University of Utah College of Fine Arts

09/14/2026

Proudly presenting our third annual CFA Research Week, celebrating the depth, rigor, and societal impact of scholarship produced by our faculty, staff, and students.

Spanning Mon 9/21–Fri 9/25, join us for a week-long series of events as we spotlight research that fuels creativity, fosters collaboration across disciplines, and affirms the vital role of the arts in driving economic growth, cultural and civic engagement, and a more innovative, just, and connected future.
⬇️⬇️⬇️

ALL WEEK LONG
🟥 Fine Arts Research Exhibition
🟥 Art & Art History Research Exhibition

MON 9/21
🟥 Art & Art History Research Celebration Reception

TUES 9/22
🟥 Breakfast Open House with the Arts & Health Innovation Lab (registration required)

WEDS 9/23
🟥 CFA Assembly
🟥 CFA Sabbatical Talks and Panel Discussion

THURS 9/24
🟥 Arts & Health Working Group Lab | Yearly Kick-Off (registration req)
🟥The Limón Dance Company in performance presented by UtahPresents

FRI 9/5
🟥 Music Research Celebration Reception

*Specific dates and times linked in our bio (along with Breakfast Open House registration link) and online at finearts.utah.edu/about/annual-events/cfa-research-week.

08/28/2026

💥 ArtsForce Trek to Utah Symphony

Fri 9/18 from 2-4 pm | 123 W South Temple, Salt Lake City, UT

Hey CFA students, tired of the scholarly humdrum? Want a break from classwork? Come on a field trip to Utah Symphony!

As one of the region’s leading cultural institutions, the symphony connects people through music while partnering with artists, organizations, and communities to make the arts more accessible.

On this trek, you can:
-Learn about diverse careers in classical music
-Meet professionals in performance, development, operations, education and more
-Tour the historic Abravanel Hall

✅ RSVP by 9/16 using link in bio. Light refreshments will be provided.

Students are responsible for their own transportation. We will use the GroupMe in the RSVP form to coordinate transportation/immediate announcements with all participants leading up to and on the day of the event.

08/20/2026

So excited for the semester to begin! Here are just some on-campus events you can join us at. More to be announced later!

✏️ GET INVOLVED FAIR
Thurs 8/27 from 10am–2pm
Union Patio to Marriott Library Plaza

🖼️ PLAZAPALOOZA
Tues 9/1 from 12–3pm
Marriott Library Plaza

🎊 ARTS BASH
Weds 9/2 from 11am–2pm
Marriott Library Plaza

🫶🏾 EMPLOYEE APPRECIATION DAY
Thurs 9/17 from 10am–2pm
Rice-Eccles Stadium

📖 CFA RESEARCH WEEK
Mon 9/21–Fri 9/25
Various arts locations across campus

🎭 CFA ASSEMBLY & DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARDS
Weds 9/23 from 10:15am–12:15pm
Kingsbury Hall

👨‍👩‍👦‍👦 U FAMILY WEEKEND
Fri 10/23–Sun 10/25
U of U Campus

08/18/2026

Visit the U Arts Booth at PlazaPalooza on Tues 9/1 from 12-3pm to help create a collaborative mosaic artwork!

Join art students and faculty in making art that celebrates Utah’s flora and fauna, beautifies our campus, and explores mosaic art with our community. No experience is necessary. Just stop by, choose your materials, and add your piece to the project!

The finished mosaics will be permanently displayed in the Department of Art & Art History.

📷: Xhantall Aguilar (Painting and Drawing & Illustration BFA '26, Latin America Studies minor ‘26) and Hannah Taylor (Art Teaching BFA '27) finalize mosaic designs. Courtesy of Adjunct Assistant Professor Sydney Porter Williams.

08/06/2026

STUDIO is the official magazine of the The University of Utah College of Fine Arts; the place where diligence and excellence become influence. 
 
Dive into our 2026 issue where we pull back the veil on our studios and classrooms to show how our spaces combined with specialties and spirit become sway.
 
📖 Read online at finearts.utah.edu/studio-26 or tap our link in bio.
 
On the cover (photo by Todd Collins Photography): Photoshoot for U of U School of Dance’s “Latinx Heritage Celebration” concert from Fall 2025. Featuring “Mamonas” by choreographer Vinicius Lima (Dancers: Top Row From L-R (hats): Lena Robinson, Autumn Ryskoski, Valentina Meija, Kyra Woodall, Hannah Leonard, Esmee Dieckman, Bottom Row From L-R (skirts): Kaidence Vance, Charlotte Parry, Marlie Lavine, Manami Kawai)

Magazine designed by modern8
 
 

THE VARIED ROADS OF CFA ALUMNI /
 
After graduating, our students succeed across the globe both in and out of the arts; this is an examination and celebration of some of our thriving alumni and how their arts degrees set them up for success.
 
