Department of Music and Theatre | University at Albany

Department of Music and Theatre

Music Program

The Music Program offers a BA in General Music. In addition to a Music Major, we also offer a Music Minor. There are a variety of courses to explore in the following areas: Musicology/Ethnomusicology, Music Theory, Composition, and Performance. Our program offers solo and ensemble performance opportunities, a high level of academic instruction, and a unique degree of faculty attention and guidance. Read about our alumni.

Theatre Program

The Theatre Program is committed to fostering an equitable and accessible community for all our students. Our curriculum and production work challenges students to work collaboratively, creatively, and inclusively to solve problems, communicate effectively across mediums, and to acquire the skills necessary to become engaged citizens of a changing world. Students will also acquire proficiency in core theatre knowledge and practice, and embody the self-discipline and work ethic necessary to pursue new and evolving opportunities of a life in the arts. Read about our alumni.

Degree Programs:

BA Music

BA Theatre

Upcoming Concerts

Visit the Performing Arts Center Department Performances page for more information about the concerts below:

Education, Liberation
September 11

A Schubert Trilogy
October 3

The Choral Hour
October 29

UAlbany Symphony Orchestra & UAlbany Concert Band
October 30

Bach to Broadway
November 18

UAlbany Jazz Band
November 21

Student Recital
December 2

Holiday Concert
December 4

Twelve Drummers Drummin’
December 5

Festival Celebration Choir & UAlbany Chamber Singers
December 11

Theatre Productions

2021-22

Donate to the Theatre Program

The Wolves

By Sarah DeLappe
Directed by Yvonne Perry

Wednesday, October 19, 2022 at 8pm
Thursday, October 20, 2022 at 8pm
Friday, October 21, 2022 at 3pm
Saturday, October 22, 2022 at 2pm
Saturday, October 22, 2022 at 8pm
Sunday, October 23, 2022 at 2pm

Left quad. Right quad. Lunge. A girls indoor soccer team warms up. From the safety of their suburban stretch circle, the team navigates big questions and wages tiny battles with all the vim and vigor of a pack of adolescent warriors. Sarah DeLappe’s play is a portrait of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for nine American girls who just want to score some goals.

Visit the Performing Arts Center website for ticket information.

The Piano Lesson

By August Wilson
Directed by Jean-Remy Monnay

Wednesday, November 16, 2022 at 8pm
Thursday, November 17, 2022 at 8pm
Friday, November 18, 2022 at 3pm
Saturday, November 19, 2022 at 2pm
Saturday, November 19, 2022 at 8pm
Sunday, November 20, 2022 at 2pm

August Wilson’s play is set in 1936. Boy Willie arrives in Pittsburgh from the South in a battered truck loaded with watermelons to sell. He has an opportunity to buy some land down home, but he must come up with the money right quick. He wants to sell an old piano that has been in his family for generations, but he shares ownership with his sister, and it sits in her living room. She has already rejected several offers because the antique piano is covered with incredible carvings detailing the family’s rise from slavery. Boy Willie tries to persuade his stubborn sister that the past is past, but she is more formidable than he anticipated.

Visit the Performing Arts Center website for ticket information.

Rent

Music, Lyrics, and Book by Jonathan Larson
Directed by Chad Larabee

Thursday, March 2, 2023 at 8pm
Friday, March 3, 2023 at 3pm
Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 2pm
Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 8pm
Sunday, March 5, 2023 at 2pm

Jonathan Larson's hit musical follows a year in the life of a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York's Lower East Side, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. It’s about falling in love, finding your voice, and living for today. Winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, RENT shaped a generation of audiences and taught us all to measure our life in love.

Visit the Performing Arts Center website for ticket information.

Theatre Productions Page
Theatre Production Calendar

Performing Arts Center

Learn more and view a complete schedule of performances

Music Performance Ensembles

The Music Program’s ensembles perform on campus every semester. Our vocal groups include a large Chorale and the audition-based Chamber Singers. Instrumental ensembles include Orchestra, Jazz Band, Concert Band, and Percussion Ensemble. The Marching and Pep Bands play at athletic events. Non-majors and community members are welcome to participate.

Theatre Auditions

Auditions for UAlbany Theatre productions occur three times a year.
See our Theatre Auditions and Production Policy page for additional information.

Faculty Expertise

Faculty are internationally recognized for their compositions, performances, and scholarship. We emphasize issues relevant to music and society such as social media, rock, jazz, and transatlantic cultural exchange. Expertise includes recording practices, multimedia composition, film music, gender studies, world musics, and history of theory. See faculty bios for additional information on publications, recordings, and performances.

Support the Music Program
Support the Theatre Program

Contact

Department of Music and Theatre, College of Arts and Sciences

Music

Performing Arts Center 310
[email protected]
Phone: 518-442-4187

Hours: By Phone: Monday - Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm (Mon/Tue lunch 12-12:30pm, Wed-Fri lunch 11:30am-1:00pm)

Theatre

Performing Arts Center 262
[email protected]
Phone: 518-442-4200

Hours: By Phone: Monday - Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm (closed 12-1pm for lunch)