The room in the Durango Building buzzed with singing as dozens of students flipped through binders of sheet music, preparing for a historic performance just weeks away.
Their soundtrack: “Little Shop of Horrors,” the horror-comedy musical that will mark the first production of the new Dramatic Arts Program, which launched in fall 2025.
Since October, when the “Little Shop of Horrors” auditions were held, the students have played a historical role in rolling out the new program, which was created to provide educational opportunity and quality public performances, in the College of Liberal and Fine Arts (COLFA).
“I chose UT San Antonio because I was excited to help lay the foundation for a theater program that can be a cornerstone of the theater community in San Antonio,” said Luke Stout, student and program assistant.
The program, which grants San Antonio’s only public four-year degree in dramatic arts or theatre, provides industry-relevant experience for students in a wide range of careers in the field of dramatic arts. The program offers students hands-on training, curated internships at theaters and museums, and specialized instruction in stage and screen technologies.
Program Director Paul Ardoin explains that this wide-ranging, hands-on approach is by design: “We would be doing the students and community a disservice if we built this like a 1980s or 1960s theater degree. Instead, we’re focused on making career-ready Roadrunners by introducing students to a variety of experiential paths through an emerging media and live performance landscape.”
“You’ll see our students on, behind, or lighting an amazing stage like the Buena Vista Theater, but our aim is that they’re also reading blueprints, designing projections, cultivating a presence on the big (or very small) screen, working on medical simulations with nursing students, and much more,” Ardoin added.
Students in the program have the opportunity to learn from industry professionals such as Victor Trevino, professor of practice and veteran stage and screen actor; Bradley Freeman Jr., puppeteer and assistant professor of practice in Film and Media; and Saagar Shaikh, professor of practice and film and TV actor. Freeman and Trevino are working together to as director and assistant director for “Little Shop of Horrors,” which runs from April 10-26. Tickets are available at the Buena Vista Theater.
The faculty bring years of experience working on major productions for Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix and more.
The new program is off to a good start, said Debra Justice, the university’s executive director of events, conferences and camps.
“I really want to see this program take off and succeed,” said Justice, a Yale university-trained stage manager and instructor of UT San Antonio’s Introduction to Stagecraft course. “I’ve wanted it to happen since I got here, and I walk around with my fingers crossed 24/7 with hopes that it will.”
Justice is part of the team responsible for preparing UT San Antonio’s professional-caliber Buena Vista Theater, 501 W. César E. Chávez Blvd., for just such a possibility. She works with Jerod Jerry, theater manager and live production instructor.
“I built and designed this theater for this program that did not exist when I arrived,” Jerry said.
Today, the new program regularly utilizes the 300-seat performance venue that hosts a full slate of concerts, conferences, dance performances and events.
The students attend classes, some focused on subjects such as playwriting and acting, in the Buena Vista Theater building. This semester, the students have been able to take courses oriented toward cast, crew, marketing and production for “Little Shop of Horrors.”
Acting I Associate Professor Kimberly Fonzo, a medieval drama scholar and organizer of UT San Antonio’s longstanding Actors from the London Stage residency, said she sees such glimpses as key to students’ education. She aims to develop in students the ability to appreciate great acting by their peers while also building an understanding of their own movement, voice and intention.
Positioning the major on UT San Antonio’s Downtown Campus contributes to building a close-knit community that the program’s students say they value. Dramatic arts major Grecia Ortiz and classmate Precious Okolie said that making friendships with people in the program and continuing to grow those friendships have been as important as being a part of the first theater production at the university.
“An integral part of the arts is the lived experience — that includes getting a glimpse of others’ experiences,” Okolie said.