Performing Arts - Theatre, B.A.

The Theatre Concentration provides students a working knowledge of Theatre in the areas of performance (acting and directing) theory/history/criticism and production experience through participation on technical crews in actual productions. Students will also learn the basic concepts of dramatic structure and may have the opportunity to write plays that are presented in a public forum. The program provides students the opportunity to combine the theatre discipline with other related studies for an Interdisciplinary Individualized major. The program prepares the student for graduate studies, and to become practicing theatre artists and life long learners in a global arts community.

Central to our program is a common core of interconnected experiences in art, music, and theatre sharing concepts across the arts such as improvisation, performance, histories, or business of the arts. Students are challenged to develop independent thinking that transcends disciplinary boundaries as they learn to engage the changing world of the arts. Project 1, where all arts majors work with faculty to pursue a topic, idea, or project, introduces first-year students to the idea of making a unique contribution to a community. In Project 2, juniors and seniors work together on a project for public presentation, largely independent from faculty. Project 3 is a major thesis paper, production, original play, or other project, which culminates the student’s undergraduate work and launches them into their career after UMF. This interdisciplinary, ideas-based program prepares students for the complex and changing world of the art ins the twenty-first century.