New and Original Works

Create | Collaborate | Innovate

We're shaping the future!

Shape the future of the performing arts through new works.

The performing arts thrive because artists continue to ask new questions, tell new stories, and imagine new possibilities. New works are the foundation of artistic innovation, providing spaces where creators, performers, designers, directors, and audiences collaborate to bring original ideas to life.

"Inside the Dream Machine" (2024) inspired by the fall exhibition Dream Machine: Fantasy, Surreality, and Play at the Ulrich Museum. Dancers: Andrae Carter '26 & Samantha Zimmerman '26. Choreography: Mina Estrada; Musical Live Score: ICTus. Photo Credit Emmett: Joseph

Jo Zakas Musical Theatre Incubator Bela Kiralyfalvi National Student Playwriting Competition Original Films & Audio Storytelling New Dance Works Original Design and Production Innovation

Photo at the top of the page is from an original film, "It's Nice to Finally Meet You," by Assistant Professor, Kate Compton, cinematography by Aaron Kunkel. Pictured are students Pashence Adkins, Liliana Jimenez, Mia Dennett, Kelsi Harris, & Hannah Brady. Photo credit by Bartlett PhotoArt.

Creating the Future & Expanding Career Opportunities

In the School of Performing Arts at Wichita State, students are not only trained to interpret and perform existing works - they are empowered to create new ones. Through experiences such as our playwriting competition, musical theatre development, film production, audio storytelling, choreography, design, and collaborative devising, students help develop original projects from concept to production while learning to generate ideas, conduct research, write and revise, collaborate across disciplines, lead projects, and transform artistic vision into reality.

Creating new work requires a distinct set of skills beyond performance alone. These experiences expand students' abilities beyond their degree concentration, developing creativity, leadership, communication, entrepreneurship, adaptability, and project management skills. By learning how to create, develop, produce, and promote original work, students expand their career opportunities across the arts and entertainment industries as performers, writers, choreographers, directors, filmmakers, designers, producers, arts administrators, content creators, and creative entrepreneurs.

Innovation begins with imagination. Through new works, our students and faculty bring new stories to life while developing the creativity, collaboration, leadership, and entrepreneurial skills that shape the future of the performing arts.

Cheyla Clawson,
Director, School of Performing Arts

Jo Zakas Musical Theatre Incubator

New musicals begin with bold ideas and collaborative artists. Our Jo Zakas Musical Theatre Incubator supports the development of original musicals by connecting student performers, writers, composers, directors, choreographers, and designers in the creative process.

Through workshops, readings, developmental productions, and collaborative exploration, students gain experience helping bring a new musical from the page to the stage.

Pictured left in the foreground are students Ava Wiechman, Dot McMillen, & Elena Cianciolo in the original musical, "PSYCH!," created by the writing team of Amanda D'Archangelis (music) & Sami Honeff (lyrics). You can read more about this production & it's creation.

Bela Kiralyfalvi National Student Playwriting Competition

Our National Student Playwriting Competition celebrates emerging voices and encourages the creation of new theatrical works. Selected plays receive staged readings, audience feedback, and development opportunities led by guest directors who are professional actors with experience in theatre, film, and television. Working directly with playwrights and industry professionals, students learn how new plays are developed, revised, rehearsed, and brought to life while gaining valuable experience in script development, collaboration, creative problem-solving, and originating new roles.

Pictured right are students Jordan Bodenhamer & Colton Farmer performing in the reading of "Now We Are A Hundred" written by the 2025 Winner Alaina Tennant & directed by alumna Jane Gabbert '77.

Original Films

Students participate in faculty-led film projects that immerse them in the development and production of original cinematic works. Through acting, dance, design, editing, and production roles, students build collaborative and technical skills while gaining experience in visual storytelling, creative problem-solving, teamwork, and professional practices relevant to film and media careers today..

Audio Storytelling

Students participate in original audio shows and narrative storytelling projects that emphasize performance through voiceover and spoken-word expression. Through these experiences, students develop skills in vocal communication, character creation, script interpretation, collaboration, and audience engagement while gaining experience relevant to careers in voice acting, podcasting, broadcasting, narration, and digital media.

New Dance Works

Original choreography is central to dance as a living and evolving art form. Through faculty collaborations, works by regional, national, and international choreographers, senior concerts, and the annual Student Choreography Showcase, students create and perform new dance works while developing skills in creativity, collaboration, leadership, artistic research, and professional practice.

Lille's highlight should be about ACDA and being a 1st alternate for the national festival for this solo work (the info should be in the spring concert playbill of her grad year). Her research was related to her group piece, not this solo.

Pictured right is alumna Lille Nightingale ('25) performing her original dance capstone project, "Lord Have Mercy." Her solo was chosen as the first alternate selection to represent the central region at the 2025 National Collee Dance Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.

When asked about the piece, Nightgale stated, "I grew up in a Lebanese family and as an Orthodox Christian. My family, culture, heritage, and love for God have always been intertwined. So I tried to show their importance to me in this piece." Nightingale's work "exemplifies the strength of commitment to worlds that stretch across formations of culture. This exquisite solo reveals the dynamic reward of moving with a resistant and receptive body.”

Photo credit Bartlett PhotoArt.

Original Design and Production Innovation

Students engage in original scenic, costume, lighting, and sound design projects through close collaboration with faculty and guest artists. These mentorship-focused experiences foster creativity, technical expertise, and collaborative problem-solving while preparing students to translate artistic concepts into compelling productions and build professional portfolios of creative innovation for future careers.

Pictured left is the set of "Spring Awakening." Students Fio Willis and Leo Porcaro were Co-Scenic Designers.