Graduating double major in Physics and Visual Media Studies with a concentration in Cinematic Arts, Nik Narain has been announced as this year’s recipient of the Louis Sudler Prize. Nik Narain has been selected for this award for his distinguished record of excellence in performance and creation in writing for stage/screen and comedy performance.
Nik Narain (he/they) is a screenwriter, comedian, and science communicator originally from the Chicago area. Nik graduated with distinction in Cinematic Arts for his screenplay R.O.F.L., which was finalisted for the Sundance Cultural Impact Residency and received the Robert Pristo Filmmaking Award. His other scripts have received the Reynolds Price Award and Bass Connections Student Research Award. Nik holds a background in multidisciplinary neuroscience research having worked at two different labs during his time at Duke, which motivate his love for making science accessible and engaging through media. Nik has performed stand-up comedy in shows and festivals across the country, most recently debuting a one-hour comedy special Rusk at the New York City Fringe Festival and across Duke and Durham. He was also a columnist and Opinion Managing Editor for the Chronicle and Copywriter at Pitch Story Lab. Outside of his artistic pursuits, Nik has been heavily involved in LGBTQ+ advocacy efforts at the Duke, Durham, and national levels, and coordinates science outreach events across North Carolina through the Shared Materials and Instrumentation Facility (SMiF). This summer, he is excited to bring “Rusk” to the Raleigh and Edinburgh Fringe Festivals while working at the Museum of Life and Science and applying to graduate programs in Science Communication. He is extremely thankful for his family, friends, and mentors who have supported him through his journey, with special shout-outs to the directors of the former et-al Art-Science Lab, his co-workers at the LA School of Comedy, and the NC Triangle comedy, music, and drag networks.
Check out Narain’s recently published comedy special, Rusk. It was reviewed by actor, comedian, and Duke alum Ken Jeong, who said it was “one of the best standup specials I have seen in a long time. Brilliant, original, [and] authentic!”
Louis Sudler was a Chicago industrialist to whom the arts had been a major source of life satisfaction. In 1982, he endowed an annual prize in the arts at fourteen major universities: Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, Columbia, Johns Hopkins, MIT, University of Chicago, Michigan State, Oberlin College, Purdue University, Duke, Rice, and Stanford.
At each institution, an annual prize in the creative and performing arts is awarded to the graduating senior who has demonstrated the most distinguished record of excellence in performance or creation in one of the following areas: music, theater, painting, dance, design, film, creative writing, and other areas of the arts (as determined by each institution).
At Duke, each year the Office of Vice Provost for the Arts awards a cash prize of $2,000 to selected recipient. Students do not apply directly for the award but rather are nominated by arts department chairs, who are invited to make one nomination each.