Hannah Starr (Photo: Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)

Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department alum Hannah Starr ’14, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Acting, is celebrated as one of this year’s “Hot New Faces of Chicago Theatre” by Chicago Tribune theatre critic Chris Jones. In his annual “Our Hot New Faces of Chicago Theatre” column saluting emerging talent in Chicago’s vibrant theatre scene, Jones noted that Starr is a Columbia graduate and also studied improv at The Second City, the Columbia College Theatre Department’s partner in the BA Program in Comedy Writing and Performance.

“A character called ‘Middle Alison’ might not sound like the ideal vehicle for fame and acclaim, but the charming 27-year-old Hannah Starr made it so in the Victory Gardens production of the Broadway musical Fun Home,” Jones wrote, adding: “Middle Alison’s biggest song is called ‘I’m Changing My Major to Joan.’ A whole lot of Chicago theater fans have been thinking about changing their major to Hannah Starr.”

As previously reported in this blog, Starr is nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award — Chicago’s top theatre award — for her performance in Fun Home . The 2018 Jeff Awards will be announced on October 22.