2025-26 Theatre Arts Mainstage Season
All productions are in Norton Clapp Theatre, Jones Hall, unless otherwise indicated.
The Unicorn Crosses the Stream
Friday, September 26 - Doors open 7:30 pm, Norton Clapp Theatre
Show at 8pm, followed by talkback. 7:30-8 Music by Morgan O.
FREE!
MASKS MANDATORY
We are thrilled to bring Seattle-based performance art duo, Emmy Smith-Stewart and Jeffrey Azevedo to campus for a residency this month culminating in a public work-in-progress performance of their new piece, followed by a talkback with the artists on September 26th.
Somewhere between a prayer and lecture performance, Emmy and Jeffrey present their recreation of the medieval tapestry series The Hunt of the Unicorn. The Unicorn Crosses the Stream explores Christian mysticism/Catholic pageant faggotry, the surreal effects of an accidental estradiol overdose, echoes of Nina Arsenault’s durational performances, and attempts to commune with the ghost of Bud, a would have been queer elder and family friend who died of AIDS shortly after Emmy was born.
Fall Mainstage
The Caucasian Chalk Circle
By Bertolt Brecht
Directed by Wind D. Woods
Set against the backdrop of a fictional civil war, Brecht’s play tells the gripping story of Grusha, a poor servant girl who rescues and raises an abandoned noble child, Michael, despite the immense personal sacrifices it entails. When the boy's biological mother returns years later to reclaim him, the dispute is brought before the wily and unconventional judge, Azdak. The trial ultimately exposes the corrupt nature of power and affirms the play’s central moral—justice should serve those who care for and nurture life, rather than those who simply claim ownership. The Caucasian Chalk Circle is a thought-provoking parable that explores themes of justice, power, and morality that challenges us to reconsider social and legal systems, making it as relevant today as when it was first performed. Filled with music, wit, and Brecht's signature theatricality, this production speaks directly to out present moment -- where Questions of ownership, responsibility, and survival feel more urgent than ever.
Performances: Oct 31, Nov 1, 6, 7, and 8 @7:30 p.m.
2 p.m. Saturday matinee show Nov 8
Directors' Lab Festival of Scenes
December 8 & 9 at 7:30 p.m. - FREE ADMISSION
Scenes and One-Act plays selected by student directors
Spring Mainstage
Fun Home
Music by Jeanine Tesori
Book and Lyrics by Lisa Kron
Based on the Graphic Novel by Alison Bechdel
Directed by Jess K Smith
Music Direction by Dr. Dawn Padula
Fun Home is a refreshingly honest, emotional, and revolutionary Tony Award-winning musical based on Alison Bechdel’s groundbreaking graphic memoir of the same name. We follow Alison at three ages as she interrogates the past, navigates her own queerness, finds her creative voice, and re-sees her parents through adult eyes. This beautifully constructed story and score continue to resonate with audiences.
This is a co-production between the Department of Theatre Arts and the School of Music.
Thursday, 2/26 at 7:30PM (Cast Alison)
Friday, 2/27 at 7:30pm (Cast Bechdel)
Saturday, 2/28 at 7:30pm (Cast Alison)
Sunday, 3/1 at 2PM (Cast Bechdel)
Thursday, 3/5 at 7:30pm (Cast Bechdel)
Friday, 3/6 at 7:30pm (Cast Alison)
Saturday, 3/7 at 7:30pm(Cast Bechdel)
Sunday, 3/8 at 2pm (Cast Alison)
MATURE THEMES - NOT RECOMMENDED FOR CHILDREN UNDER 14
Senior Theatre Festival
Graduating Senior-directed plays
Circle Mirror Transformation
by Annie Baker
Directed by Athena Schaefer
Featuring Riley Minkowski and J Wheeler
Circle Mirror Transformation examines the complexities of human relationships via theatrical exercises. In this slice-of-life play, five people are brought together for six short weeks in a community acting class. As they work through a myriad of games and rituals, relationships are built and broken. This seemingly simple play uses the conventions of theatre to reveal the meaningful nature of transitory connections.
Performances: April 3rd at 7:30PM and April 4th at 2:00PM and 7:30PM
Stop Kiss
by Diana Son
Directed by Ashlyne Collado
Featuring Evalynn Castro
Stop Kiss investigates the relationship of Callie, a traffic reporter who feels stuck in her monotonous life, and Sara, a newly appointed teacher who has just moved to New York. Their first kiss provokes a homophobic attack that leaves Sara in a coma. In this non-linear narrative, we see the before and aftermath of the attack – how their relationship starts, builds up, and is affected by the attack. As their relationship blossoms and changes, they learn how to navigate their own personal complicated relationships, sexuality, and senses of identity. And through it all, they learn what it means to truly understand and love each other.
Content Warnings: Homophobia, discussion of hate crime
Performances: April 10th at 7:30PM and April 11th at 2:00PM and 7:30PM
Notes to Future Self
by Lucy Caldwell
Directed by Jay Milliken
Featuring Hannah Erikson
Notes to Future Self is an explorative work into how people faced with tragedy continue forward. Sophie, a 13-year-old terminal cancer patient, and her family have been upended by her illness, a sudden move back home, and an adversarial family bond. Through the, often silly, worldview of Sophie we travel through the process of grief for a disrupted family and the ugly face of mortality.
Content Warnings: Heavy talks of death, grief, terminal illness
Performances: April 17th at 7:30PM and April 18th at 2:00PM and 7:30PM
Every Sound I've Ever Made
Written and performed by Isa Fitzgibbons ‘26
Every Sound I’ve Ever Made is a devised theatre piece which interrogates the distance women's voices fill when memory and identity divulge. The revision of a previous piece by the same name, Every Sound I’ve Ever Made is an intimate portrait of one woman's journey to reconcile a familial legacy of silence and resistance.
Content Warnings: Discussions of domestic abuse
Performance: April 25th at 2PM