Written by Spencer Windes
Photos courtesy of, and featuring, U Of U CFA Alumni

•
 
HALF A CENTURY OF MOVEMENT AND MIGRATION /
Standing on the shoulders of past student organizers, Assistant Professor Kiri Avelar used dance to reflect the resilience, pride, and evolution of the Chicano Movement through a moving concert and exhibition in the School of Dance.
 
Written by Julia Lyon
Photo by Todd Collins Photography
Featuring U of U School of Dance, Kiri Avelar

GIVING UTAH ITS BEAT /
Utah’s righteous jazz music scene has influenced and been deeply influenced by the cats who earned their chops in the U’s Jazz Studies program. The longstanding program is as burnin’ now under Director Josiah Boornazian as it ever was.
 
Written by Spencer Windes
Photos by brandoncruz, The Daily Utah Chronicle
Featuring U of U School of Music, Josiah Boornazian, uofu.jazz
 
•

A NEW LENS ON A FAMILIAR JOURNEY /
Film alumna Nikki Bullock, with the help of TWIG Media Lab, university funding, and interdisciplinary collaboration turned a school assignment script into a short documentary that is generating new knowled

08/05/2026

The College of Fine Arts is filming our new State of the Arts video this Thursday, August 6th and Friday, August 7th.

We are looking for extras who identify as, or can play, college students. Extra plus if you are a current dancer or have a dance background!
 
If you’re able to join us, we’ll give you a U Arts swag bag as a small token of our appreciation.

Interested? Email [email protected] for details.

07/23/2026

This season is 🔥

CARRIE
Music by Michael Gore
Lyrics by Dean Pitchford
Book by Lawrence D. Cohen
Based on the novel by Stephen King
Director & Choreographer Erin Farrell Speer
Music Director Trevor Jex
Meldrum Theatre
October 2–11

Carrie White is a teenage outcast who longs to fit in. At school, she’s bullied by the popular crowd, and virtually invisible to everyone else. At home, she’s dominated by her loving but cruelly controlling mother. What none of them know is that Carrie’s just discovered she’s got a special power, and if pushed too far, she’s not afraid to use it.

HAMLET
By William Shakespeare
Guest Director Jamie Rocha Allan
Voice & Text Coach Sarah Shippobotham
Babcock Theatre
November 13–22
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. Events before the start of Hamlet set the stage for tragedy. When the king of Denmark, Prince Hamlet’s father, suddenly dies, Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude, marries his uncle Claudius, who becomes the new king. “The play’s the thing…”

SWEET CHARITY
Book by Neil Simon
Music by Cy Coleman
Lyrics by Dorothy Fields
Director & Choreographer David Eggers
Music Director Trevor Jex C**n
Meldrum Theatre
February 12–21

Hapless but unflappable Charity Hope Valentine desperately seeks love in New York City in the 1960s. In this exuberant, groovy, hilarious musical comedy, Charity tries again and again to find her dream and make something of herself. Famous for it’s Fosse-style choreography including production numbers like “Rich Man’s Frug,” “Hey, Big Spender,” “If They Could See Me Now,” and “I’m a Brass Band,” Sweet Charity is a delicious romp through 1960’s New York.

THE TWELVE (World Premiere)
Director Penelope Caywood
Kingsbury Hall
March 18-20

Some fairy tales ask you to wait for rescue. The Twelve is not that fairy tale. A new original musical inspired by The Twelve Dancing Princesses, The Twelve is built in the tradition of contemporary ensemble musicals—emotionally driven and unapologetically of this moment.

In a kingdom where everyone is watched, ranked, and expected to perform perfection on demand, twelve sisters are spending their nights doing something the palace definitely didn’t authorize. When their

06/12/2026

Running through the end of June in the Department of Art & Art History’s Gittins Gallery at the University of Utah is an extraordinary exhibition, built not around the work of a single artist, but of a community. Come see The Art of Us: Collective Art for Sustainable Communities. https://www.finearts.utah.edu/news/the-finer-points-blog/a-different-kind-of-gallery-show

06/11/2026

In an act of community and generosity, the Utah Arts Festival leadership has offered members of the College of Fine Arts community (students, alumni, faculty, staff, and U arts affiliates) a considerable discount on tickets to the festival (redemption info below).
And as you might imagine, we have many of our folks exhibiting, performing, screening, and offering hands-on, creative fun. Here are a few we encourage you to check out:

The University of Utah College of Fine Arts faculty and programs challenge, immerse and ultimately prepare committed students for a rewarding career in the arts.

06/02/2026

In Magna, a public school has reinvented itself with the help of arts education. Read about the Magna STEAM academy in the Deseret News. https://www.deseret.com/education/2026/06/01/utah-district-test-scores-above-average-compared-nationwide-low-scores/