Welcome from the Chair
 |
Thomas Ralabate Professor, Chair, and Producing Director of UB Theatre & Dance Artistic Director, Zodiaque Dance Company |
Welcome to the University at Buffalo's Department of Theatre & Dance. With an outstanding faculty of working professional artists and scholars, our department offers students the opportunity to combine practical, technical, and academic training with all forms of production experience. Many of our alumni work as Theatre & Dance professionals: actors and directors; dancers and choreographers; arts administrators; designers, technicians, and stage managers. We're equally proud of those students who apply the skills acquired through the study of Theatre & Dance to a multitude of other fields, including law, business, secondary and higher education, marketing, and policy. Our students have access to the extraordinary resources of a Research I university, as well as the wealth of cultural and artistic resources of Buffalo, which Places Rated Almanac ranked among the top 25 arts and entertainment communities in the country. At the same time, the small size of each of our four areas - Dance, Design/Tech, Music Theatre, and Theatre Performance - offers students individualized attention, as well as a place to make lifelong friends and colleagues.
UB Theatre & Dance has a faculty nationally and internationally recognized for outstanding teaching, scholarship, and artistic achievement. Our faculty members act, dance, design, choreograph, direct, and music direct professionally in New York City, on network television, and at resident professional dance and theatre companies across the country. Our accomplished teachers are invited to give workshops nationally and internationally every year. Several faculty members serve as artistic directors of regional theatre companies in Buffalo and New York City. Our teachers and scholars have written over two dozen books published by major university and commercial presses, and they contribute regularly to national journals and periodicals.
UB Theatre & Dance's annual ten-production season consists of four dramas, four dance concerts, and two music theatre shows, providing students with a wealth of opportunities to engage in all elements of production. Our season spans the gamut from classics to contemporary, from traditional to avant-garde. Our shows have won national design and performance awards, and we're proud of the ensemble environment that distinguishes UB Theatre & Dance. Guest directors and choreographers are a regular part of our learning environment, and we pride ourselves on collaboration at all levels of the rehearsal and production process.
Please enjoy our website and contact us with any questions about our programs. I invite you to visit our campus and tour our state-of-the-art Theatre & Dance facilities, including the University's extraordinary Center for the Arts, which houses our rehearsal and performance spaces. Thank you for your interest in the University at Buffalo's Department of Theatre & Dance. I hope to see you soon in our theatres and studios soon.
Thomas Ralabate
Department Chair