Roger Hanna

Biography

Roger Hanna has designed sets for theater, opera, and dance in Japan, Israel, and across the United States, including over 150 productions in New York City. Before joining CSU, Hanna’s teaching experience included NYU, Rutgers, SUNY, and the University of Miami. He has designed for universities including University of Minnesota, The New School, NYU, Point Park, Ramapo, Temple, and Yale, and served as resident designer for the Mannes Opera from 2004—2018.

In 2022, Hanna served as a Global Teaching Scholar for Semester at Sea’s first “post”-pandemic voyage, teaching theatre in Greece, Spain, and Scotland as well as between the thirteen ports visited.  His former students now work in theatre all over the country, with many concentrated in New York City.  Hanna served as resident designer for Playwrights Theater of New York, the Gilgamesh Theater Group, and four discrete NYU Programs. At CSU, he founded the Summer Study Abroad Program in Theatre for Prague and Berlin, founded, and heads the Set Design Concentration, and teaches classes including Set Design I, Set Design II, Computer Assisted Drafting for Theatre, Design Portfolio, and Special Topics in Design, as well as mentoring all set design students as they design productions on and off campus.

Projects of note include repeated collaborations with Laura Alley, Jack Allison, Jonathan Bank, Trazana Beverly, Tracy Bersley, Joseph Colaneri, Nilo Cruz, Jackson Gay, Robin Guarino, Ron Jenkins, Susan Marshall, Eleanor Reissa, Jody Sperling, and Tommy Tune, at venues including Dance Theater Workshop, Jacob’s Pillow, The Jerry Herman Ring Theatre, The Mint Theater, Opera Steamboat, Provincetown Playhouse, Sarasota Opera, Tennessee Shakespeare, and Yiddishpiel (Israel). National awards include the 2009 Lucille Lortel Award for Best Scenic Design, as well as two Drama Desk nominations (2012, 2015), and four Henry Hewes Design Award nominations (2009, 2011, 2012, 2015). Regional awards include a top-five nomination for New Hampshire Theatre Award (2015) and a True West Award from the Denver Center for Performing Arts (2017).

His design for Donogoo at the Mint Theatre Off-Broadway received rave reviews across the board in 25 publications and earned him a guest spot on WNYC’s Leonard Lopate Show.

Hanna is a member of United Scenic Artists Local 829 and holds a B.A. in Theater from UCLA, and an M.F.A. in Set and Lighting Design from NYU.