Feature: Etherredge Center Paul B. Crook, executive director

A lifetime of passions, successfully blended and entwined, culminated into this leader: the Etherredge Center’s Executive Director Paul B. Crook, M.F.A.

Crook wasted no time starting his career. He earned an acting screen credit at age 10. He appeared in “Stuckey’s Last Stand,” which he considers notable as a novelty, not a blockbuster.

His family was from Alabama, and he was named after the University of Alabama football coach, Paul William Bear Bryant. Prior to high school, Crook grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, then the family moved Tuscaloosa, Alabama, close to his parents’ family.

He graduated from the University of Alabama qualified to teach high school English, drama and coach football. Crook considers coaching critical to his success as a teacher, director and a father.

He combined theater experience with his day job until returning to graduate school in Louisiana where he met fellow thespian, Mary Fran from Greenwood. He would love, marry, share life and work with her. Now, they have four children.

When Crook accepted his position at USCA in 2018, the move brought the family closer to Mary Fran’s family.

His actor, director, artistic director, and co-presenter roles led Crook gradually in preparation for his current administrative position.

Running a performing arts facility, planning a season, planning programming, working with agents and negotiating contracts were not things he went to school for, but doing those things in his 20 years of work gave him the preparation needed for the job.

Crook said, “Experience is really the best teacher.”

Crook views the Etherredge Center as the university’s front door to the community and is emphatic about making good relationships with the community and with the students.

Dean of the School of Nursing, Dr. Thayer McGahee, first worked with him on an Etherredge Center project called “Stages,” by an actor and playwright Crook knew.

The one-act play about one man’s moving story dealing with colon cancer was well done. Crook and McGahee collaborated to find resources to put on the show with sponsorship money from local physicians. Dean McGahee said, “Paul was great to work with; he made it very seamless, very easy.”

Mitchell, the box office manager stated, “He’s made a lot of changes since he’s come in and we changed our pricing so it gives people more options as far as tickets they can purchase, with good results.”

Although last season was cut short by the pandemic, some of the shows were big sellers and the box office is doing well.