We study and create performance to understand the human experience.
In the Department of Performance Studies, we are interested in what performance reveals about human experience and culture. Our students combine creative practices and scholarly research to know the world better through performance. We study music, film, and theatre, but we also explore other cultural expressions, like rituals, festivals, religious events, public ceremonies, sports and games, dress, tourism, podcasts, dance, and even the ways we behave in everyday life. Students develop analytical, interpretive, and creative skills that prepare them for diverse careers in and beyond the arts.
We are one of the first departments in the U.S. to offer an undergraduate degree in performance studies. Our department is distinctive in its integration of music, theater, and film. Our faculty is made up of performance artist-scholars, film scholars, theater and music historians, ethnomusicologists, composers, and costume and theater designers.
At both the undergraduate and graduate levels, our low student-to-faculty ratio provides you with an individualized, hands-on educational experience.
The Texas A&M Department of Performance Studies December 2021 newsletter has been published. It can be accessed here.
Maroon Steel steel pan ensemble.
Guest artist Christopher Blasdel.
