It is the goal of the theatre department to provide a liberal arts education for the professional, community and academic theatres. Many of our students pursue theatre as a profession after graduation but the theatre major program also serves as a means of acquiring a liberal education similar in nature to such fields as English, classics, philosophy or history. By fostering an environment which supports the search for truth and respect for the human person, the Department of Theatre encourages its students to develop critical and ethical perspectives in their preparation for life. Through academic and performance studies, we seek to affirm our students' ability to learn, to develop their unique creative potential, and to encourage their commitment to sharing their knowledge and creative talents with others. Of all the arts, theatre provides the most concrete expression of the customs, values, manners and morals of any given society at any given time.
Theatre is one of the most communal of art forms.
The required curriculum for theatre majors consists of 30 hours of specified coursework and 12 hours of electives. Each student enrolled in one of the following courses will be expected to work on a university theatre production crew assignment. Failure to complete the production requirement will constitute failure to pass the course. No student will be required to work more than one crew, regardless of the number of courses being taken from this list. Departmental honors consists of a directed reading program of one book per month for six semesters to be discussed at the end of each month with a faculty member of the department.