Theatre and Dance Department Production Records

Theatre at Texas State University can trace its origins back to the Chautauqua Literary Society, a group organized in 1903 by male students interested in “self-culture in public speaking.” Courses in Speech began being offered, with a course in Dramatic Production added on in 1928. In 1930, a Division of Speech Arts was added to the English Department. By 1947, the Speech Department was a separate entity, although still loosely associated with Journalism and English. A compact theatre had been constructed inside the old Normal Auditorium in Old Main. The department continued to grow, and in 1959 it was transferred to the Education deprtment. A graduate program in Speech and Drama was added in 1970, and in 1971 the new Speech-Drama Center was built. Now known as the Theatre Center, it is still in use today by the Department of Theatre and Dance.