ABOUT

Samohi Theatre is a top-tier, award-winning high school drama program committed equally to diversity and excellence.

The mission of the Santa Monica High School Theatre Department is to provide Samohi students with opportunities to develop their acting, singing, dancing, musical and technical theater skills, through rigorous coursework, live performances, and high quality stage productions. The program strives to be inclusive, build community, and take risks to address relevant social issues through theatre.

Students have placed in regional theatre competitions and have successfully gained entrance to college theatre programs. More importantly, theatre program students gain the skills, confidence, and experience that propel and sustain them throughout their adult life.

Santa Monica High School Theatre is led by Director Kate Barraza. Ms. Barraza is in her 14th year at Samohi and her 21st year of teaching theatre and directing plays in SMMUSD, LAUSD and Portland, Oregon. She received her B.A. from Evergreen State College and her M.A. from Portland State University, and studied educational theatre at New York University. She has directed musical, comedy, dramatic theatre, and has written her own work.

Samohi Theatre performs in two venues on campus:

Barnum Hall, a 1,200-seat WPA landmark in the center of campus, built in 1938 and beautifully renovated in 2004.
Humanities Center Theater, an intimate space with various configurations that can hold up to 200 people, located near the Michigan/7th Street gate.

For inquiries, please contact our producer at Producer@samohitheatre.org