The Department of Performing and Media Arts leads students from all disciplines through artistic and scholarly explorations of live and mediated forms of creativity and expression. Students are challenged to think creatively, critically, and historically about the world around them as they identify and interpret the power of image, sound, gesture, and movement and cultivate their own artistic and academic voices.
Welcome to PMA!
We are excited to welcome you to Cornell or welcome you back! All of us here in Performing and Media Arts (PMA) look forward to helping you find opportunities to make your time in Ithaca more enriching, whether you are a budding performer, a seasoned auteur, an aspiring critic, or just a curious observer. Please use the page linked below as a springboard to the wealth of opportunities available to you in the Schwartz Center:
PMA Events
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Wednesday 05:00 PM
From the Arctic to Broadway and Back: A Conversation with Playwright Carson Kreitzer
Location: Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Reading Room 124
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Thursday 12:30 PM
A Reading of Excerpts from The Trash Project, a New Work in Process by Playwright Carson Kreitzer
Location: Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, 220
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Thursday 03:00 PM
Elemental Readings III: The Matter of Earth
Location: Various
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Friday 09:00 AM
Elemental Readings III: The Matter of Earth
Location: Various
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Saturday 09:00 AM
Elemental Readings III: The Matter of Earth
Location: Various
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Saturday 10:00 AM
Grounded in the World: Trail Running & Climate Justice
Location: Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Group Trail Run: Nevin Welcome Center, Cornell Botanic Gardens. Sustainability Presentations: Film Forum, Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts
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Honors Thesis Screening - Spring 2026
Join PMA for the Honors Thesis Screening on Thursday, May 7, at 5:00 pm in the Kiplinger Theatre, Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts. This exciting showcase of honors film projects by the Cornell Senior Class will feature Undone by Izzy Falchuk ’26, and The Extraordinary Adventures of Ann Robinson by Justin Lee ‘26. Experience outstanding storytelling and gain insight directly from the student directors during a Q&A session following the event. Free and open to the public. Tickets are not required.Join PMA for the Honors Thesis Screening on Thursday, May 7, at 5:00 pm in the Kiplinger Theatre, Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts. This exciting showcase of honors film projects by the Cornell Senior Class will feature Undone by Izzy Falchuk ’26, and The Extraordinary Adventures of Ann Robinson by Justin Lee ‘26. Experience outstanding storytelling and gain insight directly from the student directors during a Q&A session following the event. Free and open to the public. Tickets are not required.
“Endling” - a Duet for Sound and Video
“Endling” is a multichannel sound and video piece screening in the Flexible Theater at the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts from April 23rd to April 24th. The piece will screen every 30 minutes from 10am to 10pm, with an opening reception on Wednesday April 22nd at 7:30pm. Refreshments and desserts will be served!
Sub-Basement Docs: Rock, Flight, Light
Join the Department of Performing and Media Arts for Sub-Basement Docs: Rock, Flight, Light on Wednesday, May 6, from 5:15 pm to 6:30 pm, in the Kiplinger Theatre, Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts. Free and open to the public. Tickets are not required. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers, Suraj Kushwaha, Meena Haribal, and Esther Grace Brenner. Hosted by PMA/Anthropology Assistant Professor Natasha Raheja.
Student Film Screening - Spring 2026
Join the Department of Performing and Media Arts for the Student Film Screening, on Thursday, May 7, at 6:30 pm, and Friday, May 8, at 5:00 pm, in the Kiplinger Theatre, Schwartz Center for Performing Arts.
PMA Professor David Feldshuh Discusses Play “Miss Evers’ Boys” on Doctor Radio
PMA Professor David Feldshuh was interviewed on Doctor Radio Book Club, a segment of Doctor Radio on SiriusXM 110. Feldshuh spoke about his play Miss Evers’ Boys with hosts, Dr. Katherine Hochman, NYU Langone physician, and Dilshad Marolia, NYU Langone System Director, Hospitals Regulatory and Policy Management.
Grounded in the World: Trail Running & Climate Justice
Join the Department of Performing and Media Arts and Footprints Running for Grounded in the World: Trail Running & Climate Justice on Saturday, April 25. A Group Trail Run will take place at 10:00 am, starting at the Nevin Welcome Center, Cornell Botanic Gardens, followed by conversation and snacks. Sustainability Presentations will take place at 5:30 pm, in the Film Forum, Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts. Free and open to the public. Tickets are not required. Please RSVP to either/both events.
Glitch Dance with Dr. Thomas DeFrantz
Join the Department of Performing and Media Arts for Glitch Dance with Dr. Thomas DeFrantz on Sunday, April 12, from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm, in the Ballet Studio (Room 320), Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts. Lunch will be provided. Please RSVP by April 9 by emailing drusso@cornell.edu.
Elemental Readings III: The Matter of Earth
Join the Department of Performing and Media Arts and the Department of Classics for Elemental Readings III: The Matter of Earth, a symposium spanning four days and various locations from Thursday, April 23 through Saturday, April 25, and on Friday, May 1. A performance of BIOphelia will take place on Thursday, April 23, from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm, in Room 121, Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability. The Earth Symposium show will take place on Thursday, April 23, from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm, in the Black Box Theatre, Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts. See below for a complete list of events, including guest speakers, panel discussions, art exhibitions, workshops, and contributor abstracts. Free and open to the public. First-come, first-served.
Land Acknowledgement
Cornell University is located on the traditional homelands of the Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ' (the Cayuga Nation). The Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ' are members of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, an alliance of six sovereign Nations with a historic and contemporary presence on this land. The Confederacy precedes the establishment of Cornell University, New York state, and the United States of America. We acknowledge the painful history of Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ' dispossession, and honor the ongoing connection of Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ' people, past and present, to these lands and waters.
This land acknowledgment has been reviewed and approved by the traditional Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫ' leadership.