Baker Duncan Scholarship Fuels Dual Passions

Andrew Phillips ’25 is a prominent figure in the human communication and theatre department at Trinity—though you might never see him.

“My side of theatre is more behind the scenes on the stage management and production side of theatre. I don't act,” he says.

Phillips’ backstage responsibilities are many. From overseeing actors to handling equipment and writing reports, his often-unseen role is incredibly important in putting on a successful show.

“I hope that no one ever notices my work. I hope that everyone is wowed by the lights and the audio and the sound, and as long as they don't notice something be weird, that's great–then I’ve accomplished my goal,” he says.

Andrew Phillips '25 mostly works behind-the-scenes during theatre productions, making sure the show runs smoothly.

Thanks to participating in his high school’s theatre department as well as a general love of movies and television, Phillips’ enduring passion for drama and entertainment made him want to continue to explore these interests at the collegiate level.

Applying for the Baker Duncan Theatre Scholarship, then, was an obvious choice. The highly competitive, merit-based, and renewable scholarship awards up to $10,000 to incoming first-year theatre students who are interested in all aspects of drama, including performance, directing, design, theatre management, and theatre scholarship. Recipients are required to take part in at least one stage production each semester.

“The scholarship has allowed me to flourish and explore all facets of theatre,” Phillips says. “There are a plethora of aspects beyond acting and designing that go into a production that I would never get to experience without the ability to be at the table with the production team. It allowed me to develop and challenge every idea I had about how productions are not only cast, rehearsed, and performed but also the marketing, budgeting, and producing of the show.”

Like many Trinity students, though, Phillips’ interests span a range of disciplines—he’s a theatre and geosciences double major. Beyond the stage, he studies the earth, focusing on GIS and hydrogeology to ensure that we have plenty of resources for the future. As Phillips puts it, his dual scholastic pursuits are “two completely different sides of the coin.” 

While these fields might seem totally unrelated to some, Phillips feels otherwise.

“One of the beauties of a degree like theatre is that the applications of theatre go beyond just the theatre,” he says. “Stage management has so many organizational behaviors and management behaviors that you just have to know if you want to be successful in other careers and other jobs. So even if I go with the more geosciences-focused career, I'm still going to have those experiences.”

Having recently declared his two majors, Phillips is preparing to take higher-level classes that are even more specialized to his specific interests.

“I'm looking for the details. I'm looking to be challenged in super niche fields, and I know that the other divisions here at Trinity are going to be giving that to me,” he says.

Phillips looks forward to being challenged academically through his pursuit of two different but complementary majors, theatre and geosciences.

Phillips’ interdisciplinary approach to his education is unique, but he feels that the Baker Duncan program, combined with Trinity’s focus on the exploration of one’s academic identity, will make his plans possible. 

“If it was not for a liberal arts college like Trinity, I would not be able to be a geosciences and theatre major, just flat out,” he says. “And even with the colleges that I could do that at, there are few like Trinity that will give me a scholarship to do theatre while I'm also doing another major at the same time.”

Hear more from Phillips about declaring his double majors by watching his Major Declaration Day Interview.