How do you measure a career? In students advised, costumes designed, or perhaps in overall impact on an institution such as Marquette’s Theatre Arts program. In the case of Deb Krajec, that’s only the beginning.
As Marquette Theatre celebrated 100 years of theatre on campus and 50 years of the Helfaer Theatre, the Diederich College of Communication also honored Krajec’s 40 years of influence and impact on students and the campus. This past April, alumni, students, faculty and staff came together to commemorate each of these anniversaries, with a special emphasis on Krajec as she prepared to retire from her role as associate professor of digital media and performing arts.
Deb Krajec on stage at the anniversary celebration April 2024.
In her time as a faculty member, Krajec touched the lives and experiences of uncountable students who found their way into her office and care. As Lex Gernon-Wyatt, Comm ’16, noted, “Deb’s office really was one of my favorite places on the entire Marquette campus. No windows, but shelves and shelves of scripts and reference books and show binders. And posters and programs and photos all over the walls from things she had seen, things she had directed and designed. So many possibilities. … Sometimes that is the kind of space you need when you’re 19 and confused.”
Matthew Read, Comm ’24, shared that Krajec’s tutelage made him a better actor while also instilling confidence in his craft.
“I in no way have the worldly experience to play Marc Antony in ‘Julius Caesar’ or the nose to play Cyrano de Bergerac, but once I got to work these monologues repeatedly with Deb, I was able to find something in myself that made those monologues pieces that I was proud of,” Read said. “And every student here who has had the opportunity to work with Deb will tell you the same thing. She makes you better. And there is such joy when you work with Deb, because it feels like there is simply nowhere else she would rather be than right there, helping you to be your best.”
Theatre arts faculty member Stephen Hudson-Mairet summed up Krajec’s impact in moving terms:
In many ways, Deb exemplifies what it means to be a Theatre Artist at Marquette University — she is multifaceted as a performer, director, designer and teacher; she pushes herself and her students to give everything they have to create great art; and she creates art that pursues the larger truth of humanity’s existence. Deb asks the big questions of her students and helps them express the questions through their art. Deb demonstrates for our students a continual emphasis to seek the common humanity of the playwrights, their stories and the characters the students are portraying… I think the final measure of any faculty member is the impact they have.
And it’s clear that Krajec’s influence will be felt through many future theatre arts seasons.
