Puget Sound’s substantial arts and lectures calendar offers a variety of performance, production, and discussion opportunities for guests, neighbors, and members of the campus community to enjoy.
School of Music
Puget Sound is one of the few liberal arts colleges in the country with a conservatory-style School of Music. Through our Bachelor of Music degrees (in performance, in music education, or with elective studies in business) and Bachelor of Arts degree, students achieve excellence in both performance and musical understanding.
The public is invited to recitals and concerts performed by faculty members and student ensembles, as well as guest artist performances and special events such as the annual Pops on the Lawn concert. The annual Jacobsen Series showcases faculty talent in a variety of styles; student ensembles include the Adelphian Concert Choir, Concert Band, Dorian Singers, Jazz Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra, Chorale, Voci d’Amici, Wind Ensemble, and more.
Visual Arts
In addition to offering degrees in studio art and art history and art classes for students of all majors, Puget Sound provides opportunities for campus and community members to experience art through university collections, rotating exhibitions by both students and regionally and nationally recognized artists, and special events such as gallery talks, artist receptions, and more.
Rotating and permanent displays include the larger-than-life glass installation by Dale Chihuly in Wyatt Hall, paintings by frontierswoman Abby Williams Hill in Jones Hall, or the latest exhibition in Kittredge Gallery, managed in collaboration with Tacoma Art Museum.
Theatre Arts
Students of any major may pursue all aspects of theater-making at Puget Sound, from lighting and sound design to acting, directing, dramaturgy, and front-of-house management. The Theatre Arts Department offers a major and minor, as well as numerous performance opportunities throughout the academic year.
Theatergoers enjoy two faculty-directed shows, guest artist-directed performances and special engagements, and student-run productions such as Directors’ Lab, Senior Theatre Festival, and more. Campus performance venues include the 500-seat Schneebeck Concert Hall, Kilworth Memorial Chapel, Norton Clapp Theatre, and others.
Endowed Lectures and Guest Speakers
Puget Sound’s endowed lecture series and guest speakers encompass visiting artists and filmmakers, actors and entertainers, professors, entrepreneurs, business leaders, journalists, and others whose compelling talks spur discussion on and off campus. Past speakers include Pulitzer Prize and New York Times Bestselling author Junot Diaz, filmmaker Spike Lee, The New York Times columnist David Brooks, biologist E.O. Wilson, NPR commentator Nina Totenberg, and choreographer Twyla Tharp.
Campus Film and Foreign Film Series
Puget Sound Campus Films presents recent popular films for the campus and community. Showings are generally in Rausch Auditorium (McIntyre Hall, Room 003) for a small ticket price. Popcorn is available! The Foreign Film Series is presented throughout the academic year by numerous campus clubs and departments. Films are free and include Hispanic, Japanese, and French selections.
Presentations and Seminars
In addition to endowed lectures and guest speakers, Puget Sound offers a host of presentations by students, faculty members, and invited guests throughout the academic year, including Honors Program thesis presentations, science and math seminars, and Daedalus Dinners. Many of these events are free and open to the public.
Student Clubs and Organizations
Puget Sound’s student-run governing council, Associated Students of the University of Puget Sound (ASUPS), operates media outlets such as campus radio station KUPS 90.1 FM "The Sound" and campus newspaper The Trail. Additionally, ASUPS supports approximately 90 clubs on campus each year based on student interest, including cultural, religious, and service organizations, performing arts groups, and club sports. Specific arts clubs and organizations on campus include Anime Club, Bluesion Dance Group, Cirque du Sound, What She Said (women’s a cappella group), Garden Level (men’s a cappella group), Repertory Dance Group, and more.
Puget Sound Arts in the Community
Many members of the campus community are involved in the arts scene in the South Sound and beyond, and several of the area’s cultural treasures trace their origins to University of Puget Sound, including Tacoma Symphony Orchestra and Tacoma Art Museum. Through concerts and performances across the region, artwork showcased in local galleries and shows, an active Community Music Department providing year-round instruction to musicians of all ages and skill levels, and more, Puget Sound contributes to Tacoma’s vibrant arts community.