The Hesse Grant was established in honor of the founder of the Bulletin of the Comediantes and early AHCT supporter Everett Hesse to recognize outstanding scholarship by graduate students working on early modern Hispanic theater and performance studies. This award sponsors a one-year membership to the AHCT along with conference registration for the recipient to present their winning paper at the upcoming AHCT conference. Additionally, the grant includes a $600 travel stipend to help defray the costs of attendance at the AHCT conference.
As part of their annual membership, the grant winner will also receive a copy of the next issue of Comedia Performance, the journal of the association. In keeping with AHCT’s mission of mentorship and collaboration, the evaluation panel provides constructive feedback on all submissions to support students as they develop their projects for conference presentation and potential publication. The winning paper will be considered for publication in Comedia Performance.
Deadline: June 1st, 2026 – 11:59 PM EST
Eligibility and submissions
Eligibility:
- Current graduate students (master’s or PhD level)
- Research focus on early modern Hispanic theater and performance studies
Submission Guidelines:
- Original research essay of approximately 8-10 pages in length (double-spaced, 12-point font)
- Complete bibliography (not included in page count)
- Essays should follow a consistent citation style (MLA preferred, but not required)
- Cover page including contact information, institutional affiliation, and degree program
- Submissions may be in English or Spanish
Submission Process:
- Please submit all materials electronically to hmeadow1@utk.edu with the subject line “AHCT Hesse Grant Submission – [Your Last Name].”
Evaluation Criteria
Submissions will be evaluated based on:
- Originality and significance of research
- Quality of scholarship and methodology
- Clarity of writing and argumentation
- Contribution to the field of early modern Hispanic theater studies
Selection Process
- A panel of AHCT board members and affiliated scholars will review all submissions.
- The winner will be notified by July 1, 2026, with sufficient time to prepare for the September 2026 conference presentation.
AHCT Hesse Grant Submissions Committee:
- Committee Chair: Harrison Meadows, University of Tennessee, Knoxville / AHCT Board Member
- Matthew Ancell, Brigham Young University
- Ronna Feit, Nassau Community College
Please direct any questions about the conference Harrison Meadows.
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The Association of Hispanic Classical Theater is committed to fostering excellence in scholarship and supporting the professional development of emerging scholars in our field. We look forward to receiving your innovative research contributions.
Previous Winners
- 2025- Marissa Luquette (Rutgers University): “Quando volveras a ¿verme?: Speaking, Hearing, and Queering Female Desire in María Egual’s Coloquio Entre Nise y Laura”
- 2024- No award was given
- 2023- Katerina Levinson (Oxford University): “Prudence in Allegory and Iconography for Immaculist Devotion in Calderón’s La primer flor del Carmelo“
- 2022- The prize went unwarded
- 2021 – Victoria Rasbridge (University College of London): “Performances of Power: Renegotiating the Queen’s Identity in the Work of Lope de Vega”
- 2020 – Cayce Elder
- 2019 – Rebeca Rubio
- 2018 – Eduardo Paredes Ocampo
- 2017 – Giovanni Francisco Salazar Calvo
- 2016 – Harrison Meadows
- 2015 – Kristina Sutherland (University of Georgia): “Su dueño, por mujer y por humilde‘: The Power of Women in Valor, agravio y mujer“
- 2014 – Christopher Oechler (Pennsylvania State University): “Cayetano Luca de Tena, Fuente Ovejuna, and Fascist Theater”
- 2013 – Christopher Oechler (Pennsylvania State University): “The Performance of Divine Providence on the Early Modern Stage: The Case of Falling Paintings in Two History Plays”
- 2012 – María Quiroz Taub
- 2011 – Melissa Figueroa (Cornell Univerisity): “The Dangerous Theater of the Moriscos: Auto de la destruyción de Troya (1575)”
- 2010 – Terilyn Abbott
- 2009 – Isabelle Therriault
- 2008 – Jonathan William Wade
- 2007 – Anita Damjanovic
- 2006 – María José Domínguez-Sullivan
- 2005 – Reyes Caballo-Márquez
- 2004 – Esther Fernández
- 2003 – Amy Austin
- 2002 – Iván Fernández Peláez (Vanderbilt University): “Fallas innombrables: Obediencia y poder en El médico de su honra“
- 2001 – Elena García Martín
- 2000 – Julie Gagnon-Riopel
- 1999 – Jerelyn Johnson (Brown University): “Las didascalias en la obra de Lope de Vega: Fuente Ovejuna, El perro del hortelano, El castigo sin venganza, y El caballero de Olmedo“
- 1998 – Rogelio Miñana, Cecilia McGinnis
- 1997 – Lynn Vidler (New York University): “Staging the Fool: Visual Codes of Stupidity in the Pasos of Lope de Rueda”
- Adabel Díaz Rivera
- 1996 – Christopher D. Gascón
- 1995 – Mindy E. Badía
- 1994 – Pithamber Polsani
- 1993 – Christoper Weimer