Alabama State University News July 15, 2011 ASU Dean to Receive Living Legend Award Alabama State University's Dr. Tommie "Tonea" Stewart, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, will be honored for her numerous years of dedication to the arts. Award-winning actor and educator Dr. Tommie "Tonea" Stewart, dean of ASU's College of Visual and Performing Arts, will be honored with the Living Legend Award at the 2011 National Black Theatre Festival on Aug. 1 in Winston-Salem, N.C. The weeklong festival celebrates African and African-American culture and art. The award is given to those who have made significant contributions to the arts. Other stellar artists who have received the Living Legend Award include playwright Steve Carter and renowned actors Andre De Shields and Lou Myers. "To receive the Living Legend Award is a wonderful blessing. It allows me to feel truly appreciated. I am humbled and excited to be in God's grace," Stewart said. She also earned an NAACP Image Award nomination for her role in the film adaptation of John Grisham's "A Time to Kill" and a New York World Festival Gold Medal Award for her narration of the Public Radio International series, "Remembering Slavery." In June, Stewart appeared on stage with renowned artists from Broadway and screen for a reading of Alice Childress' 1955 drama, "Trouble in Mind," which was part of the nationwide event "1 Voice, I Play, 1 Day." Stewart is best known for her recurring role in the television "In the Heat of the Night." Some of her many film and television credits also include "The Rosa Parks Story," "Mississippi Burning," "Invasion of the Body Snatchers III," "Walker, Texas Ranger," "Memphis Beat," "Matlock," "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings," "ER," "Touched by an Angel," and several Lifetime Movie Network films, the latest being "The Wronged Man." The National Black Theatre Festival is the international outreach program of the North Carolina Black Repertory Company, founded by the late Larry Leon Hamlin in 1979. The festival, which also was founded by Hamlin, has been held since 1989. Hamlin once wrote: "This historic event (National Black Theatre Festival) illuminates the powerful theatrical spirit and extraordinary talent of black performers, designers, directors, producers and technicians from across the country." SANDRA M. PHOENIX Program Director HBCU Library Alliance sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> 404.592.4820 Skype:sandra.phoenix1 1438 West Peachtree Street NW Suite 200 Atlanta, GA 30309 Toll Free: 1.800.999.8558 (Lyrasis) Fax: 404.892.7879 www.lyrasis.org<http://www.lyrasis.org/> Honor the ancestors, honor the children. Preserving the Story of the HBCU Library Alliance- Success Story Submissions due August 1st. Click here http://www.hbculibraries.org/html/hbcustory.html to access the guidelines.