Student Opportunities
Peter Coyote, acclaimed author, actor, and activist was on campus for a week. He gave
a wide-range of lectures on Buddhism and nonviolence, urban politics and social engagement,
story telling, documentary production, acting, and survival in a creative environment.
Subscription Main Stage Series
Challenging scripts, cutting-edge playwrights, new works, Shakespeare, period pieces, and musicals provide exposure to a wide variety of styles and authors. This series consists of fully supported productions on the University Theatre Stage or in one of our black box theatres each year and includes the ArkType New Works Festival. Main Stage directing, playwriting, and design opportunities are open to qualified students.
Student Spotlight Series
Student spotlight productions are performed in one of our black box spaces at Global Campus Theatre on the Fayetteville Square, the Nadine Baum Studio, or in our black box classroom in Kimpel Hall. The number of productions vary per year, and vary in both thematic material and levels of support.
Other Events
MFA playwriting and directing projects, the ArkType New Works Festival, One Act Festival, and One Person Show Festival are just a few examples of the many other opportunities given to our students each year. There is something for every level of training!
Department of Theatre Scholarships
A Theatre Scholarship is much more than a monetary award. It is an indication of your abilities and promise. When noted on your resume or printed in a show program, the term ‘Theatre Scholarship Recipient’ implies dedication, discipline, responsibility and professionalism. That is the REAL value of a Theatre Scholarship.
Find out more about Scholarship criteria and application process.
New Play Development
Students participate in classes, readings, workshops, and productions of new plays, serving as hands-on collaborators in the development of new works and world premieres.
Theatre Studies in Britain
Students have the opportunity to travel to London for this four-week course. Outside of class, students view at least 15 professional theatre performances, tour theatres and historic theatre sites, and take master classes with actors, designers, directors, and critics from the English stage.
Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival
Our program participates actively in KCACTF conferences, entering productions, plays, and student designs for adjudication, and nominating actors to perform in the Irene Ryan national scholarship competition. Our students have won numerous awards, including the Rosa Parks Playwriting Award, the Outstanding Performance Award, The Kennedy Center Citizen Artist Award — for insisting that theatrical production is central to urgent community, national and international conversations on campuses of higher education, a regional Director's Choice nomination and two Molly Risso Classical Acting awards. In the Irene Ryan Acting Competition, we've had two national winners, seven national finalists, nine national alternates, and a national Best Partner. Our students have won national awards for playwriting, lighting design, and make-up design and had additional designs showcased at the national festival at the Kennedy Center. Students have also won numerous regional awards in playwriting, stage management, design, and acting.
USITT
The Design and Technology faculty have all been active members of USITT and have served on a number of panels at the national conference. Students have the opportunity to attend and present their work either at the "Cover the Walls" exhibit or the "Design Expo" and are encouraged to join this wonderful organization. Each year the conference is held in an exciting part of the the country.
Guest Artists
Master classes and production experience with professional theatre artists enhances the program's intensive curriculum. Previous guest artists include Robert Redford, Mary Louise Parker, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, Francis Guinan (Steppenwolf), and workshops in automated lighting effects, sound design, Commedia, Le Coq, Alexander Technique, make-up, audition preparation with professional actors and directors from New York and Los Angeles, and Shakespeare performance with The Acting Company and the Aquila Theatre Company of London.
Travel to Auditions and Conferences
Each year we offer financial assistance to qualified students, enabling them to attend and participate in regional and national conferences and professional auditions.
Departmental Honors Program
Undergraduate students with a minimum grade point average of 3.5 may participate in special seminars and colloquia, upper division honors classes, and independent projects and research.