Ramona Fuller-Ward, Designer & Artisan
The one constant, ever-evolving element in Ramona Fuller-Ward’s life is art. It is not what she does, it is who she is. From early on, Ward interpreted life through multi-media visual expressions nurtured by her mother, celebrated artist, curator, and educator Dr. Grace Hampton. Much of Ward’s earliest creativity was evident in her found object art and original clothing designs. Much of the fabric Ward used in the early years was preserved for future reuse and moved when she moved, from the West Coast to the Mid-West to the deep South to the East Coast, only to return to the South. At each stop, Ward integrated the indigenous culture into her expanding palette, adding the people, places, and experiences to her diverse toolbox.
It was the time spent in Mississippi, Ward’s longest stop that presented the greatest array of challenges. Reaching beyond her role as artist and designer, Ward added curator, producer, arts administrator, and graphic artist to her growing list of professional experiences. It was also in Mississippi that Ward married and became a mother to her only offspring. During this time, Ward served as costume designer for several producing theatre and production companies and worked on major motion picture projects. Ward then moved to Pennsylvania to complete an undergraduate degree in Theatre Arts (Costuming) from The Pennsylvania State University. A return to the South followed as Ward pursued an MFA at Memphis State University in Theatre Arts, Design, and Technical Production. Immediately following receipt of this terminal degree, Ward returned to Mississippi.
When Ward accepted an offer to teach costuming at Alabama State University in Montgomery, she met a challenge particularly suited for her diverse experience, perspective, and education. As tenured Associate Professor in Alabama State’s Department of Theatre Arts, Ward’s commitment to excellence, dedication to authenticity, appreciation of history, and desire to help students find and develop their talents has brought national acclaim to ASU’s theatre program. Through her international travels and participation in industry conferences, Ward has expanded her body of knowledge far beyond her formal training. Everything she has, everything she learns, she shares with her students, providing them with a rich educational experience in preparation of a professional theatrical future.
Ward’s Costume Design credits include Nina Simone: Four Women (Arizona Theatre Company), Shoebox Picnic Roadside: Route One, Ruby: The Story of Ruby Bridges (Alabama Shakespeare Festival), The Brother’s Size (Cloverdale Playhouse) Pagliacci and Cavalleria Rusticana, (Mississippi Opera), Home (New Stage Theatre), Six Women with Brain Death or Expiring Minds Want to Know (Circuit Theatre), An American Spiritual Ensemble (PBS Documentary Film), Rosa Parks Children’s Museum (video installation). Her more than 60 Alabama State University Theatrical Costume Design credits include Ruined, Rent, Piano Lesson, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Color Purple, Crowns, Black Nativity, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Medea. Other professional credits include work on feature films, Mississippi Burning and The Miss Firecracker Contest. She has worked at Georgia Shakespeare Festival, Seaside Music Theatre, and Pennsylvania Centre Stage among others.
Classes taught include Costume Construction I and II, Make Up for the Stage and Advanced Make Up and Children’s Theatre. Ward is the recipient of several Meritorious Achievement Awards for Costume Design from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival for which she also serves as a respondent, and she is a long-standing member of the United States Institute for Theatre Technology.