Silicon Valley, you say? No art, you say? Well, prepare to be astounded by the diversity of student arts organizations on campus. If you want a crash course in some of the major active undergraduate-focused arts activity organizations here at Stanford, then look no further. This is by no means a complete list, but if you’re looking to try something new or find a close community during your undergraduate career, then consider checking out one of these groups!

Organizations in alphabetical order.

COMEDY/PERFORMANCE

Organization name: Flying Treehouse
The lowdown: Stanford’s children’s theater company. Members create their own pieces and perform them.

Organization name: Robber Barons
Nickname/acronym: Barons
The lowdown: Stanford’s sketch comedy troupe.

Organization name: Stand Up, D
The lowdown: Stanford’s stand-up comedy organization. Performs every quarter and at CoHo.

Organization name: Stanford Improvisors
Nickname/acronym: SImps
The lowdown: Stanford’s first improv group. Students can audition once they take Beginning Improvisation, TAPS 103.

Organization name: Unscripted Playhouse of Stanford
Nickname/acronym: UPS (yes, like the shipping company)
The lowdown: Stanford’s newest improvisational theater troupe. Based around the Upright Citizens Brigade model of teams exploring different forms of improv, theater and comedy.

DANCE

Organization name: Alliance Streetdance
Nickname/acronym: Alliance
The lowdown: Hip-hop dance group.

Organization name: Ballet Folklórico de Stanford
The lowdown: Mexican folk dance group.

Organization name: Basmati Raas
The lowdown: Stanford’s Indian raas/garba dance team.

Organization name: Cardinal Ballet Company
Nickname/acronym: CBC
The lowdown: Stanford’s ballet company.

Organization name: Chocolate Heads
The lowdown: Stanford’s interdisciplinary and mixed-genre dance group.

Organization name: Common Origins
Nickname/acronym: CO
The lowdown: Urban dance group. No auditions required.

Organization name: dv8
The lowdown: Hip-hop dance group.

Organization name: Kaorihiva
The lowdown: Stanford’s Polynesian dance group. Performs at the annual Hawai’i Club’s Lu’au.

Organization name: Los Salseros De Stanford
The lowdown: Stanford’s salsa dancing group.

Organization name: Stanford Bhangra
The lowdown: Stanford’s Bhangra dance group, performing traditional Punjabi folk dance.

Organization name: Stanford Chinese Dance
The lowdown: Stanford’s Chinese dance group. Performs classical and contemporary Chinese dance.

Organization name: Stanford Swingtime
The lowdown: Stanford’s swing dance group.

Organization name: tapTH@T
The lowdown: Tap-focused dance group.

Organization name: Viennese Ball
The lowdown: The group behind an annual event featuring social dancing and live music.

Organization name: XTRM
The lowdown: K-pop and East Asian-pop dance team. No auditions required.

MUSIC

Organization name: Cardinal Calypso
Nickname/acronym: Calypso
The lowdown: Stanford’s Caribbean music group. Known for playing the steel drums all over campus.

Organization name: Counterpoint
The lowdown: Stanford’s first all-female a cappella group. Second oldest a cappella group.

Organization name: Everyday People
Nickname/acronym: EP
The lowdown: R&B, Motown, hip-hop and soul a cappella group. Co-ed.

Organization: Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band
Nickname/acronym: LSJUMB
The lowdown: Stanford’s infamous marching band. Known for their wacky outfits and nontraditional instruments.

Organization name: Mixed Company
Nickname/acronym: Mixed Co
The lowdown: Popular music a cappella group. Co-ed.

Organization name: O-Tone
The lowdown: East Asian-interest a cappella group. Co-ed.

Organization name: Stanford Chinese Music Ensemble
The lowdown: Dedicated to playing traditional Chinese music and instruments.

Organization name: Stanford Fleet Street Singers
Nickname: Fleet Street
The lowdown: Comedy a cappella group with all-original songs. All-male.

Organization name: Stanford Harmonics
The lowdown: Alternative rock a cappella group. Co-ed.

Organization name: Stanford Jazz Orchestra
The lowdown: Dedicated to performing big band jazz. Performs every quarter in Bing Concert Hall.

Organization name: Stanford Mendicants
Nickname: The Mendicants
The lowdown: Stanford’s oldest a cappella group. All-male.

Organization name: Stanford Raagapella
The lowdown: South Asian-interest a cappella group. Co-ed.

Organization name: Stanford Symphony Orchestra
The lowdown: Found in 1891, the orchestra preferences students but is open to all community members.

Organization name: Stanford Taiko
The lowdown: Dedicated to the practice of taiko, a form of Japanese drumming.

Organization name: Talisman
The lowdown: Dedicated to sharing global stories through song.

Organization name: Testimony A Cappella
The lowdown: Christian a cappella group on campus. Co-ed.

THEATER

Organization name: Asian American Theater Project
Nickname/acronym: AATP
The lowdown: Dedicated to promoting and exploring Asian American narratives, representation and issues onstage. Co-founded by Asian American playwright David Henry Hwang during his years at Stanford.

Organization name: BLACKstage
The lowdown: Dedicated to highlighting the Black experience in theater. Recently put on “The Wiz.”

Organization name: Latinxs in Theater
Nickname/acronym: LIT
The lowdown: One of Stanford’s newest theater groups. Dedicated to promoting Latinx-identifying narratives and individuals in theater.

Organization name: Ram’s Head Theatrical Society
Nickname/acronym: Ram’s
The lowdown: Stanford’s first theater group. Puts on “Gaieties” (a Stanford Big Game tradition), the Original Winter One Acts and a spring musical.

Organization name: Stanford Light Opera Company
Nickname/acronym: SLoCo (pronounced slow-co)
The lowdown: Dedicated to exploring and presenting operettas. Putting on “The Phantom of the Opera” later this quarter.

Organization name: Stanford Shakespeare Company
Nickname/acronym: Shakes
The lowdown: A repertory company that puts on two Shakespeare plays a year. It includes an acting and a technical company.

Organization name: [wit]: a gender conscious theater company
Nickname/acronym: [wit] (pronounced phonetically)
The lowdown: One of Stanford’s newest theater groups. Dedicated to highlighting the stories of female and gender-nonconforming individuals through theater.

Contact Olivia Popp at oliviapopp ‘at’ stanford.edu.

This article has been updated with additional groups.