Performance

Alum Invited to Join Prestigious Musical Theatre Writing Workshop 

August 29, 2019

Only four short years after graduating from Michigan State University, Mark Schenfisch (pictured above in the Williamston Theatre production of Murder for Two. Photo by Chris Purchis) has been invited to join New York City’s prestigious Advanced BMI Lehman Engle Musical Theatre Writing Workshop. Schenfisch graduated from MSU in 2015 with two degrees: a BFA in Acting from the College of Arts & Letters and a BMUS in Music Composition from…

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59th Summer Circle Theatre Season Announced

May 16, 2019

Since 1960, the Michigan State University Department of Theatre has heralded the unofficial start of summer with its Summer Circle Theatre (SCT) program by using the talents of MSU students, professional artists, and community members to offer free theatre to mid-Michigan audiences. This year’s theme, Laughing Matters, is devoted to comedy in its many forms including spoof, comedy of manners, and commedia dell’arte. The season begins…

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10th Annual Friends of Theatre Gala Gets Broadway Boost

April 18, 2019

The Michigan State Univeristy Friends of Theatre invite the public to attend the Friends of Theatre Gala on Tuesday, May 7, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts. This annual event, now in its 10th year, supports the programs and activities of MSU Theatre students such as scholarships, artist/educator fellowships, and scholar residencies. Guests will be invited onto the…

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MSU Department of Theatre Presents The Bacchae

April 5, 2019

The MSU Department of Theatre will present The Bacchae by Euripides in Paul Woodruff’s translation. Directed by David Furumoto, this production, which runs April 12-21 at the Pasant Theatre, explores ancient Greek tragedy fused with classical Asian theatre aesthetics. The Bacchae tells a story of Dionysus, the god of wine. Supported by a Chorus of his followers (the Bacchae), Dionysus takes revenge on his mortal relatives in the…

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Department of Theatre to Present ‘A Wrinkle in Time’

March 7, 2019

A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L’Engle has endeared itself in the hearts of readers for generations. Using Tracy Young’s truthful and supremely theatrical adaptation, MSU’s Department of Theatre takes impossible feats of fiction and brings them to life in bold, imaginative, and thrilling fashion in this theatrical version of the classic novel. The story thrusts three children into peril beyond their years…

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Theatre Department Presents the American Classic ‘Oklahoma!’

February 11, 2019

Michigan State University’s Department of Theatre presents Oklahoma! February 15-17 and 19-24 at the Fairchild Theater. An American classic and Rodgers & Hammerstein's first collaboration, Oklahoma! boasts a 25-person cast, the Orchesis dance company, and a 16-piece orchestra. In many ways, Oklahoma! is Rodgers & Hammerstein’s most innovative collaboration, having set the standards and established the rules of musical theatre still being followed today. Set in a Western Indian…

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Theatre Students to Improvise for Freshman Showcase

November 26, 2018

Join the Department of Theatre’s freshmen class as they take audience suggestions to improvise a new show every time in this year’s Freshman Showcase, which runs Thursday, November 29, to Sunday, December 2, at the MSU Auditorium’s Studio 60 Theatre. For each performance, the characters, setting, dialogue, music, and lyrics all will be made up on the spot. The performers will improvise short-form…

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‘Men on Boats’ Coming to MSU Auditorium

November 7, 2018

MSU’s Department of Theatre will perform Jaclyn Backhaus’ Men on Boats November 9-11 and November 13-18 in the Studio 60 Theatre at the MSU Auditorium. Directed by Associate Professor Ann Folino White, Men on Boats is a story of Major John Wesley Powell and his crew who set off to chart the Green and Colorado Rivers on the first official government-sponsored expedition of the Grand Canyon.…

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Department of Theatre to Present Sexual Politics Series

November 6, 2018

MSU’s Department of Theatre is proud to present its Sexual Politics Series, a unique and timely performance of published and ensemble-created works exploring how theatre, as an art form, has illuminated, illustrated, and even misrepresented issues of discrimination, empowerment, and abuse on several levels. “It was incredibly challenging to find theatrical pieces from the past that addressed this subject responsibly,” said Alexis Black,…

Faculty / News / Performance / Student

Theatre Student Works with Professor on Interactive Musical

November 2, 2018

Junior Theatre major Jonas Higbee has been researching interactive musicals with Associate Professor Alison Dobbins since his freshman year at Michigan State University. Their research is based around Dance Engine, an ever-evolving artistic project that combines dancing, storytelling, improvisation, and audience interaction to build a single-story timeline. For Dance Engine, all audience members are given tablet computers or, in the most recent version…