Missy Pfohl Smith has been appointed director of the Institute for the Performing Arts.
Smith serves as director of the Program of Dance and Movement at the University of Rochester as well as artistic director of the modern dance company BIODANCE. She received her MFA from Sarah Lawrence College. Smith succeeds John Covach, professor of music in the Department of Music and director of the Institute for Popular Music.
The appointment, pending a Board of Trustees vote later this summer, is effective July 1 for a three-year term.
The Institute for the Performing Arts was formed in 2015 to bring together the disciplines of music, theater, and dance into a collaborative venture. The institute serves as a center for performance programs on the River Campus as a way to further inspire students with or without prior training or experience to explore a variety of aesthetic art forms and opportunities. The institute works to increase collaboration and strengthen the relationships among the College, the Eastman School of Music, and the Memorial Art Gallery.
