Convocation 2026: Sarah Dolman

For as long as she can remember, Sarah Dolman's life has been guided by dance and movement. A First Class Honors (Drama) graduate, her approach to performance has long been defined by embodied storytelling, a practice she has consciously developed through her studies and campus engagement activities.

Combining academic excellence with a passion for musical theatre, she sees performance through the lens of movement, collaboration and body-positivity. As a dancer, producer or director, for Sarah, the stage is everything — the source of all creative expression and artistic kinship.

Her experiences with student-run groups such as MOD Contemporary Dance Movement and the New Works Festival, where she took on a number of leadership roles, exemplifies her commitment to fostering inclusive, multidisciplinary environments where art serves as a catalyst for community and social connection.

As this educational journey comes to a close, Sarah’s passion for the performing arts remains as vibrant as ever.

“If one thing is for certain, the act of live creation will fuel my academic and artistic life for a long time to come.”

Congratulations Sarah!

WHAT DID YOU STUDY AND WHERE DOES YOUR THEATRICAL PRACTICE COME FROM?

I am a graduate of the BA Honors (Drama) with First Class Honors. My theatrical practice stems from a foundation of dance and bodily movement. Being a dancer since I was six years old, learning about performance and being on a stage felt natural to me. Which led me into my passions of creative collaboration and direction for all bodies onstage, musical theatre and classic play producing and directing.

WHAT WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE LIKE AS A STUDENT AND DID YOU TAKE ON ANY LEADERSHIP ROLES?

I am super fond of my student life experience, as I allowed many different extracurricular activities to shape my social circles and expand my learning beyond what was taught in the classrooms. I participated in various student groups which taught me valuable lessons of kindness and dedication towards the world of making and creating art. I was part of MOD Contemporary Dance Movement for all four years of my degree, and sat in leadership positions including: vice president, president, risk management officer and dance captain. The club helped continue my passion for dance, which had grounded me since I was young. It acted as a home for students to come together across all years and faculties through the love of art and dance.

I also sat on the board of the New Works Festival in the Department of Drama. This group is an entirely student-run, directed, written, stage managed, acted and produced show of new drama plays. While acting and directing in other years, in my 3rd year, I served as the executive director, guiding the vision of the festival and establishing new opportunities for the festival to grow. This included Headshot Day, In Development Night (for the scripts that were not selected for mainstage shows), new student/drama funded scholarships and — a completely sold out run!

What greatly helped my learning journey was receiving various forms of financial support and awards throughout the years. A few notable scholarships included the Wendy Cassady Memorial Scholarship in Fine Arts, the Ruth Timms Nishioka Scholarship in Drama and the Norm Usiskin Scholarship in Drama.

In my final semester in the honors program, I completed and presented my undergraduate thesis on kinesthetic empathy; constructing audience-to-performer connectionality through dance!

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?

Much like the life of a BA drama student, my future is less set in stone. I do know that the program has set me up with many skills in various areas of artistic practice. While being in student groups has helped me develop my dance love and passion for producing, I am plagued with the questions: what path do I choose? Do I have to choose one? I feel drawn to directing, acting and dancing, and can't wait to see what comes up next. The overall goal is to travel abroad to take a master's degree in an element of performance art and movement creation.

If one thing is for certain, the act of live creation will fuel my academic and artistic life for a long time to come.