Spectrum Theatre Company

Founded in 2005, Spectrum Theatre Company started as a theatre and activism organization outside of STUCO. After 6 successful seasons, Spectrum joined the Coalition as Northwestern’s only Socio-Political Theatre board. Since then, Spectrum has collaborated with multiple on and off-campus organizations to marry theatre and activism, as well as promoting diversity and sustainability in theatrical spaces.

In 2023, Spectrum and Lipstick Theatre (Northwestern’s former Feminist Theatre Board) decided to join their efforts and resources as a single organization, resulting in a combined total of 5 shows per season. In the fall, we produce Lipstick’s Standup, Northwestern’s only audition-free Standup show, as well as our Fall Scripted Sustainability Slot. In the Winter, we produce Northwestern’s only yearly Devised Theatre Festival: Firelight. And, in the spring, we produce Lipstick’s Burlesque and Project NU, Northwestern’s only Documentary Theatre Show.

Some of our most recent Slots include: Littlespace, or the daddy play; Theatre: A Love Story, and Daybreak Guild. Other historical productions include Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Merrily We Roll Along. In their efforts for Accessibility and Sustainability, Spectrum was also the founder of multiple now-common practices in STUCO. In the 2010s, Spectrum founded the idea of On-call hours, a method to provide support to ongoing productions during Tech-week. Spectrum has also been a leading advocate for sustainability in set-construction. We have led and encouraged the STUCO community to reuse and recycle scenery and lumber from larger shows in smaller productions, as a form of reducing both costs and waste.