Steven Vargas (he/him) is an arts and entertainment reporter with a focus on dance, race and social justice.
He's currently a graduate student at the University of Southern California where he is pursuing an M.A. in Specialized Journalism (The Arts) and writing his thesis on dance as a tool for abolition. He also holds a B.A. double major in Theatre (Acting) and Journalism with a minor in Dance from USC. When he is not in classes, he is a Culture Intern with BuzzFeed News, Health Intern with California Black Media and an Equity Board Member with USC Annenberg Media. His recent short doc, “Dancing at Home,” earned first place in LA Press Club’s “Life in the Time of the Coronavirus Contest” in May 2020. Some of his work has also been featured with Dance Magazine, The Wrap and ET Live. Toward the end of 2020, he joined the second cohort of The Kennedy Center's BIPOC Critics Lab led by Jose Solis.
Outside of the newsroom, Steven is an actor and dancer who has worked on projects with such organizations as USC Arts in Action, Black Lives Matter LA and Reform LA Jails Coalition. Past productions include "Facing Our Truth: Plays on Trayvon, Race, and Privilege," "Don't Go" with Sojourn Theatre and "Race Relay." He participated in the 2018 Artist As Citizen Conference with Artists Striving To End Poverty at The Juilliard School and studied at Shakespeare's Globe in London with a Fulbright Summer Institute Scholarship the same year.
