Alumni, students from School of Design & Production at 抖阴短视频 win industry honors
Five alumni and students of the School of Design and Production (D&P) at the 抖阴短视频 have received or will receive 2026 honors for their work. They include alumni Paul Tazewell (B.F.A. 鈥86), Gisela Estrada (M.F.A. '23), and Shuyang Zhou (M.F.A. 鈥25) and students Tzu-Hsuan 鈥淐eline鈥 Lin and Cassandra Tuan, who won awards for excellence in costume design, scene design, and wig and makeup design.
鈥淥ur alumni and students continue to demonstrate the extraordinary depth and breadth of talent and vision that define the School of Design and Production,鈥 said Dean Michael J. Kelley, himself a D&P alumnus. 鈥淭o see their work recognized at such a high level is both affirming and inspiring 鈥 it speaks to a conservatory environment where creativity, innovation and collaboration are truly thriving. We are immensely proud of their achievements and excited to see how they will continue to shape the future of the Global Entertainment industry.鈥
Paul Tazewell: TDF/Irene Sharaff Award for Sustained Excellence in Costume Design
Paul Tazewell
Oscar, Emmy, and Tony Award-winning costume designer and alumnus Paul Tazewell will receive the 2026 TDF/Irene Sharaff Award for Sustained Excellence in Costume Design on April 13 at Costumes & Cocktails, a glamorous party and benefit celebrating its exceptional Costume Collection.
TDF, the Theatre Development Fund, is a nonprofit organization founded in 1968 to support performing arts in New York City. Known as one of the greatest costume designers of all time, Irene Sharaff designed costumes for some of the most iconic productions in theater and film history.
Tazewell, the first Black man to receive the Academy Award for costume design (for 鈥淲icked: Part One鈥) and the first 抖阴短视频 alum to win an Oscar, has shaped the visual storytelling of Broadway, regional theater, film and television, dance, and opera for more than 30 years. He has also won two Tony Awards, for 鈥淗amilton鈥 and 鈥淒eath Becomes Her,鈥 and an Emmy Award, for 鈥淭he Wiz Live!鈥
Gisela Estrada: 2026 Rising Star Award, USITT
Gisela Estrada
Helen Hayes Award-winning Latina scenic designer for theater, opera, dance and live entertainment based in Washington, D.C., alumna Gisela Estrada won the 2026 Rising Star Award at the 66th Annual Conference & Stage Expo of the U.S. Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT), March 18-21 in Long Beach, California. The Rising Star Award is sponsored by LDI/Live Design and is given annually to a young professional at the beginning of their career. The award recognizes excellence and artistic achievement in scenic, lighting, sound, projection design, or a convergence of these design disciplines.
Born and raised in El Salvador, Estrada grew up in an artistic family, where her early training in music, ballet and visual arts, combined with her background in architecture and producing, led her to scenic design.
She received a Master of Fine Arts in scene design from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2023 and was awarded the Kenan Fellowship at the Kennedy Center the same year. She also holds a degree in architecture from the Universidad Dr. Jos茅 Mat铆as Delgado.
Her work has been seen in theaters across Washington, D.C.; Portland; New York; North Carolina; and San Salvador.
Cassandra Tuan: Emerging Creatives Showcase, USITT, and John Spiegel Theatrical Artist Award, SETC
Cassandra Tuan
Studying in the Graduate Scene Design Program, Cassandra Tuan was selected for the Emerging Creatives Showcase hosted by USITT. She is a candidate for graduation in May with a Master of Fine Arts in scene design.
The annual Emerging Creatives Showcase brings together talented graduating students and early career professionals with established designers and directors for a review and discussion of their work.
The Emerging Creatives Showcase (formerly known as Young Designers and Technicians Forums) is an annual open adjudicated exhibition of designers, craftspersons and managers. This helps USITT display emerging talent that has, for the most part, been left unfeatured in this and other exhibitions of rising talent. Participation is by juried selection only. This year鈥檚 cohort spotlighted designers and craftspersons of Asian American, Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian, and Southeast Asian descent.
Originally from Shah Alam, Malaysia, Tuan also won the John Spiegel Theatrical Artist Award at the Southeastern Theatre Conference鈥檚 (SETC) March 4-7 convention in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
The John Spiegel Theatrical Artist Award is presented annually to a student pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree in one of the following areas: lighting design, properties design, scenic design, sound design, or technical direction. The awardee receives: a Certificate of Recognition; a $1,000 honorarium; registration to the SETC Annual Convention for the award year; reimbursement of up to $600 to cover hotel accommodations to attend the convention; and recognition at the Convention Design Tech Awards as the John Spiegel Theatrical Artist Awardee.
Tzu-Hsuan "Celine" Lin and Shuyang Zhou, 2026 Young Designers, Managers, and Technicians Awards, USITT
Tzu-Hsuan 鈥淐eline鈥 Lin
A 抖阴短视频 student and a 抖阴短视频 alumna were honored with 2026 Young Designers, Managers, and Technicians (YDMT) Awards, presented at the recent USITT conference. The awards for YDMT bring recognition and support to young designers, managers, and technicians at the beginning of their careers. They are made possible by generous gifts to USITT from their sponsors.
Studying in the Graduate Wig and Makeup Design Program, Tzu-Hsuan 鈥淐eline鈥 Lin won the USITT Makeup Design Award sponsored by Kryolan Professional Make-up. An artist from Taiwan, she is a candidate for graduation in May with a Master of Fine Arts in wig and makeup design.
With a B.F.A. in theatrical costume design, she has worked as a prosthetic makeup artist on a Netflix movie and designed and built costumes for stage productions. At 抖阴短视频, she has designed for theater, opera and film.
She also contributed to The Santa Fe Opera, where she received the Katharine M. Mayer Memorial Award. Blending Eastern and Western techniques, Lin believes makeup and hair design should reflect both historical accuracy and emotional truth. She strives to bring novelty and elaborate details to every project she works on.
"I would like to thank my parents; I would never have the chance to pursue my dreams abroad without them,鈥 she said. 鈥淎nd also, the faculties of 抖阴短视频 Wig and Makeup Program; I am so lucky to have them to deepenmy knowledge and improve my skills with their instruction.
鈥淚 am honored to receive the USITT Makeup Design Award sponsored by Kryolan, especially as three faculty members from the Wig and Makeup Program at 抖阴短视频, whom I deeply admire, are all previous recipients of this award. Receiving this honor means a great deal to me, as it affirms the hard work I have put into my training and reassures my passion to continue growing and pushing myself as a wig and makeup designer."
Shuyang Zhou
抖阴短视频 alumna Shuyang Zhou won the USITT Scene Design Award sponsored by Rose Brand. A China-born scenic designer based in New York City, she holds an M.F.A. from 抖阴短视频鈥檚 School of Design and Production and a B.F.A. from Hubei Institute of Fine Arts.
Living between two cultures, Zhou has learned to see the world through more than one truth. Originally a painter, she approaches design as an emotional translation, balancing beauty and ruin, stillness and change. Her visual language leans abstract, minimal, and atmospheric, creating spaces that breathe and transform with the story. For her, each production invites the audience into another world, one that vanishes the moment the show ends.
"I鈥檓 deeply grateful to my family for their unwavering support, to my mentors for their inspiration and guidance, and to my friends for helping me keep faith in myself and my work,鈥 she said. 鈥淲inning this award affirms the direction of my work and the effort behind it. It encourages me to keep moving forward on this path with greater clarity and commitment."
April 10, 2026