Alexis Black is always up for a good fight. And since February 2022, the Assistant Professor of Acting and Movement at Michigan State University has been choreographing stage combat for the Tony Award-nominated production of Macbeth, currently on Broadway, starring Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga. Working alongside her long-time mentor David Leong, Black is the Assistant Fight Director for the production, which runs…
Continue ReadingTheatre Professor Serves as Assistant Fight Director for Broadway Production
In this Faculty Voice, Brad Willcuts, Associate Professor of Musical Theatre and Choreography in the MSU Department of Theatre, shares how theatre pushes the limits of human emotion and why Pride Month in June is important to him and the greater theatre community. In the role of choreographer, Willcuts also discusses being a part of a new interpretation of one of the…
Continue ReadingMSU Professor Talks About How Musical Theatre Unites Us and Amplifies Our Stories
After a two-year hiatus, Summer Circle Theatre (SCT) at Michigan State University is back for its 60th anniversary celebration of FREE outdoor theatre for mid-Michigan audiences and a free week-long theatre camp for kids. This season will include four full productions and runs from June 9 through June 26. The season opens on June 9 with the classic musical, Pippin, by Stephen Schwartz…
Continue ReadingMSU’s Summer Circle Theatre Returns After Two-Year Hiatus
A new and thought-provoking dance performance project, called BranchOut, which will engage audiences with the natural environment around them while experiencing and exploring the nature of tree communication and the interconnection between plants, will hold its first performance at Michigan State University’s Horticulture Gardens on Wednesday, May 4, at 5 p.m. BranchOut's interactive dance performance was born from a desire…
Continue ReadingBranchOut Dance Performance Encourages Audience Engagement with Natural Environment
The Michigan State University Department of Theatre concludes its successful 2021-2022 season with Monsieur d’Éon is a Woman, a biting political comedy and sexy, swashbuckling romp that tells the true story of Charles d’Éon de Beaumont, an 18th-century soldier, spy, and diplomat for the French courts of Louis XV and XVI. The production runs April 21–24 in the Pasant Theatre…
Continue ReadingMSU Department of Theatre Opens Swashbuckling True Story of French Spy
The Michigan State University Department of Theatre presents Ike Holter’s Hit the Wall, a story of the Stonewall Uprising and the generation that disrupted the marginalization and invisibility of the LGBTQIA+ community. The production runs from March 18-20 and 22-27 in the Auditorium Building’s Arena Theatre. Masks are optional but encouraged for audience members. It’s the summer of ’69, and…
Continue ReadingMSU Department of Theatre Revisits Stonewall Uprising of 1969
The Michigan State University Department of Theatre begins its spring semester of performances with the musical comedy Head Over Heels, set to the music of the iconic 80s all-female rock band The Go-Go’s. Performance dates are February 18-20 and 22-27 in the Auditorium Building’s Fairchild Theatre. Attendees must be masked and show proof of vaccination or a negative test within…
Continue ReadingMSU Department of Theatre Opens Jukebox Musical Featuring Songs by The Go-Go’s
Four collaborators from Michigan State University’s Department of Theatre have teamed up to help bring the world premiere of MacGyver: The Musical to Stages in Houston, Texas. Kirk Domer, Professor of Scene Design at MSU, is the scene designer for the production. MSU alumna Kristina Ortiz Miller is the costume designer and is being helped by Mona Jahani, an MFA…
Continue ReadingCollaborators from MSU’s Department of Theatre Help Bring Musical to Texas Stage
First-year students from the Michigan State University Department Theatre take on improv comedy in the 15th annual Freshman Showcase: Together We Will Improvise. Performance dates are December 2-5 in Studio 60 of the Auditorium Building. Attendees must be masked for the health and safety of our students.
Michigan State University’s Department of Theatre will present Wendy and the Neckbeards, a new play written in 2020 by Kari Bentley-Quinn. Performances run November 12-21 at the Arena Theatre in the MSU Auditorium Building. Attendees must be masked for the health and safety of our students.
Continue ReadingMSU Theatre Tackles Dark Comedy with Wendy and the Neckbeards