Bradford Little Theatre welcomes you to our BIG sixth season!

The Lester Brauser Theatre Appreciation Award

The 2001 Brauser Award was presented to Dr. Robert C. Laing, Jr.

For nearly 30 years, Dr. Robert C. Laing, professor emeritus of English at Pitt-Bradford, encouraged student artists to follow their dreams.      Awarded annually to students excelling in art, music, theatre, and writing, the Robert C. Laing Creative Arts Awards were established at Pitt-Bradford in 1972 to commend the creative abilities of the students.      "The Laing Awards are one of Pitt-Bradford’s most beloved traditions, and it’s one of the nicest ways a student can be recognized for his or her achievements," said BLT President Chris Mackowski, himself a Laing Award winner for Theatre in 1989. "So many Laing Award recipients have gone on to make contributions to the Bradford community and the communities where they’ve eventually settled down."       Born in 1919 in Manchester, New Hampshire, Laing took piano lessons as a young lad. "Following four years of lessons, my teacher, my parents, and I came to the conclusion that I would never be a concert pianist," Laing admits with a chuckle. As he always had a fondness for books, Laing turned to literature.      He received his undergraduate degree in English from Yale and earned his Ph.D. in literature from the University of Pittsburgh. For nearly a half-century, Laing passed on his love for the written word to students in elementary schools to universities. Early in his career he taught at the Kiski School in Saltsburg, PA and at the Valley School in Ligonier, PA. As a graduate student he taught at the University of Pittsburgh from 1954-1964.      Laing came to Pitt-Bradford in the early sixties and spent the next twenty years teaching literature and composition; he retired from teaching twenty years ago. He has since been recognized with Pitt-Bradford’s Presidential Medal of Distinction.      Laing still keeps active on campus by attending events and through his membership with the Friends of Hanley Library.

Established in 2001 for BLT's 5th Anniversary Season, the Lester Brauser Theatre Appreciation Award is presented annually to an individual or individuals whose work makes community theatre possible in the Bradford area.