Theatre & Dance

Affordable, Quality Education.Metamorphoses

UW-La Crosse offers an affordable education at a well-respected university within the Wisconsin System. UW-La Crosse has been recognized as an exceptional university with a wide range of academic programs. U.S. News & World Report and Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazines consistently rank UWL among the best colleges in the country and an outstanding value.

Invigorating Classroom Learning with Practical Production Experience.

At UW-La Crosse Theatre and Dance, students become involved in production work from the very start of their academic career. Not only does this get them involved in our program in a very tangible way but it also provides them with a network of peers within the department. As an undergraduate theatre program, UWL Theatre and Dance is able to give students specialized attention and production opportunities since they are not competing with graduate students for roles and design projects. Students receive a tremendous amount of hands-on experience through classroom projects and realized production performances allowing students to demonstrate, refine and expand the skills they’ve learned in the classroom.

Creative, Collaborative Atmosphere for All.

The atmosphere within the Department of Theatre and Dance is supportive, positive collaborative and artistically stimulating. Over 800 students are involved in theatre productions each year as backstage crew, technicians, designers, stage managers, performers, and front of house staff. Participation in theatre productions is open to all UWL students regardless of their major.

Invigorating, Fresh Theatre Training.

UW-La Crosse offers a strong liberal arts education and the Theatre and Dance curriculum allows concentrations in seven distinct areas of study: general theatre, design/technical, performance, musical theatre, art administration, theatre management, and dance (only). Students at UW-La Crosse may major in one theatre emphasis area while minoring in another. The concept behind this type of program is similar to a bachelor of fine arts in which students are saturated within their field of study thus enhancing their educational opportunities and professional marketability.

Challenging and Diverse Productions.

Productions at UWL are professional on every level which challenge our students, designers, performers and technicians as well as our audiences with the most diverse theatre offerings in the region. UWL Theatre and Dance produces seven productions per year which include 4 mainstage productions, a musical, a children’s show, a dance concert, and a SummerStage musical. Productions range from classical to contemporary comedies, dramas, and musicals. UWL Theatre and Dance also features several student directed productions, class projects, and senior acting recitals.

Student Academic Excellence.

Music ManTheatre and Dance students are part of the “best and the brightest” on campus with a grade point average of 3.16 (as compared to 3.07 GPA for the entire UWL student body). Excellence in the classroom, as well as in productions, is the foundation of the theatre arts program with many students successfully managing classroom and production work, nightly rehearsals, employment, family and friends, and other extracurricular activities.

Strong Student/Faculty Relationships.

Our student to faculty ratio is smaller than many comparable programs, allowing for more individualized attention. We know who our students are and how they’re performing academically and artistically. UWL Theatre and Dance has a comprehensive system in place to provide each student with regular feedback on their progress and development as a student and as an artist. Each semester, faculty meet with each student individually to discuss, review, and assess their growth and development and to set academic and professional goals. Feedback is provided through a variety of means including major/minor meetings, mandatory academic advising, portfolio/performance reviews, production adjudications, and senior exit interviews and surveys.

Committed, Professional Faculty-Artists.

Our faculty-artists are extremely approachable and always willing to assist students to help them to achieve their academic and artistic goals. The Department of Theatre and Dance has 11 full-time artist-educators remain active within the professional theatre world and share their expertise with their students. Faculty are dedicated to providing educational and artistic opportunities to students outside the classroom including guest artists, resume workshops, audition technique seminars, and trips to see professional theatre. Theatre and Dance faculty have a varied mix of sub-specialties allowing for greater expectations both in the classroom and in production. Each faculty member is a specialist in his/her field though many of us have overlapping specialties allowing for greater exposure for students.

Centrally Located for Cultural and Artistic Opportunities.

The UW-La Crosse campus is excellently located between the breathtaking bluffs and Mississippi River. La Crosse has a thriving cultural community with three theatre venues, community and university symphonies, a regional arts center and numerous art galleries. Professional theatre opportunities in Minneapolis, Madison, Chicago, and Milwaukee are just a few hours drive from La Crosse.

Recognition of Excellence.

