By: Brooke Mortsolf

There are some people who have been wondering about the theater program at the University of Saint Mary. I talked with Danielle Swatzell, the theater program coordinator as well as the instructor in theater, and she was able to shed some light on this question. Ms. Swatzell said that a theater cannot just dissolve. If a theater does dissolve, it is because there is “not one single person left to lead” and that “no one has the desire anymore to continue the theater.” 

Ms. Swatzell said that the humanities dean and the chains of command of the humanities department were not going to let the theater program go. She commented that “students need to be the leaders in the revolution” to bring more awareness to the theater at Saint Mary. Ms. Swatzell remarked that “theatre is not just acting, singing, and dancing. [T]heatre is so much more. It is bigger than one person or a university department.” The theater is a great source of revenue for the college as well as for the students to show off their talents to their friends and family. 

As you can see, the theater program is still here at the University of Saint Mary; just with a few changes like all of the other department changes you may notice on campus. This year the theater is putting on four shows. The shows are Addams Family, Snow White and Seven Dwarfs, James and the Giant Peach, and finally, Steel Magnolias. Each of the shows has an open audition date, so no matter what major a student has, he or she can participate in the play if they choose to! The theater is just as important now as it has been in the past years, but with some improvements to make it better. 

Information provided by Danielle Swatzell

Brooke Mortsolf is a student at University of Saint Mary.