Arts

Gifted Performers & Creators

In the gallery, the dance studios, the concert hall, the recital hall, and the flexible theatre, a rich and diverse arts season awaits you at Belhaven University.

View the Arts Calendar & Reserve Tickets

Support the Arts at Belhaven

Singing Christmas Tree

This annual event held during the first weekend in December. Started in 1933, the Belhaven Singing Christmas Tree is considered to be the world's oldest outdoor singing Christmas tree tradition. Members of the Belhaven Concert Choir, along with alumni, faculty, and staff, typically perform the outdoor Singing Christmas Tree concert on the first weekend in December. A large new 35 foot tall wooden and metal tree structure accommodates up to 100 singers.

Attend This Beloved Belhaven Tradition

1/3 Student Artists & Performers

One-third of Belhaven’s traditional undergraduate students participate in arts classes and events

Over 50 Arts Events Annually

Dance and music recitals, plays and musicals, film screenings, holiday concerts, and more

4 Art Galleries/Exhibitions

Belhaven’s student artists display their craft in modern, high-tech arts facilities in the heart of campus

"The incredible faculty and outstanding training of the Dance department at Belhaven caught my eyes when I was at the Ad Deum Dance Intensive. Belhaven is preparing me to meet life's expectations head on and fulfill God's incredible mission for my life."

Lauren Small

"I chose Belhaven because here the professors are concerned with teaching you to foster your own personal art-making process and developing you as a working, independent artist."

Hannah Gillis

"Belhaven has helped me improve immensely in my skills as a pianist and accompanist and I am much more prepared to enter the world of professionals. I was attracted to Belhaven by the quality of music instruction and the focus on Christ through the entire university."

Nicole Nutting

"I explore my love of nature through both photography and painting. My photographs focus on capturing the hidden and sometimes overlooked features of life. I also paint landscapes and mixed media collages incorporating organic and industrial materials found in every day life."

Haley Franklin

"I chose to come to Belhaven because of the excellence of the Creative Writing program. The warm, magnetic atmosphere of the campus reinforced my decision to make this place my home."

David Syrigos

"Because of my degree from Belhaven University I have made many connections both personally and professionally in the dance field which will direct next steps and allow for collaboration in the future. It has been an honor to work closely with so many professional artists and gain wisdom from those who have gone before me."

Victoria Tomes

"I chose to attend Belhaven because I wanted to go to a smaller university that still had a strong arts department. Because of my graphic design degree, I'll be ready to go into the very competitive field of graphic design with the right skills and a strong Christian worldview."

Kathryn Veldhorst

"Belhaven is a place I call home. Because of my theatre degree from Belhaven, I will be able to understand, apply and explain all cylinders of work that go into making a play production."

CJ Riggs

"I'm glad I chose to attend Belhaven because the faculty has helped and encouraged me to develop my skills while branching into other areas of theatre besides performance. Upon graduating, I will have a well-rounded education rooted in the principles of how to be a faithful steward of the artistic abilities God has given me."

Julia Polson

"I chose to attend Belhaven because of it's Christian worldview and has separate dance and theatre departments and would allow me to double major. My fellow students are not only my close friends, but also my biggest supporters and collaborators. I feel confident in pursuing my goals as a professional performer and choreographer. I am being equipped and encouraged every semester!"

Liz Morales

"My favorite thing about Belhaven is the fact that it is Christ-centered. It’s the perfect place for young adults who are seeking or growing in their faith and relationship with Jesus Christ."

Christian Venzen

"At Belhaven, I immediately felt at home and with the help from my peers and professors, I began to develop my voice as an artist. I enjoy exploring organic and geometric patterns through graphic design, drawing, and mixed-media sculptures."

Mollie Jones

"At the Belhaven Art Department, you get so much more than simply art classes. I have learned so much about myself, my process, and my relationship with the Lord as I follow him on this path. This department has been a huge blessing to me."

Hannah Mucha

"My favorite thing about Belhaven is the authentic community and Christ filled learning."

