Theater and Performance

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Our Mission

The Department of Theater and Performance offers the creative and inquisitive candidate an opportunity to explore performance, writing and design through experimentation and exploration. This interdisciplinary approach to performance offers a gateway to multifaceted opportunities in performance, theater studies and the creative industries. Students are encouraged to experiment with performance modalities featuring text, film, songs and site-specific areas to develop and create original stories.

Along with performing the classic and contemporary theater texts, students will experience a well-rounded interdisciplinary performance training. African American cultural forms along with a rich sprinkling of diverse creative methodologies from around the world expose students to an up-to-date contemporary performance practice. On offer is the opportunity to develop a critical and practical analysis of performance, art, social activism and politics to comprehend how these elements sync together to shape and form bold and exciting artists/citizens.

Theater and Performance Major

Theater and Performance Minor 

Meet Our Director: Eddie Bradley, Jr.

Eddie Bradley, Jr.In addition to conducting academic courses about the literature and theory of theater, Dr. Bradley, associate professor of theater and the chair of the Department of Theater and Performance at Spelman College, keeps his craft alive by honing his skills outside of the classroom as an active theater professional.

Artistically, he has numerous acting and directorial roles on his list of achievements, most recently appearing in the world premiere of "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: The Troy Davis Story," by Atlanta playwright Lee Nowell at Synchronicity Theatre.

Dr. Bradley has worked extensively as an actor/guest artist at the North Carolina Shakespeare Festival, the Maryland Shakespeare Festival, New Jomandi Theatre, The North Carolina Theatre for Young People, Chicago Dramatists, Horizon Theatre Company, 7 Stages, Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre Company and Synchronicity Theatre. Read more on Dr. Bradley's profile.

Contact the Theater and Performance Department

Phone: 404-270-5471
Campus Location: Rockefeller Arts Building, Suite 143

Request Information

Mailing Address
Department of Theater and Performance
Rockefeller Arts Building, 350 Spelman Lane, S.W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30314-4399

Staff
Patricia Shipp, Program Coordinator
404-270-3576 | patriciashipp@spelman.edu

Meet Our Faculty

Change Happens

In August 2016, the Department of Drama and Dance was separated into two departments. In fall 2016, the name of the drama department was officially changed to the Department of Theater and Performance and the dance department was established as the Department of Dance Performance and Choreography.

The theater and performance curriculum is designed to offer a challenging theater arts program that encourages discovery, creativity and scholarship for those students whose special interests and talents lead them to the theater and performance; to impart to all majors the formal preparation necessary for advanced academic or professional study; to offer Spelman students experiences in theater arts, by giving her broad-based exposure to the various aspects of theater and performance; and to contribute to the cultural enrichment of Spelman College, the Atlanta University Center and the community at large.

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