University of Minnesota Theatre Arts & Dance

University of Minnesota Theatre Arts & Dance The University of Minnesota Theatre Arts & Dance is a collaborative hub for education, research and training in the diverse field of Dance and Theatre.

Our students are thinkers and creators who not only make art, but also make a difference.

👏 Congratulations to UMN Dance alumni Gemma Isaacson and Associate Faculty in Dance, Davente Gilreath on being named 202...
06/04/2026

👏 Congratulations to UMN Dance alumni Gemma Isaacson and Associate Faculty in Dance, Davente Gilreath on being named 2026 McKnight Dancer Fellows!

Selected among Minnesota’s outstanding dance artists, Gemma and Davente are each receiving a prestigious McKnight Fellowship, which recognizes exceptional artistic achievement and supports the continued growth of dancers whose work is shaping the future of the field. The fellowship includes an unrestricted award for support for the creation of a new solo work.

We’re proud to celebrate these remarkable artists and their continued impact on the dance community. Congratulations, Gemma and Davente! 🎉💃

Learn more about Gemma and Davente at https://www.mcknightdancechoreo.org/meet-the-fellows-all

Gemma’s photo by Bill Cameron
Davente’s photo by Kameron Herndon

From the University of Minnesota's BFA Actor Training Program to Broadway's biggest stage, congratulations to Aya Cash o...
06/02/2026

From the University of Minnesota's BFA Actor Training Program to Broadway's biggest stage, congratulations to Aya Cash on earning her first Tony Award nomination! Cash's Broadway debut has her up for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role for the play "Giant".

Known for acclaimed on-screen performances in "You're the Worst", "The Boys", and now her Tony-nominated Broadway debut, Aya continues to inspire audiences across stage and screen. 🎭✨

Listen to a brief interview with Cash on this role courtesy Broadway News at
https://www.broadwaynews.com/5-minutes-of-a-tony-nominee-giants-aya-cash
And catch the Tony Awards on June 7th!


Recently local student performers from Justice Page Middle and Washburn High took to the Thrust stage in UMTAD's Rarig C...
05/28/2026

Recently local student performers from Justice Page Middle and Washburn High took to the Thrust stage in UMTAD's Rarig Center. Led by theatre teachers Crystal Spring (UMTAD alumni, 2006) and Tyanna Gross, we love welcoming & celebrating this ongoing partnership with our theatre community.

Continuing to celebrate our UMTAD faculty! We are pleased to announce that UMTAD BFA Program Associate Deb Pearson has r...
05/28/2026

Continuing to celebrate our UMTAD faculty! We are pleased to announce that UMTAD BFA Program Associate Deb Pearson has recently been one of a handful of CLA staff to be nominated for the President's Award for Outstanding Service.

See all awardees and learn more at https://cla.umn.edu/news-events/story/accolades

Congrats to our UMTAD faculty on recently receiving Imagine Fund Faculty Research Grants! Both Ananya Chatterjea and Car...
05/26/2026

Congrats to our UMTAD faculty on recently receiving Imagine Fund Faculty Research Grants! Both Ananya Chatterjea and Carl Flink, from our Dance Program, received grants for their proposals.

Ananya's Proposal — "Love, Present Occupation: A creative investigation"
Carl's Proposal — "Choreography as Fast Architecture/Architecture as Slow Choreography: An Embodied Conversation about Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin"

Learn more about The Imagine Fund, and all recent CLA grant recipients at: https://cla.umn.edu/research-creative-work/faculty-research-creative-work/imagine-fund-annual-faculty-research-grant

Based on his dissertation research at the University of Minnesota, UMTAD graduate Nathan R. Stenberg’s new film, “The Ha...
05/19/2026

Based on his dissertation research at the University of Minnesota, UMTAD graduate Nathan R. Stenberg’s new film, “The Haunting of Pennhurst,” will premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival this June.

"The Haunting of Pennhurst" is a documentary-horror hybrid that revisits the infamous Pennhurst State School and Hospital, a Pennsylvania institution once known for the abuse and neglect of people with disabilities. After the facility’s closure in 1987, its dark legacy continued to haunt survivors, families, and the broader disability community.

The film follows a group of disabled performers who return to the abandoned site and transform its painful history into a haunted house experience, reclaiming the narrative through performance, art, and activism. Blending historical reflection with eerie atmosphere, the documentary explores how trauma, memory, and exploitation linger within the walls of Pennhurst while asking who gets to tell these stories — and why they matter today.

“The Haunting of Pennhurst”
Directed by: Nathan R. Stenberg, Mike Attie, and Katarina Poljak
Premiers Friday, June 5th.

Learn more at https://tribecafilm.com/films/haunting-of-pennhurst-2026

To the graduates of the Department of Theatre Arts & Dance: bravo. 👏🎓Over the years, you’ve created bold performances, u...
05/15/2026

To the graduates of the Department of Theatre Arts & Dance: bravo. 👏🎓

Over the years, you’ve created bold performances, unforgettable designs, meaningful movement, powerful stories, and a community that inspired us all. Your artistry, resilience, and passion have left a lasting mark on our stages, studios, and classrooms.

We can’t wait to see where your next act takes you. Congratulations, graduates — the spotlight is yours. ✨

05/13/2026

🎉What an incredible 25-26 season for UMTAD!

Thank you to everyone who made this possible, from the actors and dancers on stage to the designers and faculty. This would not be possible without all of you!

Want to know more about the programs and opportunities the UMTAD community has to offer? Head to our website at the link in our bio.

TCDance

Congratulations to senior Madelyn Tax on all of her hard work within the Theatre and the University of Minnesota communi...
05/12/2026

Congratulations to senior Madelyn Tax on all of her hard work within the Theatre and the University of Minnesota communities!👏

5 years ago, Tax was a high schooler fighting a diagnosis of Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Now, she's a senior about to graduate, excited to see what the Twin Cities theatre community has to offer and what opportunities will come her way.

Want to hear more about Madelyn’s amazing story? Head here: https://give.umn.edu/stories/life-giving-performance

Congratulations to Theatre Arts graduate Gaosong Heu (2015) on being named a Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal 40 Un...
05/12/2026

Congratulations to Theatre Arts graduate Gaosong Heu (2015) on being named a Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal 40 Under 40 Honoree!

Gaosong Heu has been building a pastry empire one croissant at a time. The Co-owner and CEO of Marc Heu Patisserie Paris was just 25 when she and her husband, executive pastry chef Marc Heu, founded the company with only $200 in startup capital. Now, at 33, Heu oversees companywide strategy, creative direction, finance, human resources, partnerships, marketing, branding and operations.

An impressive total of 9 CLA graduates are included in the MSPBJ list of 40 Under 40 Honorees! Congrats to Gaosong Heu and all Honorees!

Learn more about Gaosong and all 9 CLA graduate honorees: https://cla.umn.edu/news-events/story/nine-cla-alumni-selected-2026-40-under-40-honorees

IMAGE CREDIT: NANCY KUEHN | MSPBJ

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