At an online ceremony this week, Sue Zizza accepted the Norman Corwin Award for Excellence in Audio Theatre from the National Audio Theatre Festivals.
Zizza was honored as a producer of award-winning audio theater for radio, the web and commercial release for more than 40 years, as well as an influential teacher of sound for radio, television and film, starting at Hofstra University in 1987 and continuing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Colleagues commented on Zizza’s extensive body of work and prolific output, and they roasted her mildly for an insistent work personality. One described her as “an ants in the pants artist,” another said, “You just can’t say no to Sue.”
Her fellow artist and Corwin Award recipient Brian Price commended her for helping to keep the flame of audio theater alive during the difficult years of the 1990s and early 2000s, before podcasting helped bring a wave of fresh interest in all things audio.
Participants said she was a worthy recipient of an award named for Norman Corwin, “the grand master of American radio theater.”
Zizza is also owner of Radio Waves Studios with her partner, Dave Shinn. Among her recent work, she was commissioned to create a radio program to help celebrate UNESCO’s World Radio Day in 2021.
Sunday evening’s video conference also served as the conclusion of the ninth annual Hear Now Festival, which celebrates the work of “master storytellers.”
