Serious training and intense attention to students as artist creates a collaborative rather than competitive atmosphere. The academic programs in both theatre and dance have been designed to provide department majors with carefully structured studio experiences in performance and design in conjunction with a solid background in the history, theory and literature of stage performance. The program is focused on students individually and collectively in producing extensive opportunities for performance, design, choreography and direction, and experiences in technical theatre and stage management. In addition to a regionally acclaimed and ambitious production season on the main stage, the department supports a series of student-initiated studio projects each year that offer extended opportunities to explore a diversity of interests and talents. To email requests for information, contact The Department of Theatre and Dance.
Students are also able to explore their multiple interests in courses and productions.
Both performance and design students may minor in dance to strengthen their pool of talents. The performing arts program serves as an excellent preparation for both advanced graduate study and careers in theatre and dance. Class size is limited and studio work is intense and demanding. The goal of the performance sequence is to create a thinking actor who can work in many theatre disciplines, who is connected to humanity and to self, and who has initiative as an artist. The department sponsors a production program that reinforces the belief that as an academic discipline, theatre must be an intellectual and practical pursuit simultaneously.