TO: All Employees; All Seawolves
FR: Christine Cali, Chair of the Department of Theater Arts and Dance
If there was ever a production to bring the SSU community together, it’s this one. Not just because its message is powerful and moving, but because it reminds us why the arts matter. Theater Arts and Dance aren’t just entertainment -- they’re a vital part of our university’s cultural heartbeat. And this week, we have the chance to celebrate that together. This play isn’t just a performance, it’s a moment to connect, reflect, and be inspired. Join us!
Free tickets for SSU students, faculty, and staff! Follow these steps to get yours:
1. Open the link "GET TICKETS"
2. Open the menu (☰), go to My Account, and log in to your SSU account
3. Click on Sonoma State University at the top to return to events
4. Select your event one more time, and choose Student or Faculty/Staff tickets
5. VOILA! NO CHARGE for mobile wallet or email tickets
Thursday, March 6 at 7:30 pm
Friday, March 7 at 7:30 pm
Saturday, March 8 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, March 9 at 2:00 pm
Evert B. Person Theater
From the Director, Ely Sonny Orquiza:
At its core, Perfect Arrangement is a play about the masks we wear to survive -- masks of conformity, of respectability, of safety. Set in the 1950s during the Lavender Scare, when LGBTQ+ federal employees were targeted and purged from government service, the play forces us to ask: How far have we really come? And how much further do we need to go?
In a time when history is being challenged, rewritten, or even erased, this play reminds us that the fight for visibility, dignity, and justice is ongoing. The struggles faced by the characters in Perfect Arrangement -- to live authentically in a world that demands silence -- resonate far beyond their era. They echo in today’s conversations about identity, censorship, and the right to simply exist without fear.
As we bring this production to life at SSU, we are reminded of the urgency of art. Theatre is not just entertainment -- it is protest, memory, and revolution. It is a space where we confront hard truths, where we imagine better futures, and where we remind ourselves why community and storytelling matter. Now, more than ever, we must invest in and fight for the arts -- not just to preserve them, but to ensure that voices, especially those historically marginalized, continue to be heard.
To those who have built, nurtured, and sustained this program: your work does not end here. The impact of the stories you have told and the spaces you have created will continue beyond this stage, this production, and this institution. Thank you for being part of this moment.
