Oberlin College and Conservatory has announced actor and choreographer Alex Sanchez will be part of the faculty for its new music theatre program, which launches this fall.

The Ohio college's new program will feature a team of educators who are industry professionals with decades of experience in the field. Sanchez will be the Assistant Professor of Music Theater (Dance).

Sanchez, who will bring 40 years of experience to the classroom, says that many college music theatre programs lack the rigorous dance instruction needed for its students to earn coveted spots in productions on and Off-Broadway, and he hopes to bring this elevated level of training to Oberlin.

”Your foot in the door to musical theatre will be in the  ensemble of a show,” Sanchez said in a statement. “One percent of people will jump into principal roles coming out of college. So what happens to the other 99 percent? They get into the ensemble.”

“We are thrilled to have Alex bring his extensive years of Broadway experience, both as a performer and as a choreographer, to our students at Oberlin Music Theater,” Victoria Bussert, Oberlin founding director and professor of music theatre, said in a statement. “As a full time faculty member, Alex will offer the best of both worlds, combining the highest industry standards with the rigor of higher education.”

Broadway veteran Sanchez has appeared in the original casts of Fosse, Lincoln Center Theater's revival of Carousel, Roundabout Theatre Company's Follies revival, and more. As a choreographer, he contributed musical staging to Broadway's Paradise Square and recently co-choreographed Lincoln Center Theater's Off-Broadway production of The Gardens of Anuncia alongside Graciela Daniele. For The Gardens of Anuncia, he was nominated for 2024 Lucille Lortel and Drama Desk Awards.

Visit Oberlin.edu for more information.