In Memory of Lorraine O’Grady

Lorraine O’Grady (1934–2024) Lorraine O’Grady, pioneering conceptual artist, writer, critic and former UC Irvine faculty member, passed away on December 13 at 90. O’Grady’s transformative career spanned decades and mediums, exploring the intersections of race, gender and identity. Working...

Professor of Art Simon Leung Selected for “Artforum's” Best of 2024: Critics' Favorite Critics

Leung’s recognition highlights his continuing impact on contemporary Asian American art UC Irvine Professor of Art Simon Leung has been recognized in Artforum’s Best of 2024: Critics’ Favorite Critics section, a new feature spotlighting the year’s most compelling contributions to criticism. Art...

UC Irvine faculty and Alumnus Awarded ARTnews 2024 Award for Best Thematic Museum Show

Scratching at the Moon exhibition is the first focused survey of Asian American artists in a major Los Angeles contemporary art museum The Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (ICA LA) exhibition Scratching at the Moon has been awarded the ARTnews Award for Best Thematic Museum Show of...

Full STEAM Ahead

How three women double majoring in the arts and sciences draw from it all By Diana Kalaji At UC Irvine, a convergence of artistic talent and scientific inquiry thrives. Meet Cassidy Doan, Isabella Cao and Brenna Farrell. What do these three students have in common? Besides relying on...

Emma Andres '20 creates ballet based on the acclaimed novel by Louisa May Alcott

Little Women Ballet takes over the historic Heritage Square Museum in Los Angeles Department of Dance graduate Emma Andres (B.F.A., ’20) has carved a unique space in ballet as artistic director of Little Women Ballet. Inspired by Louisa May Alcott's timeless novel about four sisters...

The UC Irvine Chamber Singers Release Holiday EP

Celebrate the holidays with classical hymns in Winter Night The UC Irvine Chamber Singers release their first holiday EP, Winter Night, on Friday, November 29, 2024. Produced by Signum Records, the musical collection features four songs with an available single, Gabriel’s Message, featuring...

Robert Cohen, the founding chair of the Department of Drama at UC Irvine passes

Robert Cohen (1938-2024) Claire Trevor Professor of Drama Emeritus Robert Cohen passed away on Nov. 15, 2024, at 86.  A towering figure in the theater world, Cohen was a founding faculty of the Department of Drama at UC Irvine. Cohen joined UCI in 1965 after earning his undergraduate...

‘9 to 5’ hits all the right notes

Department of Drama presents Dolly Parton’s hit musical with a message of equality Claire Trevor School of the Arts is preparing for a rollicking production of 9 to 5: The Musical, set to take the stage from Nov. 21-24 at the Irvine Barclay Theatre. Based on the 1980s film, this lively musical...

UC Irvine Chamber Singers Place Second in the American Prize

Chamber Singers receive national recognition in choral performance The UC Irvine Chamber Singers, directed by Dr. Irene Messoloras, professor in the Department of Music, have earned second place in the 2024 American Prize in Choral Performance—college/university division (smaller program). The...

Movement that Heals

Dr. Kelli Sharp embodies the connection between dance and science By Christine Byrd Kelli Sharp has been called a unicorn. A doctor of physical therapy science who strives to improve rehabilitation for patients with neurological disorders, Sharp may not fit the typical mold of a...

Drama Costume Designers join the Art + Nature initiative at the Laguna Art Museum

Professor Holly Poe Durbin, fellow faculty, staff and students present a sustainable fashion show in collaboration with the Laguna Art Museum By Haily Lewis-Eastman On November 2, 2024, in collaboration with the Laguna Art Museum’s (LAM) Art + Nature initiative, Holly Poe Durbin, head of the...

Art as Lover

Professor of Art Monica Majoli presents two exhibits around intimacy and the aids crisis in Düsseldorf  Monica Majoli, painting professor in the Department of Art at UC Irvine's Claire Trevor School of the Arts, presents two new exhibitions in Düsseldorf: Distant Lover (2009–2024) and With...

Dance Major Journal 2024: Where Dancers' Voices Lead the Conversation

Explore the 2024 Dance Major Journal: Where Dancers' Voices Lead the Conversation   UC Irvine Claire Trevor School of the Arts is excited to announce that the latest volume of Dance Major Journal (DMJ) is now live. This year’s issue brings insightful perspectives from dancers on the...

UC Irvine Faculty and Alumni to Perform at LA Philharmonic’s “Noon to Midnight” Festival

Assistant Professor Rajna Swaminathan and Lecturer Dr. Dawn Norfleet present new music On November 16, 2024, UC Irvine’s Department of Music faculty and alumni will be featured prominently at the LA Philharmonic’s annual “Noon to Midnight” festival, a 12-hour marathon of contemporary music held...

The Many Languages of Dance

Professor Emerita Nancy Lee Ruyter, Ph.D. honored at the 2024 OC Arts Awards for her work in dance education Nancy Lee Ruyter, Ph.D., Professor Emerita in Dance, recently received the 2024 Helena Modjeska Cultural Legacy Award from the OC Arts Awards. This honor recognizes Ruyter’s achievements...

Welcoming New Faculty at UC Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts

Three new UC Irvine faculty members join the Departments of Art, Drama and Dance The Claire Trevor School of the Arts (CTSA) welcomes three new faculty members this fall: Na Mira (Department of Art), Yee Eun Nam (Department of Drama) and E. Macias (Department of Dance). Each faculty member’...

Arts & Interdisciplinary Success

Staged Reading of Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia launches UCI Drama’s Emergent Series in Collaboration with the Beall Center for Art + Technology   By Joel Veenstra, Chair, Department of Drama   The University of California, Irvine, Claire Trevor School of the Arts Department of Drama...

UC Irvine Alum Joe Wein Brings Survival Story to Newport Beach Film Festival

76 Days Adrift directed by Joe Wein ’91 to screen at the 2024 Newport Beach Film Festival UC Irvine alumnus Joe Wein ’91 (B.F.A. theatre, B.S. psychology), will showcase his latest documentary, 76 Days Adrift, at the 25th Annual Newport Beach Film Festival on October 20, 2024. The film...