Department of Theatre & Dance
Chappelear Drama Center
Delaware, OH 43015

Contact Information

Phone: 740/368-3845; Fax: 740/368-3858
Website: http://dance.owu.edu/

Department Chairperson: D. Glen Vanderbilt
Email: thtrdnce@owu.edu, office manager

Contact Person: Rashana Perks Smith
Email: rpsmith@owu.edu

Faculty

Rashana Perks Smith, Assistant Professor of Dance and Artistic Director of Orchesis

Elane Denny-Todd – Acting, movement, voice

Edward Kahn – Theory, history, directing

D. Glen Vanderbilt – Design & directing

Jill Becker, Part-time in dance

Chadwyn Knutson, Technical Director

Jacqueline Shelley, Costume shop manager

Program Philosophy

The Theatre and Dance program at Ohio Wesleyan encourages students, from the first year, to discover resources within themselves. In the context of the liberal arts, we offer professional training in the traditional areas of theatre history and literature, acting, directing, production design, technology, stage management, arts management, and dance.

Our program balances the practical with the theoretical. Our students confront the realities of performance; they act and learn how to act; they direct and learn directing; they design and learn practical creativity; they manage and learn effective communication; they dance and learn to master grace, motion, and design. Most important, they work daily with strong faculty who encourage the combination of solid academic discipline with practical and professional theatre experience. Every member of our faculty is a working professional. Orchesis Dance Concert, performed on campus since the late 1940s, is an annual production of the Department of Theatre and Dance. It traditionally features pieces created and performed by students with participation by guest professional choreographers.

Degrees Offered: Theatre major, Dance major, Theatre minor, Dance minor

Degree Requirements: 34 total credits, 11 in major

Faculty: 3 FT, 5 PT

Academic Facilities: Acting studio, dance studio, design studio, scene shop

Production Facilities: 400 seat flexible, 140 seat flexible

Productions: 3 plays, 1 dance concert, 3-5 other productions

Institution: Type private, liberal arts

Location: Central Ohio

Enrollment: 1,850; In department: 45

Annual Tuition: $38,890

Annual Room and Board: $10,310

Department Financial Aid: $5,000-15,000 scholarships

Other Financial Aid: Various university scholarships up to full tuition

Student Company: Terpsicorps, OWU Rhythms, Step & Dance