-In". He received his Bachelors in Theatre from Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi with a focus in Acting/Directing and has an MFA in Acting from Pennsylvania State University. During his time in Graduate School and beyond Marco has focused on training and researching the Sanford Meisner Acting Technique and devised playwriting and even had the opportunity to originate the role of "Helix" in a devised play called I.D., which had its international debut at the National Arts Festival in Makhanda(Grahamstown), South Africa, and it's national premier at the Centre Stage Theatre in Pennsylvania.