Vanessa Ballam

Professor of Theatre

Office: SPAC 240J

B.F.A. 2002, Utah State University
B.A. 2003, Utah State University
M.F.A. 2006, Indiana University

Vanessa Ballam has been performing professionally and teaching theatre around the
country for over twenty years. Vanessa currently serves as a Professor, and Head of
Acting in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Idaho State University and is the
Education Director and an Artistic Associate for Utah Festival Opera and Musical
Theatre. She 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 also 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.