A Creative Future

The list is extraordinary and keeps growing. Alumni from the College of Visual and Performing Arts work at The Smithsonian Institute, MTV, HBO, the Museum of Modern Art, The National Endowment for the Arts and countless other famous arts organizations.

Our alumni are successful artists, musicians, actors, cinematographers, dancers, directors, producers, choreographers, writers, technicians, designers, teachers, entrepreneurs, and administrators working in 47 states and 15 countries.

Ariel Kraje, Musical Theater, 2022

School of Theater alumna, Ariel Kraje, appeared in The Drowsy Chaperone at the Workhouse Arts Theater in the spring of 2024. She played one of the ensemble cast as well as being the dance captain for the show, responsible for overseeing and maintaining the artistic standards of all choreography and musical staging within a production.

Anna Lopez, Dance, 2024

School of Dance Class of 2024 alumna, Anna Lopez, will be joining the vibrant Montréal dance company RUBBERBAND for their upcoming season. The hallmark of the company, the RUBBERBAND Method, comprises a unique choreographic vocabulary developed by Victor Quijada. It is now taught throughout the world in university programs, workshops, and master classes.

2020 School of Dance alumnus, Jovick Pavajeau-Orostegui, has been a professional dancer with RUBBERBAND since joining the company in 2021. This followed a year-long apprenticeship with David Dorfman Dance.

School of Dance alumni are working at companies including the Mark Morris Dance Group, Parsons Dance, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal, The Paul Taylor Dance Company, Bill T. Jones, Metropolitan Opera Ballet, and many more.

Stephanie Cabacoy, Arts Management, 2019

Stephanie Cabacoy (MA, Arts Management) is the Director of Marketing at the American Shakespeare Center, in Staunton, VA. She oversees group sales, manages the marketing and sales strategy, and serves as the main point of contact for community partnerships. Stephanie found it hard to find a full-time job due to lack of experience so her undergrad professor suggested she pursue a master’s degree and learn about arts administration. This led her to George Mason's Arts Management Graduate Program, where she explored marketing, programming, development, and finance. The program provided insights from practitioners and administrators, shaping her understanding of effective practices from working professionals in the arts administrative world. Her Arts Management studies led to her first full-time position with the ASC. Read the story.

Bella Panciocco, Theater '23

Bella Panciocco (BFA Theater ’23) wrote the play The Road to the End while a student at George Mason University, which went on to win Best Drama at the D.C. Fringe Festival. It was directed by Megan Gray Lederman (BA Theater, BA English ’23) and Darren Badley, (BA Theater ’23), and the cast and crew were made up entirely of George Mason students and graduates. The play got strong reviews from DC Theater Arts and Broadway World. Read the story.

Kyle Finnegan, Film & Video Studies '17

2022-2023 Young Alumni Commissioning Project winner Kyle Finnegan (Film & Video Studies, '17) presented a screening of his new documentary short, MSG: Mysterious Savory Grains, which is now streaming on PBS. Kyle said "I've always admired PBS' commitment to distributing short form documentaries and it's been a dream of mine to add to that library. Major shoutout to Maryland Public Television for working with us to make this happen!" Read the story.