The 10th Annual Day of Giving

This is not just a “day” of giving. This is a lifetime of giving your time and talents to the essential human need for connection. The performing arts connect us – in person – to the stories, songs, movements and moments that remind us that we are not alone. Your support of the Department of Theatre and Dance continues to lift us and allows us to connect our artists to you, to the community and to the profession in profoundly inspiring ways!

We hope to focus our efforts this year on renewing our Spring Break NYC Immersion Trip for seniors who are hoping to enter the field upon graduation. Your support of this trip will allow us to take students to NYC, see Broadway shows, engage in workshops and dance classes, meet with alumni, and begin to make those professional connections that will lead to the next stage of their career! Please consider designating your donations to “Theatre and Dance NYC Trip” for this incredible experience. 

Additionally, next year marks the 20th Anniversary of the New Playwrights' Festival! We will be hosting playwrights in our Spring season to celebrate the incredible work and impact this programming has had on our students and alumni playwrights over the past 20 years. If you are so inclined to support the celebration efforts of the Playwrights' Festival, please designate your donations towards “Theatre and Dance Playwrights”! 

As always, we appreciate your support and hope to see you in our audiences or on our stages soon! 

With Gratitude,  

Kimberly Mohne Hill 

Department Chair

PLAYWRIGHTS' FESTIVAL:

Each time I meet a fellow Bronco playwright in the professional playwriting world, we bond over a shared love of SCU’s playwriting department. That’s because the department is such a rare and beautiful gem, that has shaped us as artists forever, and offers community everywhere I go as a theatre professional.

The SCU playwriting department’s emphasis on artist driven feedback and devised work gave me the creative voice and collaboration skills I needed to achieve immediate professional success after graduation. In the ensuing three years, my short work has been produced in festivals nationwide, and my first full length production premieres in May 2023, all thanks to the skills and techniques I learned as a Bronco.  - Christian Wilburn ‘19

Julianne Jigour ‘08 - My first playwriting class at SCU changed my life. I was an English major, and without the insightful and compassionate instruction of Brian Thorstenson, I never would have discovered my love for theatre or gone on to get my MFA in dramatic writing and ultimately see my plays produced. Thanks to SCU's playwriting program, theatre is an integral, enriching part of my life.

Alexis Standridge ‘21- I chose to go to Santa Clara University because of the playwright program. Under professor Brian Thorstenson, I learned how to develop my own voice within my writing. During my time at SCU, I got to witness my artistic skills vastly improve in both complexity and creative style.