The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting with International Performance Study provides students with not only the requisite performance skills but also a multitude of practical experiences in Chicago and abroad, providing the opportunity to prepare for a career as a global artist, equally adept at interpretation or creation, in classical work as well as the most current media practice.
Upon successful completion of this program, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate a strong integration and practice of the requisite acting, voice and movement skills to successfully perform in a variety of performance styles. This will include performance work in different media: on camera, voice over and animation and devised work.
- Display the collaborative skills necessary to be a vital, proactive part of the ensemble: in the classroom, in production, in the profession.
- Exhibit the ability to analyze texts for performance and research.
- Articulate through oral and written work a working knowledge of theatre history and its seminal practitioners.
- Develop a strategy for entering the profession and sustaining a career through the creation of a business model for self-management as a performer/theatre maker.
- Demonstrate knowledge of contemporary European performance practice that deepens their skill set and broadens their professional opportunities.
Each student will receive personalized instruction and ample production/performance opportunities, several exclusive to the BFA cohort. Our program capacities are intentionally small to ensure individual attention, honing both the skills of the solo player as well as ensuring a strong commitment to an ensemble ethos. Progressively intense training in voice, movement and acting styles culminates in a study of International Western Theatre practices at Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance during the required Study Abroad Semester. A customized curriculum focusing on training in Shakespearean techniques and Contemporary British Drama has been created for the Study Abroad semester. Following that experience the BFA cohort returns to Chicago to create and perform a new work or present a contemporary European script, synthesizing the techniques and insights acquired over the course of study in this highly structured, rigorous program.
The BFA speaks to and meets the needs of the 21st century professional actor with its emphasis on immersing the actor in training that is European as well as American based. This wider focus is intended to help the BFA actor who graduates from our program to be able to operate on a global stage and to be familiar with the latest creative trends that link the interactive and international acting/directing community.
BFA students are regularly evaluated to monitor their levels of achievement, progress and suggest directions for growth. Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA in their major, complete the performance requirements, and demonstrate continued development in order to continue in the BFA program.
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