Inspired by John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of
Wrath, Octavio Solis’s provocative drama Mother
Road finds a hardworking surviving member of the Joad
family seeking kin to inherit the family farm. The Department of
Theatre and Dance presents this “sequel” to the American classic
as the opening production of the 2026-2027 season. The production
opens Nov. 19 in the Main Theatre, Wright Hall.
Performances will be Nov. 19-21 and Dec. 3-4 at 7 p.m. with 2
p.m. matinees on Nov. 21 and Dec. 5. Tickets go on sale in early
October 2026.
Twenty years ago, The Drowsy Chaperone won five Tony
Awards, including Best Book, Best Original Score, and awards for
Costume Design, Scenic Design, and Featured Actress. Many
reviewers embraced it as a loving, clever send-up of what Musical
Theater International calls “Golden Age musicals.”
Winner of Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Original
Score, The Drowsy Chaperone is a loving
send-up of the Golden Age of the Broadway musical. The
UC Davis Department of Theatre and Dance presents the hilarious
musical in the Main Theatre, Wright Hall, with opening night set
for Feb. 26 at 7 p.m.
The Department of Theatre and Dance will present Rules of
Play, the spring 2025 dance concert, May 15, 16,
22, and 23 at 7 p.m. and May 17 and 24 at 2 p.m. in the
Main Theatre, Wright Hall.
Featuring nearly 30 dancers, the program is curated by Doria E.
Charlson, visiting professor of theatre and dance, and
showcases new works developed and performed by undergraduate
students.
The Department of Theatre and Dance will present
[RE]Vision, the spring 2023 dance concert, May 31,
June 1 at 7 p.m. and June 2 at 2 p.m. in the Main Theatre,
Wright Hall.
Triggered by a hate crime which brought attention to
the lack of hate crime laws nationwide, The Laramie
Project is a riveting contemporary drama that
challenges the inhabitants of a rural American community.
The Department of Theatre and Dance presents the play Feb. 22,
23, 24, 29 and March 1 at 7 p.m. and March 2 at 2 p.m. in the
Main Theatre, Wright Hall.
Sarah Ashford Hart, doctoral student, performance studies, is
among the presenters for the Humanizing Deportation
event “Los Migrantes Hablan, Los Migrantes Actúan, Los
Migrantes Saben,” a showing of new audiovisual works. The
presentation will be held live and also streamed via Zoom on
Nov. 5 at 12 noon (PST).
The event will take place at Border Line Crisis
Center, Puente México, Zona Centro, Tijuana.
The Department of Theatre and Dance and Catalyst: A Theatre Think
Tank (C3T) present ”A Bee in a Jar,” a play by Andrew
Nicholls, on February 19 and 20 at 6 p.m. The virtual
production is free.
In the play, three men with very different temperaments try to
figure out why they were seized a month earlier and locked
together in a featureless room.
An open rehearsal with the ensemble of “[re:[CLICK],” led by
co-directors Margaret Laurena Kemp (Associate Professor, UC
Davis) and Roger Ellis (Assistant Professor, Northwestern
University) with media literacy expert Anuj Vaidya (PhD.
Performance Studies candidate, UC Davis), will be held on Nov. 21
at 11 a.m. (PST).
At the direction of the Chancellor, Professor David Grenke,
Department of Theatre and Dance chair, has decided to cancel all
performances of Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter, scheduled for
March 12-14 due to health concerns. We know you will
understand this decision and thank you for support of the
department.
“Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter,” presented by the UC Davis
Department of Theatre and Dance, is an informal preview of new
choreography in progress created by graduate and undergraduate
students.
Wayne Barker,
the Tony Award-nominated composer of “Peter and the Starcatcher,”
will discuss his career and perform his songs and music at UC
Davis on Feb. 5. The event takes place in the Arena Theatre,
Wright Hall, at 6 p.m. and is free and open to the public.
“Outside the Lines, Spring Quarter,” presented by the
College of Letters and Science’s Department of Theatre and Dance,
features new choreography created by graduate and undergraduate
students.
Performances are Thursday through Saturday, May 23-25 at 7
p.m. with a 2 p.m. performance on May 25 in the Wright
Hall Main Theatre.
“Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter,” presented by the College of
Letters and Science’s Department of Theatre and Dance, features
new choreography created by graduate and undergraduate students.
Performances are Thursday through Saturday, March 14-16 at 7
p.m. with a 2 p.m. performance on March 16 in the Wright Hall
Main Theatre.
Jessica Phillips, a star of the national tour of the musical
“Dear Evan Hansen,” will discuss her career as a stage and
television actor and perform at UC Davis on Dec. 3. The
presentation/performance takes place in the Arena Theatre of
Wright Hall, at 5 p.m. and is free and open to the public.
Phillips comes to Davis prior to a sold-out engagement of the
Tony Award-winning musical at San Francisco’s Curran Theatre.
Please be advised that this event has been re-scheduled from its
originally announced dates.
Kota Yamazaki and Mina Nishimura, whose work is strongly rooted
in butoh, a form of Japanese dance theatre, are choreographing
“Every-Body, No-Body” for the UC Davis Department of Theatre and
Dance in the College of Letters and Science.
Butoh, a form of Japanese dance theatre, is showcased in the
winter quarter edition of “Outside the Lines” in performances
featuring guest artists Kota Yamazaki and Mina Nishimura.
Here are publicity photographs and set model for the
upcoming production of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and
Spike. The Tony Award-winning comedy plays the Main
Theatre, Wright Hall, Feb. 23-25 and Mar. 2-4, Thursday
through Saturday at 7 p.m. with 2 p.m. matinees on Feb. 25 and
Mar. 4.
Publicity photos by Huan Yu, copyright UC Davis, Set model
photo by John Iacovelli, copyright UC Davis
Here are publicity photographs and design concepts for the
upcoming production of The Shape of Things. The
contemporary drama plays the Lab A Theatre, Wright Hall, Jan.
19-21 and 26-28, Thursday through Saturday at 7 p.m. with 2
p.m. matinees on Jan. 21 and 28.
Publicity photos by Huan Yu, copyright UC Davis, Set model photos
by Elizabeth Kang, copyright UC Davis
To Mondavi Center: From I-80 take the UC
Davis/Mondavi Center exit and follow signs.
To Wyatt Pavilion and Nelson Hall Studio:
Proceed as above, continuing on Old Davis Road past the Mondavi
Center to Visitor Parking Lot 5.
To Main Theatre, Arena Theatre, and Laboratory Theatre
A: These three theatres are located in Wright
Hall, a short walk through the Arboretum from Visitor
Parking Lot 5.
