WELCOME TO THE WEBSITE OF
STEPHEN (STEVE) TAFT
After 24 years in Iowa my wife and I have returned to the Springfield, Missouri area (her hometown). Winter is much more bearable here and theatrically, there's a LOT of talent in the area. After moving here in the late summer of 2024, we're still settling in it seems. We downsized a lot in our preparation to move but still have more to do.
So, what is retirement like? Personally, I hope to be spending more of my time writing, traveling a bit and simply enjoying life. Still working on that. ​The pages here provide a bit of insight into my career which has been a journey. Here you'll find a sampling of projects and interests and perhaps more than a few memories.
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In the spring of 2025, The Morning After was one of my short plays selected to be presented by Open Arts Space in Chicago April 30th - May 4th. Titled "100 Days", the plays consisted of "New Short Plays Written in Response to Our Current Political Climate". I'm very grateful to that organization.
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NEWS: My short play Nice and Kind has been selected to be a part of Summer Harvest 2026 produced by the Vidalia Theatre Company in Metro Atlanta. Many thanks to their Artistic Director, Gregory Fitzgerald for this opportunity. Feel free to visit my PLAYS page to read the script.
I've uploaded a new short one-act play on the PLAYS page (The Freedom Club) which I encourage you to check out. Three new 10-minute plays have been uploaded including Honeymoon Haven, The 10th Annual History Costume Party featuring the return of three famous historical icons (previously in The Morning After) and Soft Shoulder (written with my friend, Thomas Carter) Most of my plays can also be found on The New Play Exchange.
Now, depending on your beliefs 2025 was an incredibly challenging year for obvious reasons and the temperature has been turned up in 2026. I encourage you to do your best to smile. It's my hope people of all generations will step up and lead the way toward a kinder, gentler, and more ethical society that believes in facts, being truthful, the Constitution, embracing democracy and equality for everyone. That's it for now. Have a great day!
Bio
I received my Ph.D. in Fine Arts with an emphasis in Theatre with concentrations in Arts Management and Directing from Texas Tech University, a Master of Arts in Theatre from Missouri State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Education from the University of Central Missouri majoring in Theatre and Speech with a minor in Dance.
Prior to pursuing his education, I served in the U.S.A.F. achieving the rank of SSGT (E-5). Being a first-generation college student, I will always be eternally grateful for the opportunity to pursue my education via the G.I. Bill which otherwise most likely would not have been possible.
I was born in the county of Schenectady, New York and raised in Ashtabula, Ohio before joining the U.S.A.F.
To read more click on BIO button below.
The Plays of Stephen Taft
Playwriting has been my focus in recent years and strangely they all seem to end on a positive note. Perhaps it's how I hope our future will be. The plays include Storybook Christmas, a family-friendly holiday musical (with it's own link in the header), The Drive, The Morning After, Nice and Kind, Love, Life and Legacy, Kreon (a contemporary adaptation of the classic Greek play, Antigone and strangely relevant to today), a one-act play, (Apples and Elephants) and additional plays intended for short-play festivals or an evening of short plays collectively Thus far, I have had plays produced in Illinois, Louisiana, Iowa, California, Florida, Missouri, Ohio and New York. ​I encourage you to give them a read and to reach out if there is one that may be of interest.
Production Photos
In the world of higher education, theatre artists often wear many hats depending on the size of the faculty and staff and their specific expertise. Although primarily trained as a director, actor and arts administrator, circumstances and artistic interests required me to expand my experiences to include light design, sound design, scenic design and technical direction on occasion (in my early years).
Such experiences have been tremendously valuable in my role as a director and administrator in regards to budgeting and communication and in my ability to appreciate the talent and hard work of the designers and technical staff I have worked with over the years. These gallery photos are representative of such diverse experiences.
Once-upon-a-time
Over the years there have been several projects, whether research-based or course-based, that I believe may have had value to students or others that may have visited my web page in the past. So, rather than simply storing such info on my computer or in a closet somewhere, I have chosen to share selected examples on this site.
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This section includes a project focusing on a series of interviews conducted mostly in 2016-17 with several working professionals from Broadway, TV and film. These interviews can be found in "Chats & Conversations". All have valuable information for the young aspiring professional.
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I've also shared excerpts from Tutors to Panthers, a retrospective of the various athletic programs at the University of Northern Iowa. My specific chapter (Chapter 1) focused on the history of baseball at the university.
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I've also shared insight regarding a unique class I created and taught many years ago, "Arts, Ethics and the Athlete" which you may find interesting.
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Music & Writings
Here you will find a link to my SoundCloud site featuring several examples of songs I've written over the years. You may need to be a member to access unfortunately.
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In addition, the charming children's stories of Cindy Taft are featured.
Finally, I share several of my favorite songs of my son, Austin Taft in addition to a link to his web site that features a large catalog of diverse music. Do I promote those I believe in? Yes, I do!
Marc Breaux
In this section you will discover a variety of interviews from a research project regarding choreographer, dancer, actor and director, Marc Breaux (best known for such films as Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) The interviews include chats with Dee Dee Wood, Richard Sherman, Dick Van Dyke, Leslie Ann Warren and others. In addition, there are a variety of photographs from Marc's life and career he generously shared with me years ago.