Theatre and Dance

Two Ph.D. students in computer science in collaboration with a professor of English in the College of Letters and Science, have created an AI-driven game which allows players to speak directly to Macbeth and attempt conflict de-escalation strategies to try to change his mind at this crucial juncture of the play. Link to Article

Alum David Beatty (MFA, dramatic arts, ‘05) is the author of The Appetite of Giants: Mostly True Stories and Some Exaggerations, a collection of funny and heartfelt essays follows his journey from a Southern California childhood filled with imagination and adventure to a lifelong love of theater, filmmaking, and the arts. The book features stories about family, creativity, and even a hungry 25-foot-tall Giant who lives in a

Alumna Taśa Gleason (MFA, dramatic arts, ‘20) returns to UC Davis as costume designer for the winter quarter Department of Theatre and Dance production of The Drowsy Chaperone.

As a graduate student at UC Davis, Gleason designed costumes for Flora The Red Menace and The Threepenny Opera.

The Modern Language Association of America announced that Jon D. Rossini, professor of theatre and dance at the University of California, Davis, received an honorable mention in the category Latina and Latino and Chicana and Chicano Literary and Cultural Studies for his book, Pragmatic Liberation and the Politics of Puerto Rican Diasporic Drama.

Alumni James Hiser and UC Davis Senior Continuing Lecturer Michele Apriña Leavy (both MFA, dramatic art, ’94) are headed to Ireland with the recent Eugene O’Neill Foundation production of The Hairy Ape. Hiser played the leading role of Yank, and Leavy was the Movement Consultant, while alum Rob Evans (BA, theatre and dance, ‘92) was Sound and Music Designer, and the production’s Director and Artistic Director of the O’Neill Foundation Eric Fraisher. Hayes attended UC Davis as an undergraduate student.

In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, the Department of Theatre and Dance spotlights undergraduate student playwrights Melanie Garcia and Simon Garcia Parra Jr., who are the authors of To Kill a Certain Painter and No Que No?, two one-act plays that premiere as part of Written and Directed By. 

Alum Isaac Hirotsu Woofter (B.A., theatre and dance, ‘00) is the director and writer of the new film Bound, which will have its Bay area theatrical premiere May 16 – 22 (7pm) at the Alameda Theatre and Cineplex. 

In 2024 alum Mengyuan “Mia” Qin (B.A., theatre and dance, ‘20) has served as a production assistant on the Broadway musical Maybe Happy Ending which has been nominated for ten 2025 Tony Award nominations including Best Musical. 

UC Davis Theater and Dance alum Angel Rodriguez (‘12) and faculty member and alum Michele Apriña Leavy recently appeared in the Alameda Civic Ballet’s 20th Anniversary production of The Nutcracker. The production was performed Nov. 23 and 24 at the Castro Valley Center for the Arts in Castro Valley.

Professor Jon Rossini and Continuing Lecturer and Alumna Michele Apriña Leavy in Los Angeles this weekend for the Latinx Theater Commons’ Encuentro 2024. Rossini serves as a scholarly advisor while Leavy is the LTC’s Steering Committee.

Participants at the Encuentro will attend Festival productions, dialogue with artists brought in from across the country, and have dedicated time to wrestle with theatrical forms, themes, and conventions. We seek to bring current LTC Steering and Advisory Committee, our partners, and community members together.

“Take My Hand,” a talk and performance with Professor Margaret Laurena Kemp, theatre and dance chair, will be given on June 13 at the North Carolina Museum of Art at 6pm. Kemp leads the audience through an embodied exploration of her creative process. The presentation features an original score.

The UC Davis Department of Theatre and Dance is among the recipients of Theatre Communications Group’s program “Plays for the People: In the Stacks.” With funding from the Mellon Foundation, TCG has provided $25,000 total in book credits to 50 recipient organizations in an effort to help them expand and diversify their drama collections. 

Several UC Davis alumni and staff members are working in various capacities on Sacramento’s Big Idea Theatre’s One-Act Play Festival. The three-week festival begins Jan. 25. 

Alumna Sonya Eddy (B.A., Afro-American studies, ’94) won a posthumous Daytime Emmy Award, nearly one year after her death. She was honored Dec. 15 with the Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Daytime Drama Series for her work on General Hospital.

Eddy’s producing partner and friend, Tyler Ford, was on hand to accept the honor.  

Professor Margaret Laurena Kemp, theatre and dance department chair, is pleased to announce the Granada Artists-in-Residence for 2024 which includes an internationally acclaimed alumnus.