Professor Buddy Butler Awarded Black Legend Award
Join the College of Humanities and the Arts in congratulating theater professor Buddy Butler on being a recipient of a Black Legend Award. At a ceremony held at the Hammer Theatre Center on February 25th, Butler shared the stage with fellow members of the Silicon Valley community in the 2nd annual ceremony of the award that celebrates the contributions and achievements of African Americans in the Bay Area.
The 2nd Annual Black Legend Awards Ceremony was a red-carpet gala, acknowledging the induction of black pioneers into the Black Legends Hall of Fame, Silicon Valley. According to the organizers, the event provides an opportunity for the community to celebrate the accomplishments and contributions of this selected group of African Americans in the Silicon Valley and honors the African American journey in the Silicon Valley.
A longtime favorite faculty member in the Department of Television, Radio, Film, and Theatre, Butler has had a prestigious career in the theater. Butler spent ten years as Associate Artistic Director of the Bonfils Theatre in Denver, Colorado, directing over thirty-five productions. His work at the Denver Centre for the Performing Arts brought the first African-American production to tour Eastern Europe and won him the Denver Critic’s Award for Best Director and Best Production.
Since relocating to Northern California, Mr. Butler has directed at the Oakland Ensemble Theatre, Lorraine Hansberry Theatre in SF, Images Theatre in Sacramento, the San José Stage Company, City Lights Theatre, San José Repertory Theatre, and the Tabia Theatre Ensemble. No stranger to awards, Mr. Butler has received numerous accolades over his career, including two Audelco Awards and one Obie, and the NAACP Trailblazer Award. In 2010 he received the Black Theatre Networks Winona Fletcher Award for Outstanding Achievement and Excellence in Black Theatre.
Says Dean Lisa Vollendorf, “Professor Butler’s recognition by the Black Legend Awards is a confirmation of our core values in the College of Humanities and the Arts: we are proud of our long tradition of supporting diverse faculty, students, and staff, and also of their many accomplishments. Buddy Butler has brought compassion, empathy, and a unique perspective to his work in theater for decades, and we are all proud to see him recognized.”
Along with honoring achievements of African Americans, the annual event serves as a fundraiser to build a museum in Silicon Valley to give a permanent home to the San José Black History Museum, Silicon Valley. Planned for completion in 2020, the museum will honor the many contributions of Black people, tracing technical innovations from Africa, to the Americas, to the present in Silicon Valley. According to organizers, the museum will house six permanent displays which will provide “an illustrative and captivating journey through history, from the original inventions and communal designs in Africa through the ultimate, triumphant survival and innovative imprints of Black Americans in the United States and the Americas.”
The College of Humanities and the Arts is proud of Buddy Butler’s recognition and continues to celebrate the many voices that make Silicon Valley a center of innovation and achievement.
To learn more about the Black Legend Award and the upcoming Black History Museum, Silicon Valley, go to: https://www.blacklegendawards.org/
