Vanessa Ballam

Biography

Vanessa Ballam has been performing professionally and teaching theatre around the country for over twenty years. Vanessa currently serves as an Assistant Professor at Utah State University. Prior to USU, Vanessa was a Professor and Head of Acting in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Idaho State University. Vanessa is the Associate Artistic Director and Education Director for Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre and also serves as a Vice-Chair for The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival - Region VII. Vanessa has performed with companies around the country such as Theatre Under the Stars, PCPA Theatrefest, The Utah Shakespeare Festival, Pennsylvania Shakespeare, Anchorage Opera, Music Theatre West, Oregon Cabaret Theatre, Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre and Lyric Repertory Company.

Vanessa spent three years as a Resident Actor at the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts in Santa Maria, CA where she oversaw the first-year acting program. She has previously served as a visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre at Utah State University. Vanessa is the founding director of the annual Utah High School Musical Theatre Awards, the Utah affiliate for the NHSMTA – Jimmy Awards, and the Utah Festival Conservatory of the Performing Arts. A former Miss Utah, Vanessa was honored with the Bert Parks talent award at the Miss America Pageant. Vanessa is married to Actor Stefan Espinosa and together they have two miraculous children. She is a proud member of Actor’s Equity & VASTA and received her M.F.A. in Acting from Indiana University, and her B.A. and B.F.A. from Utah State University.