Theatre Arts and Dance at Sonoma State University

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Spotlight

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Water by the Spoonful cast and crew perform in Spokane Washington

Cast members Armando Ramos, Ally Liberty, Laura Odeh Steele, Jim Marchbanks, Josiah Pel, Robert Wiles, Mariah Forster, Jarrett Galante, Declan Downing, Stage Manager Elise Clark...Read the full story >

Director of the Acting Program publishes chapter in "Latinx Actor Training"

Marie Ramirez Downing, Assistant Professor and Director of the Acting Program for the Department of Theatre Arts & Dance, recently authored a chapter in a...Read the full story >

Welcome to SSU Theatre Arts & Dance, Where the Artist is Essential

The Department of Theatre Arts and Dance offers students a home where they can seek their potential and develop their voices as artists, through the study and collaborative creation of live performance. We believe in a world where the artist is transformative, essential and engaged.

Our programs develop graduates who bring optimistic leadership and vision to the performing arts. They stand on these core principles:

Student centered - We believe first and foremost in creating experiences that serve our students’ needs and passions.

Rigorous - We believe that performance training can inspire us to the highest standards of professionalism and personal achievement.

Engaging - We believe in making work that has value beyond the dance and theatre world and directly engages our campus and local community.

Intro to The Department of Theatre Arts & Dance

Introduction to the Department of Theater Arts & Dance @ Sonoma State University

The department has an incredible sense of community. A loving and supporting staff and a second family provide a learning environment for students to excel in their craft.

Rae Veraflor (Acting, 2021)

We are a supportive, equitable and generous community who care for the well being of each other. SSU is an amazing program to train in because it is student based and student centered.

Brandon Leong (Dance, 2021)

Course Highlight

THAR 300: Theatre in Action

Students attend, discuss, and analyze performances across the Bay Area.

Instructor Christine Cali (Co-Director of SSU's Dance Program) describes her passion for the course: "Bridging academics and classroom work at SSU with the experience of seeing live performances in the dynamic and rich SF Bay Area performance community is one of the most fruitful and enjoyable experiences for me as a teacher. We learn that live performance is a language, a community engagement, a cultural experience. We discover the magic of the arts as innovation, historical record, and embodied process. We unplug from our devices and allow space to see from new and varying perspectives together."