Program Overview
Theatre & Dance
Create, perform, design, and tell stories while developing your artistic voice through collaboration, creativity, and hands-on production experience.
Create & Perform
Explore acting, directing, dance, playwriting, design, and production through hands-on learning.
Professional Experience
Work with faculty and staff whose professional connections extend to regional theatres, dance companies, and arts organizations.
Your Creative Vision
Develop an original creative or research-based Independent Study project with one-on-one faculty mentorship.
Why Study Theatre & Dance at Wooster?
.svg){kind=icon}
Work alongside faculty and staff on productions while building professional experience throughout your time at Wooster.
Connect with professional theatres and dance companies, including Cleveland Play House, Dobama Theatre, Porthouse Theatre, and The Ohio Light Opera.
Pursue internships and study abroad with opportunities at internationally recognized schools of theatre and dance.
Design a creative Independent Study that combines scholarly research with original artistic work.
Develop your interests across the discipline, from performance and choreography to design, technology, and arts management.
Featured Courses
Explore performance from multiple artistic and cultural perspectives.
- Dance in World Cultures
- Asian Theatre: From South to East
- Black American Theatre and Performance
- Contemporary Women Playwrights
- Digital Media Design for Performing Arts
- Puppetry and Mask Design
- Dance-Based Body Awareness
- The Professional Voice
- Make-up for Performers
Bring your ideas to the stage.
Senior Independent Study gives Theatre & Dance students the opportunity to create original work rooted in research and artistic practice. Whether you're choreographing a dance inspired by historical research, writing an original play, designing costumes or scenery, or exploring another creative focus, you'll work closely with a faculty mentor to bring your vision to life.
Beyond Independent Study, students gain valuable experience through departmental productions, internships, summer theatre opportunities, study abroad, conferences, festivals, and professional organizations that connect classroom learning with the performing arts community.
Ready to Explore Theatre & Dance?
Whether you dream of performing, designing, directing, choreographing, teaching, or applying your creativity in another field, Theatre & Dance at Wooster helps you build the confidence, experience, and artistic foundation to pursue your goals.
Career Opportunities
Theatre & Dance graduates build careers both within and beyond the performing arts, bringing creativity, collaboration, communication, and problem-solving to every profession.
Many continue their education through graduate programs in theatre, dance, design, education, and related fields.
Key Areas
Graduates have pursued careers in:
Professional theatre
Dance companies
Arts administration
Stage management
Costume and lighting design
Choreography
Arts education
Physical therapy
Public relations
Corporate project management
Nonprofit leadership
Where Our Alumni Go
Theatre & Dance graduates have continued their education and careers with organizations and institutions including:
- Cleveland Play House
- Dobama Theatre
- Porthouse Theatre
- The Ohio Light Opera
- Disney
- Charles Schwab
- San Francisco Symphony
- Actors' Equity Association
- Rutgers University
- Yale School of Drama
- Columbia University
- School of the Art Institute of Chicago
- Emerson College
Graduates have also built careers as actors, directors, designers, choreographers, educators, physical therapists, arts administrators, and creative professionals.
Scholarships & Student Opportunities
Theatre & Dance students may be eligible for incoming scholarships, senior scholarships, and departmental awards recognizing achievement in performance, theatre, dance, and academics.
Students also participate in national conferences, festivals, and professional organizations while pursuing internships, study abroad, and summer training programs at leading performing arts institutions.
Michael Schafer
Technical Director/Designer and Scene Shop Manager/ Adjunct Faculty - Theatre and Dance
mschafer@wooster.edu
Kerstin Vaughn
Visiting Professor of Theatre and Dance
kvaughn@wooster.edu
Emily Baird
Assistant Professor of Theatre and Dance
ebaird@wooster.edu
Shirley Huston-Findley
Professor and Department Chair of Theatre and Dance
sfindley@wooster.edu
Naoko Skala
Associate Professor of Theatre and Dance; Chair of South Asian Studies
nskala@wooster.edu
Connect With the Department
| Interested in Theatre & Dance? We'd love to help you learn more about productions, performance opportunities, study abroad, professional connections, and Independent Study. |