Linda M. Lee, Executive Director of Texas Nonprofit Theatres, Inc. (TNT) since April 1, 1995, has been designated an “AACT Fellow.” This highly distinguished honor is bestowed for life upon those members of AACT “who over a period of years have contributed significantly to the idea and ideal of community theatre.” Nomination and election to this select group is the responsibility of the current Fellow membership.

This year, only four persons including Ms. Lee were given this honor. The others include recipients from Michigan, New Mexico, and a United States Army member stationed in Heidelberg, Germany.

Ms. Lee is a Cum Laude honors graduate of Texas Christian University with a BFA in Theatre. She began her career as a company member at Casa Mañana in Fort Worth where she served as actor, teacher, costumer, and administrator for the Playhouse for six years. She also wrote the music and lyrics for three children’s musicals with playwright Frances Seidensticker, and sang with the musical group, Camp & Company.

In 1979 she joined the fledgling Creative Arts Theatre & School (CATS) as an administrative consultant, later becoming Administrative Director and then Executive Director in 1987. She helped build the youth theatre into one of Arlington’s largest arts entities, with enrollment of approximately 1,000 students per year. Along with administrative duties, she served as an instructor for advanced level acting students, touring company director, director for main stage productions, composer, and photographer. As an actor, Lee appeared professionally onstage in such roles as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella in Cinderella, Ophelia in Hamlet, and Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Lee was a Board member for TNT from 1988 through 1994 and served as Secretary for two years. She is on the Boards of Directors of the Live Theatre League of Tarrant County, serving as Treasurer, and Texans for the Arts, for which she is the Secretary; she is also Vice President of Education on the AACT Board. In November 2002, she was inducted into the Southwest Theatre and Film Association’s (SWTFA) College of Fellows for her contributions to theatre in the Southwest region, and in November 2003 received the SWTFA Darrell Woolwine/Coy Sharp Community Theatre Award.

She served on the Theatre/Musical Theatre Panel for the National Endowment for the Arts in 2004, and received the Theatre Arts Advocate of the Year Award from the Live Theatre League of Tarrant County in 2005. This year she has served on the Theatre Panels for the City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs and the Houston Arts Alliance.

In addition, this past weekend Ms. Lee received an award for Outstanding Service from the hosts of the 2007 TNT Annual Youth Conference in Bryan / College Station. The hosts were Brazos Valley TROUPE, the City of Bryan and the Arts Council of Brazos Valley. They also created a new award, to be given annually at the TNT Youth Conference called the Linda Lee Leadership Award. The first recipient of the award was Todd Hart of Theatre Arlington – who is now going to be the new Associate Producer at Casa Manana starting July 1, 2007.

Ms. Lee is married to Casa Mañana lighting designer Jay Isham. They have one son, Preston, who is also active in theatre.