Talia Buonora (BA, 2025)
Talia Buonora, is a 2025 graduate from the Bachelor of Arts Programs in both Theater Arts and Communication Rhetoric. Talia is currently working in the theatre industry in New York City. While at Pitt, Talia was an active member of Pitt Stages production teams, her favorite show being the 2024 production of Spring Awakening in which she served in the role of Assistant Stage Manager.
What made you decide to pursue studying Theatre Arts at the University of Pittsburgh?
I actually didn’t start as a Theatre Arts major! I entered Pitt with the plan of doing communications and film production and maybe doing theater in my free time as a hobby. It wasn’t until about half way through my sophomore year that I realized I wasn’t doing what truly made me happy. I did some theater in high school and I found a love for stage management, my theatrical focus, and figured I could use my stage management skills in any career I ended up in. Truthfully I was hesitant to pursue theater because I was worried about finding work post-grad.
How did the Theatre Arts program help prepare you for life after graduation?
The part of the Theatre Arts program that I am most grateful for is how well-rounded it is. Although my focus was always Stage Management, I believe that having a background in different aspects of theater has made me a more competent and understanding team member. Having this extensive background helped me understand my own job better as well as understand and relate to other production members better. I also greatly value that I can use the things I learned at Pitt to do jobs outside of stage management, it helps ease my mind that I can accept multiple different types of theater jobs if I am ever struggling to get an Stage Management gig.
What are you currently doing in the theatre industry? How did you find your way there?
Currently I am working as a freelance Stage Manager in NYC! I moved in the summer following my spring 2025 graduation and have since served as the Stage Manager for a mixed-genre dance show. I am also actively working as the Assistant Stage Manager for a production of Macbeth that is headlining a larger theater festival and I have plans to Stage Manage a production of Oklahoma in the fall! I found my way to these opportunities through the connections and networks that I built at Pitt. I was very involved in the Pitt Stages community and have stayed in contact with many of my professors and peers who always share opportunities with me, for which I am so extremely grateful.
Do you have any thoughts or advice for current students interested in pursuing theatre in college or beyond?
Following your passion is worth it! Creating art is worth it! It’s not easy to pursue a career in the arts, but it is so worth it to follow your dreams. Even if your goal is to do theater in college before you go off to the real world, the things you will learn are invaluable and can be applied to endless different careers. Do not ever let anyone tell you that your degree or your skills are worthless. Just because theater isn’t life or death doesn’t mean it has no meaning. Doing what you love will always be worth it. Art can save the world!!