Behind the scenes or on stage, theater is where Andrew Briseno belongs

High school students dressed in colorful togas wander backstage at Dallas’ Adamson High School auditorium, ready for a dress rehearsal of “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.” SMU senior theater major Andrew Briseno ’27 adjusts a headband on one young actor and straightens a sash on another.

As a summer intern with Broadway Dallas, the primary presenter of Broadway shows in Dallas, Andrew worked at summer theater camps for elementary, middle school and high school students, wrapping up with the high school production of Stephen Sondheim’s Tony-award winning musical.

Dallas ISD students auditioned last spring for a part in the summer production, then had two weeks to prepare for the

performance as part of the Broadway Dallas summer education program. Dallas ISD veteran theater teachers and Dallas-area actors led every aspect of the production – from directing to scenery design. As intern, Andrew assisted with each part – from stage management to tracking down props and coaching young actors.

I definitely saw myself in the campers. I remember being so hard on myself at their age. I reminded them that the fact they are acting in plays is enough.

Andrew Briseno ’27

Andrew obtained his internship through the SMU Meadows Intern Fellowship Program, which connects undergraduate students with paid internships at Dallas arts, communications and media organizations. Now in its second year, the program supported 11 summer 2026 internships.

A Plano, Texas, native, Andrew began acting in local productions as a fourth-grader in an elementary school production of “Alice in Wonderland,” playing Lewis Carroll. Between school plays and community theater, Andrew acted steadily through high school. With the encouragement of his middle school and high school theater teachers, he auditioned and was selected for a place in the highly selective theatre program at SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts.

Last year he appeared in “Ragtime” and “Carrie, a Musical,” SMU Theatre collaborations with the Dallas Theatre Center. He also appeared in the SMU Theatre production of “The Government Inspector” and community theatre production of “Les Misérables.”

Watch for him in the fall Meadows Theatre production of “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

For Andrew, his Broadway Dallas internship offered another confirmation that the path he began in fourth grade is the right one.

“I love every part of theater,” he says. “Teaching, acting, directing, playwriting . . . as long as it’s my day job.”