"We make art. The art makes us. The arts sustain life."
by Keith Martin
Boone, N.C. - Fresh from the success of their 35th anniversary season and the half-century celebration of the Appalachian Dance Ensemble, the Department of Theatre and Dance at Appalachian State University is proud to announce their fall 2025 line-up. Four major productions are scheduled from September through November in various outdoor locations across campus and on the stage of the Valborg Theatre. Tickets for all performances are now available online through the T&D department website at theatreanddance.appstate.edu, as well by phone or in person at the Schaefer Center for the Arts box office.
The Department Chair, Professor Michael Helms, said that “The vision statement for our program is ‘We make art. The arts make us. The arts sustain life.’ That mantra goes hand in hand with our departmental mission ‘to facilitate transformative experiences for students and the public, which cultivate compassionate, creative and collaborative communities through theatre and dance.’ Our four major offerings this fall continue a theatrical tradition that has been part of the university since at least the early 1930s.”
Michael Helms
The selection process takes well over a year to develop with dedicated faculty reading and evaluating dozens of scripts before making their recommendation to the entire department faculty. Helms and he and his colleagues are excited about their upcoming slate of offerings.
“Our productions this fall feature the contemporary playwrights Aaron Posner and Sarah Ruhl, who adapted their scripts from popular classic writers from around the world,” said Helms. “Anton Chekhov was the Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time, and Virginia Woolf was a prominent British author and essayist who helped shape 20th century literature. We’re looking forward to bringing our interpretations of these plays, both of which are High Country premieres.
Helms said that the department is highlighting the talents of its students not only on stage but behind the scenes with the First Year Showcase and the Fall Appalachian Dance Ensemble, each of which will premiere never-before seen works created by theatre and dance students and faculty.
A full listing of the Department of Theatre and Dance Fall 2025 season is as follows, with additional information available at theatreanddance.appstate.edu/:
First Year Showcase: Magic Carpet
September 25 – 27, 2025
Performances take place in I.G. Greer Studio Theatre
Coordinators/Mentors: Dr. Gina Grandi and Chris Yon
Students $7, Adults $12
The First Year Showcase is a short, immersive, welcoming process for incoming first-year and transfer students. Working with upper-level students and faculty mentors, students create a collaborative, site-specific promenade performance. Participants work together to frame how we look at architecture and our environment through movement and performance. The 2026 performance, Magic Carpet, will specifically work to foster interdisciplinary collaboration and crossover between theatre and dance to form a new artistic community. This production incorporates anyone who is interested in majoring or minoring in any of the six-degree concentrations within the department.
Life Sucks, adapted by Aaron Posner from Anton Chekhov's Uncle Vanya
October 1 – 5, 2025 in the Valborg Theatre
Directed by Elizabeth Parks
Students $10, Faculty/Staff $15, Adults $17
This is a play about love and longing. In this contemporary reworking of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya, a group of old friends, ex-lovers, estranged in-laws, and lifelong frenemies gather to grapple with life's thorniest questions, the state of the world, and each other. Over drinks, fights, and moments of intimacy seven souls collide and stumble through life concluding that LIFE SUCKS! Or does it? Seriously, what does life do? Produced by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service.
Orlando by Sarah Ruhl, adapted from Virginia Woolf
October 29 - November 2,4,5 and 7, 2025
IG Greer Studio Theatre
Directed by Derek Gagnier
Students $10, Faculty/Staff $15, Adults $17
An adaptation of the "longest and most charming love letter in literature," written by Virginia Woolf for her lover, Vita Sackville-West, Orlando is a theatrical, wild, fantastical trip through space, time and gender. Orlando's adventures begin as a young man, when he serves as courtier to Queen Elizabeth. Through many centuries of living, he becomes a 20th-century woman, trying to sort out her existence. This fresh stage adaptation from Sarah Ruhl uses narrative and a chorus to enact lyrical, instant and whimsical transformations as Orlando travels through countless epochs. Produced by special arrangement with Concord Theatricals.
Fall Appalachian Dance Ensemble (FADE)
November 20 – 24, 2025 in the Valborg Theatre
Coordinated by Laurie Atkins and Sherone Price
Students $10, Faculty/Staff $15, Adults $17
FADE is a popular semi-annual concert featuring Appalachian faculty and students showcasing their talents in choreography and performance. The 2025 edition includes original choreography by Dance Studies faculty members Laurie Atkins, Taryn Griggs, Sherone Price, and Sam Stone with five student choreographers creating new works for each program with as many as eight different pieces being performed every night.
Please note that evening curtain times are 6 p.m. for the First Year Showcase, and 7 p.m. for all other productions with Sunday matinees starting at 2 p.m.
Media Contact
For media inquiries, please contact Michael Helms, Chair, Theatre and Dance at helmsml@appstate.edu, 828-262-7461 or P.J. Wirchansky, CFAA Communication Director, at wirchanskypj@appstate.edu, 828-262-7249
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About the Department of Theatre and Dance
One of seven departments housed in the College of Fine and Applied Arts, the Department of Theatre and Dance’s mission is to facilitate transformative experiences for students and the public, which cultivate compassionate, creative, and collaborative communities through theatre and dance. The department also offers coursework for integrated learning through the arts to the general university student population. Its dynamic co-curricular production program provides exemplary theatre and dance experiences to departmental students, the university community, and the region. www.theatreanddance.appstate.edu.
About the College of Fine and Applied Arts
Appalachian State University’s College of Fine and Applied Arts is a dynamic and innovative group of seven academic departments, bringing together a variety of perspectives, experiences, and real-world education to provide unique opportunities for student success. The college has more than 3,500 undergraduate and graduate majors. Its departments are Applied Design, Art, Communication, Military Science and Leadership, Sustainable Development, Sustainable Technology and the Built Environment, and Theatre and Dance. Learn more at cfaa.appstate.edu.
About Appalachian State University
As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls nearly 21,570 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio, and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors. appstate.edu
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