Dewey Scott-Wiley & Larry Hembree Named Artistic Director & Executive Director of Trustus Theatre

When Jim and Kay Thigpen announced at the beginning of their 27^th Season that they would be officially retiring from Trustus Theatre - South Carolina's premiere professional theater which they co-founded in 1985 - the Trustus Board of Directors instantly formed a committee to fill their positions. In a meeting on Valentine's Day 2012 the Trustus Board of Directors officially announced that Larry Hembree will become the new Executive Director of the theatre with long-time Trustus Company Member and Associate Artistic Director Dewey Scott-Wiley taking the reigns as the new Artistic Director in the 28^th season.   

"This theatre has a mission of producing new provocative works that engage and inspire," said current Trustus Artistic Director Jim Thigpen. "We couldn't support the board more with their decision to appoint Dewey and Larry – they're both committed to the same mission that Kay and I set forth in '85, and we can't wait to see where Trustus goes now. This theatre is going to be in great hands."

 "I am confident that Larry's energy, personality, and background will at once continue the Kay and Jim tradition that Trustus-goers expect and also move us in new directions," said Trustus Board President Fred Roper. "The Board expressed its confidence in Larry with its unanimous vote.  I look forward to working with him and with Dewey Scott-Wiley and watching the theatre soar to new heights."

As Artistic Director, Dewey Scott-Wiley will oversee the artistic product of the theatre. Columbia audiences are familiar with Dewey as a critically acclaimed director, actor, and long-time Trustus Company Member. Scott-Wiley is also an Associate Professor of Theatre, and heads up the performance curriculum at University of South Carolina Aiken. She has been recognized multiple times by the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival for her achievements in Directing, and is in charge of Directing Initiatives for KCACTF Region IV. She is currently serving as Chair of the Professional Division for SETC (Southeastern Theatre Conference). Trustus' current production of Gem of the Ocean is directed by Scott-Wiley and audiences will recall her fearless portrayal of Barbara Weston in last fall's non-musical hit August: Osage County.

As Executive Director, Larry Hembree will execute the daily overseeing of the theatre and development for Jim and Kay Thigpen. "I am honored to be able to continue my work in the arts at Trustus, a theater that has provided me many poignant and life changing moments through the years," said Hembree. "Kay and Jim Thigpen have been crusaders of the power of live theater for decades and to preserve and enrich their vision is exciting."

Larry Hembree grew up in Greenwood SC, and received a BA in English and a minor in Drama from Clemson University and an MFA in Directing with a secondary degree in Acting from the University of Georgia.  He worked as Director of Theatre at the Fine Arts Center of Kershaw County in Camden from 1986-1997, then moved to Columbia in 1997 to become the Performing Arts Director for the SC Arts Commission. Hembree took over as Executive Director of the Nickelodeon Theatre in 2005 and has worked to relocate the Nickelodeon to its new location at 1607 Main Street.

In Camden, Hembree founded Arts Arising, a summer program offering arts instruction for students in Lee, Fairfield and Kershaw Counties.  He has been involved in Midlands theatre for many years including directing and acting at Workshop Theatre, directing at Trustus (most recently Columbia native Randall David Cook's play, Third Finger, Left Hand), and also directing and performing at Chapin Community Theatre and Town Theater.  He is currently a board member and head of the marketing committee for City Center Partnership, a board member of the Columbia Design League, serves as co-chair of theater for One Columbia for Arts and History, and is a former board member of the Sherwood Forest Neighborhood Association, SC Arts Alliance, VSA South Carolina, and South Carolina Gay and Lesbian Business Guild.  He is also a past President of the South Carolina Theatre Association. 

Hembree was awarded the Key to the City of Camden in 1997, the Ben Bostick Award for Visionary Leadership at the Fine Arts Center of Kershaw County, the President's Award for City Center Partnership, the Freddie Mullis Award for the SC Gay and Lesbian Business Guild, and an honorary award from the SC Dance Association. 

In the next few months, Hembree will begin actively engaging in events and development at Trustus. He can be seen in a staged reading of an adaptation of Satan in High Heels at Trustus, in a production of Plan 9 from Outer Space at the Tapp's Arts Center, and will produce the annual Trustus fundraiser, The Vista Queen Pageant in May along with a celebration of Trustus' history with Jim and Kay Thigpen in June. He will also be moderating an evening with city council candidates for the Congaree Vista Guild at Trustus March 27.

Season 28 will mark the beginning of a new chapter in Trustus' history as Dewey Scott-Wiley and Larry Hembree become Artistic Director and Executive Director respectively. Trustus patrons can expect the same quality and professional entertainment that the theatre has thrived on for 27 years.