Coming from Orange County California, it is fair to say Heather Hughes was out of her element when she first arrived on the campus of Western State College in the mid 90s. Especially in the middle of January, when temperatures are known to reach well past -20°F.
“I had never felt cold like that in my imagination,” Hughes said. “I remember living in the Escalante complex, in Colorado Hall, and one night around midnight, this eerie silence kicked in, and I could not figure out what it was. So I went to the window, and it was snowing. I had never seen snowfall before, it was the most magical, theatrical thing I had ever seen. It was the definition of spectacle.” Fast forward to 2024 where Hughes can watch snow out of a different window on campus: her office window in Western’s Taylor Hall.
Hughes, Western Colorado University’s Artist-In-Residence and Instructor of Theatre, moved back to the Gunnison Valley full-time in 2015 after her husband, Western’s Director of Theatre Steven Cole Hughes, was hired on at Western as a visiting Professor of Theatre for the Communication Arts, Language, & Literature (CALL) Department. She graduated with a degree in Communications/Theater with an acting emphasis in 1997. After working for several different agencies in Denver and New York City, Hughes began to miss the small mountain town she had grown to love, and after getting married and having her daughter she moved back to the Valley. Over the years, many things about the campus she knew changed, including the name, but it is still recognizable. While new residence halls, academic buildings and athletic fields were constructed, the essence of Western Hughes first saw as a student is still be seen.
“[Campus] looks the same in many ways,” Hughes said. “I am not a student anymore, so I am seeing it in a very different view.”
Recently, Hughes stepped into a new role that allows her to be even more flexible and still do what she truly loves: acting and directing. “Being in academia was never on my agenda or on my radar at all,” Hughes said. “I have always worked in theaters and what I get to do here at Western is the great marriage of those things.” Hughes’ new role as the Community Coordinator for Western’s new Teaching and Learning Center is a position designed to help de-silo campus programs and encourage partnerships across all departments. Her background in Broadway houses gave Hughes vast experience and expertise in teaching; from unpacking shows for K-12 students, to helping employees at Fortune 500 companies gain public speaking skills.
“I worked with large corporations and helped their employees find their voices and footing, to gain more confidence.”
Her theatre background not only benefits the thespians she interacts with on a daily basis, but also those students who study computer science or business, and are not interested in the arts or humanities specifically.
“I would venture to say that people who are the most apprehensive about working with me might be the most fun,” Hughes said. “Getting past the apprehension and the assumption that what I have to offer does not make sense for them and then finding ways that it can [make sense] is really the fun part. It is really satisfying.” The skills Hughes helps bring out in individuals across campus transcend whatever degree or department they are involved in as a member of the campus community.
“The top engineering schools in the country require a full year of improv for their engineers,” Hughes said. “It’s not because they want their engineers to be improvisers, it is because they want them to get comfortable messing up and starting again.” Hughes explained that students don’t need to major in Theatre to get involved in theatre on campus. Everyone is welcome. This has opened doors for students to get a taste of the world Hughes is so familiar with. She is the first to recognize the support she gets across campus, from the top down.
“Nobody tells us what we can or cannot do,” Hughes said. “Our administrators support us. They come to everything. Nobody says that we might be ‘pushing the envelope.’ They trust us and are encouraging.”
The welcoming community of Gunnison is also supportive of Hughes, both professionally and personally. “Everybody knows each other,” Hughes said. “Some people see that as a burden, but I feel so safe with that because of how much I love people. [Gunnison] is a place where you come home and you find a casserole on your door, or even inside your house on your kitchen counter because your door is open. It is the people that make this community special, we are lucky in that sense.”
Hughes loves the campus and community in Gunnison but explained that she does miss the hustle and bustle of city life at times. “I love being around people,” Hughes said. “I love nature but I love people more. I would rather be somewhere crowded than in the middle of nowhere, which makes me feel like a Martian living here. I tell people we live in a place where people love snow and dirt, really love snow and dirt.” Hughes gets out and enjoys social events as much as she can by attending shows and sporting events and socializing at local restaurants. “It’s not always super easy to find here, but it is happening,” Hughes said. “I do not know what it is about this place because on paper, it is nothing that I really want, but in spite of that, this place feels more like home than anywhere I have ever lived.”
Author: Caitlin Gleason
Images: Courtesy