UW-La Crosse Department of Theatre and Dance is an active participant in the Kennedy Center's American College Theatre Festival. UW-La Crosse Theatre and Dance faculty and students have been recognized at the Irene Ryan Acting Competition and received Certificates of Merit in the areas of directing, design, and stage management. Our critically-acclaimed productions of Severe Clear: September 11 from Memory to History, (2021), The Laramie Project (2018), 26 Pebbles (2016), The Last Days of Judas Iscariot  (2011) and Metamorphoses (2004) were chosen to perform at the regional festival competition.  Student and faculty have received numerous recognitions and certificates of merit in the areas of visual and aural cultural collaboration, directing, lighting design, sound design, stage management, ensemble cast, costume design, and more.   

Theatre students at UW-La Crosse have also been highly successful in the undergraduate research competition in which grants are provided to support undergraduate and international research and creative activities.  Students have written proposals and received full funding to research theatre topics including directing a production, studying theatre in London, Russia, Vietnam, India and Africa, writing a script, and much more.

Professional Theatre Internships and Employment Opportunities.

Because we think it is essential for our students to engage with professional theatres prior to graduation, UWL Theatre and Dance faculty and staff actively assist interested students in setting up internships, paid apprenticeships, and employment opportunities at professional theaters. We believe that it is essential for students to actively connect with other theatre professionals prior to graduation. In recent years, students have interned or been employed during their college career at the Guthrie Theatre, Commonweal Theatre, Electronic Theatre Controls (ETC), the Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre, and Colorado Shakespeare Festival.

UWL Theatre Student in Ghana, AfricaDedication to a Global Perspective.

The Department of Theatre and Dance is dedicated to providing a diverse and global perspective by teaching coursework in a cultural context from various cultures/geographic regions around the world, maintaining nontraditional casting whenever possible, and linking with other organizations to provide culturally-rich programming (Ragamala Dance, Korean Mask Dance Theatre, Chinese American Dance Theatre). In order to maintain a competitive edge in a globally diverse field such as the arts, the Department of Theatre and Dance has established a London Study Tour program that immerses students in the artistic and cultural scene of London with the focus on attending theatre productions, symphony and choral performances, art galleries, and culturally significant locations. Theatre students have been highly successful in receiving funding for Undergraduate Research & Creativity proposals which have enabled students to travel the world to perform, research, and study in India, Vietnam, Africa, Russia, and England. (Photo: Theatre Student Eric Busse's Undergraduate Research proposal took him to Ghana, Africa, where he studied how African theatre and dance was used to help individuals victimized by the sex trafficking trade.)  

Graduate School Success and Alumni Career Achievement.

Many of our graduates have gone on to earn terminal degrees at many prestigious universities around the country (UCLA, Temple, Florida State, Ohio State, University of Maryland, University of Kansas, University of Minnesota, Cal. Arts, University of California-Fullerton). Most of these students received full scholarships in excess of $30,000 each to attend graduate school. Our theatre alumni have been highly successful finding work within the field post-graduation. Our alumni can be found stage managing at First Stage Children’s Theatre and The Armory Dinner Theatre, designing lights at The New School (New York), appearing in such television series as Shadow and Bone (Netflix), Law and Order: SVU, Kidnapped and Homicide, designing and teaching at the North Crawford School District, District, teaching at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, serving as carpenter for Cirque de Soleil, and performing in Carnival Cruise Line productions, just to name a few.

Commitment to the Community.

The UW-La Crosse Department of Theatre and Dance has a strong commitment to the community. The Department of Theatre and Dance performs regularly scheduled junior high and high school matinee performances at a reduced rate for area students and teachers, participates in summer outreach programs (Young Scholars, Camp Creative), serves as mentors and acting/directing coaches for local elementary, middle and high school students, and develops workshops and job shadowing opportunities. Throughout the year, the Department of Theatre and Dance also attempts to connect our productions with a variety of community and university service organizations such as ACCESS Center (The Last Train to Nibroc) Habitat for Humanity (Nickel and Dimed), Toys for Tots/UWL Food Pantry (A Christmas Carol), gay/lesbian organizations (The Laramie Project), and anti-violence/abuse groups (How I Learned to Drive).