Facilities in the Department of Theatre

The first of Robinson Hall’s three stories houses the 336-seat Anne R. Belk Theater, which features a 3,500-square-foot proscenium stage equipped with a 60-foot-fly-loft for storing and changing scenery and an orchestra pit for opera and musical theatre performances. The theater is primarily used for performances by our performing arts units, including Department of Dance concerts, Department of Music ensemble concerts and select Department of Theatre productions.

The versatile Black Box Theater in Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts can be adapted to accommodate up to 125 patrons for a variety of unique and intimate theatre experiences. This theater is primarily used for Department of Theatre productions.

In addition to these state-of-the-art performance spaces, the department also has a more informal White Box – a classroom and lab theater space in the Rowe Arts Building – dedicated to the development of student works and projects. While serving as a classroom and rehearsal space, the White Box is home to theatre student organizations, as well as 24/7: The Student 24-hour Play Festival and various student projects.

In the Costume Lab, students of all skill levels learn the art and craft of costume creation. Students gain hands-on experience in sewing, altering, patterning, crafting and dyeing, as well as hair and makeup techniques. By applying these skills directly to upcoming college productions, students have the opportunity to build professional portfolios for a future costume career or to fuel personal projects. The lab is equipped with domestic and industrial sewing and overlock machines, a dye vat, a spray hood, a crafting area, designated fitting rooms and laundry facilities. 

The Robinson Hall scene shop offers students the opportunity to learn to use a broad range of power tools, from cordless drills to table saws, and then apply that knowledge in construction of scenery for productions in theatre, music, and dance. In addition to traditional wooden scenery construction techniques, our students also have the opportunity to learn MIG Welding and scenic rigging. The goal is to give students as much direct, hands on experience as possible, both in the classes that meet in the scene shop and by working as paid scenic carpenters.