Eden Edwards

"As soon as I found Belhaven, I immediately fell in love with the school and its mission. However, the thing that particularly sold me on Belhaven was its Double Major promise. As a double major in Dance and Sports Medicine, I am able to pursue both my passions and do so through a Christ-centered lens. I have also loved the faculty within both departments and how they push me to do my best in all that I do."

Riley Galat

"Because of my degree from Belhaven University I will be ready to impart with excellence to the world what I learned as a student, a dancer, and a minister of God. I came to Belhaven looking for a safe place to grow and refine my skills as a dancer, but even more importantly, as a worshiper."

Cindy Alvarez

"In the Belhaven Visual Arts department I have learned how to ‘see’ art—not just looking at it, but noticing all the technical details, engaging with a piece mentally and emotionally, understanding why a piece makes me feel a certain way, and having some idea of the artist’s intentions. Now I understand how to see and feel art."

Deja Harris

"Our art department is extremely beneficial for my personal mindset, career goals and my future career. My professors are patient with me as I build my self-confidence as an artist. Since coming to Belhaven, I know that these are some of the best years of my life. I have already made lifelong connections here."

Ollie Porter

"I will be able to do what I love, create stories and adventures that influence the world through literature."

Anna Howard

"I've always been interested in art. I experiment a lot with abstract forms and strange compositions through mixed media and photography. I like to use dark media like charcoal, black paint, and high-contrast film photography to explore Biblical and spiritual concepts and their effect on how we perceives the world."

Samuel Thomas. 2023

Bitsy Irby Visual Arts & Dance Center

The 42,756-square-foot Bitsy Irby Visual Arts & Dance Center is a best-in-class facility featuring five professional dance studios, a fully equipped dance performance theatre, computer design labs, photography studios and darkroom, painting, drawing and sculpture studios, faculty offices, and a beautiful art gallery.

Angie Thomas ’11, Creative Writing

Award-winning author Angie Thomas earned her BFA in creative writing from Belhaven University. Her first published novel, The Hate U Give, started as her senior project. It debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and was adapted into a critically acclaimed film. 

Belhaven Creative Writing on Facebook

After Kris earned his bachelor’s degree from Belhaven, he apprenticed under the famous artist Thomas Blackshear. He’s now an award-winning art director with Penguin Random House, one of the world’s largest publishing houses. Kris and his wife Cheri were co-winners of the 2022 Belhaven Alumni Award for Arts Excellence.

Belhaven Art & Design on Facebook

A Magna Cum Laude graduate at Belhaven, Cheri performs with the Ormao Dance Company and teaches dance in Colorado Springs. In addition, she shares her passion with dance students at the University of Colorado and Ormao’s Dance for Parkinson’s program. Cheri and her husband Kris were co-winners of the 2022 Belhaven Alumni Award for Arts Excellence.

Belhaven Dance on Facebook

Shellie, a principal violinist with the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, was appointed as Acting Concertmaster for the 2021-2022 season following nationwide auditions.

Belhaven Music on Facebook

Alberto works in sound design, video production and editing, and live event streaming at NewStage Theatre, Mississippi's only professional/regional theatre.

Creative Writing

Traditional/Digital

Dance

Music

Theatre

Visual Arts

Film Production

Graphic Design

Creative Writing

Traditional/Digital

Dance

Music

The Center for the Arts

The Center for the Arts — home to Belhaven’s music and theatre departments — features piano and computer labs, soundproof practice rooms, a flexible black box theatre, costuming and technical design areas, and numerous teaching studios, classrooms, faculty offices, and performance spaces.

The 800-seat concert hall holds weekly chapel services as well as numerous performances throughout the year.

Academic Degrees: The Scholarly Approach to the Arts

Art + Design

Creative Writing

Dance

Film Production

Music

Theatre

1 of 39 colleges accredited in all of the arts

National Distinction

Belhaven University is one of only 39 colleges or universities in the U.S. nationally accredited in all four major areas of the arts: Visual Arts, Dance, Theatre, and Music.