Theatre Performance Programs
Develop Your Talents
Shenandoah's rigorous theatre programs equip you for highly successful professional careers in the theatre business. Your talents are nurtured and challenged by our professional faculty and staff, whether your major is in performance or design and technical areas. Graduates from Shenandoah's theatre programs work on Broadway, in regional theatres, on national and international tours, on cruise ships, as well as in film, television and commercials.
At Shenandoah, we engage you from the first day you arrive on campus. A robust season of musicals, plays, and youth theatre productions on two stages keeps you active and involved and helps you hone your skills in a practical setting. Hands-on attention from faculty and a belief in cultivating the individual artist–as opposed to the "cookie cutter" approach–prepares you to compete in the industry with the confidence that comes with knowing how to market your unique "brand."
Theatre at Shenandoah
Shenandoah’s theatre programs prepare students for professional careers both on and off stage. Our rigorous programs will equip students for successful careers in theatre, film, television and new media.
Students are nurtured and challenged by our professionally acclaimed faculty, whether they major in performance or design and technical areas. The faculty works closely with students in the classroom and challenge them to grow as theatrical practitioners.
Shenandoah Conservatory acting students learn the Sanford Meisner Technique from one of the pre-eminent master teachers in the craft.
Between auditions, production and classroom work, our students graduate with a competitive edge in an ever-changing art form.
Theatre News

Shenandoah Conservatory Celebrates 5th Annual ShenCoLAB
More than 250 students, faculty and staff participated in Shenandoah Conservatory’s fifth annual ShenCoLAB this past week. Twenty-three projects were led by 27 project leaders/co-leaders and presented in collaboration with more than 200 conservatory ... Continue Reading Shenandoah Conservatory Celebrates 5th Annual…

Rubio ’23 Selected to Participate in Latinx Theatre Commons Designer & Director Colaboratorio
Azaria Rubio ’23 (Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Design & Production – Costume Design) was selected as a designer for the 2023 Latinx Theatre Commons (LTC) Designer & Director Colaboratorio, which takes place from June 28, through July 2, ... Continue Reading Rubio ’23 Selected to Participate…

Alumni Return to Celebrate at the 2023 Conservatory Alumni Reunion
Shenandoah Conservatory welcomed approximately 200 alumni for its 2023 Conservatory Alumni Reunion held on the main campus of Shenandoah University from Friday, March 31, through Sunday, April 2. The weekend kicked off with a Pit Party at Abrams ... Continue Reading Alumni Return to Celebrate at…
Theatre Alumni

Holland ’21 Completes M.F.A. and Teaches at Virginia Commonwealth University
Katie Holland ’21 (Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting) recently completed her Master of Fine Arts in Theatre from Virginia Commonwealth University and will return there in the fall on a one-year teaching ... Continue Reading Holland ’21 Completes M.F.A. and…

Elhamalawy ’21 Leads in Industry Reading of ‘The Bubble’
Drew Elhamalawy ’21 (Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre) recently performed in an industry reading of “The Bubble,” a new musical by Janine McGuire and Arri Lawton Simon, in New York City. The ... Continue Reading Elhamalawy ’21 Leads in Industry…

Hoffman ’15 and Dill ’17 Collaborate in ‘Once’ at Laguna Playhouse
Julia Hoffmann ’15 (Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting) and Kyle Dill ’17 (Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Design & Production) are currently working together on the musical “Once” at Laguna ... Continue Reading Hoffman ’15 and Dill ’17…
Theatre Faculty
Caring and Accomplished
Shenandoah Conservatory’s Theatre faculty are fully immersed in creative practice and engaged in cutting edge scholarly work within the diverse fields of theatre. Highly respected as artists, educators and scholars, their studio classes and rehearsals are richly informed by professional practice, as they are frequently engaged in professional theatres as actors, directors and designers. Our faculty have literally “written the book” about entrepreneurship in the theatre profession and are world-class experts in acting techniques. They accompany students to theatre festivals and performances both within the United States and abroad, and frequently invite casting agents and guest directors to campus. Students graduate with a strong network that supports them as they transition into the “real world” of professional theatre.
Meet the Theatre FacultyShenCoLAB
Shenandoah Conservatory turns over the programming and facilities to its students for a week of unbridled exploration, collaboration and creativity.
ShenCoLAB is the only such week of its magnitude and scope offered by a university performing arts program in the United States.
The week culminates in an extraordinary event: the Festival of Arts, Ideas & Exploration, which featured 27 performances and five presentations in the inaugural year!
Take a Virtual Tour of Shenandoah Conservatory
Shenandoah Conservatory is an exciting hub of collaboration and innovation. Here's a chance to take a quick look at all the spaces in which our students engage in rich and rewarding creative experiences in music, theatre, and dance.
We're an All-Steinway School
Great music stirs the heart and inspires the soul, and Steinway pianos are celebrated as the instruments used by renowned artists to cultivate their talent and produce great music. Similarly, uncompromising excellence in performing arts education sparks the imagination and inspires the future.
