Acting Concentration

The Acting concentration teaches students advanced performance technique and acting practice to prepare them to fully inhabit roles they are cast in as well as to compete for work after graduation. Students are expected to perform in a minimum of one departmental production prior to graduation. The expectation is that they will do much more. We also encourage students to take advantage of specialized classes we offer to enhance their artistry and marketability upon graduation. Students who also take 31-3240 Acting IV  and 31-3900 Professional Survival and How to Audition  will be eligible to audition to participate in the Senior Showcase. Students completing the concentration in Acting will be well prepared to audition for graduate schools if they so choose.

Directing Concentration

The Directing concentration teaches students advanced organizational, conceptual, and production skills necessary to mount credible productions of scripted material. Prior to graduation, students will direct a one-act play and at least one full-length play. Students may also work as assistant directors to faculty or seek an internship in Chicago’s busy theater scene to improve their understanding of how professionals go about their business. The focus on theater practice provided by the concentration in Directing provides excellent preparation for students interested in pursuing graduate study.

Theater Design Concentration

The Theater Design concentration emphasizes design as a collaborative process that requires close cooperation among each designer, the director, the technical team, and the performers. Students may focus their work in the area of costumes, lighting, or scenic design, but they must take classes in each area to gain familiarity with all three design disciplines. Classes are also required in the areas of makeup, technical theater, rendering and drawing, art and theater history, and beginning acting. There are ample opportunities for these students to work on departmental productions, from the-bare bones workshop level to fully budgeted main stage shows. In addition, assistant design and internship opportunities are available for students to work on productions in the larger Chicago theater community. These opportunities often become available through the influence of our faculty of working professionals. Upon graduation, students with a concentration in Theater Design have developed a strong portfolio of work that can be used to seek admission to graduate school or to look for work in the professional theater.

Students must maintain standards of performance.

Technical Theater Concentration

The Technical Theater concentration will provide students with a comprehensive overview of the practice of technical theater and production management. We emphasize theater as a collaborative process that requires close cooperation among all members of a production team. Students take classes that advance their technical knowledge of costumes, lighting, and scenic construction to prepare them to facilitate the work of designers. Students may focus their learning through classes in stage management, scenic or costume construction, and technical direction. Classes in theater history, beginning acting, and theater design provide breadth. There are ample opportunities for students to work on departmental productions as stage managers, technical directors, or production managers, from the bare-bones workshop level to fully budgeted main stage shows. In addition, freelance and internship opportunities are available for students to work on productions in the larger Chicago theater community. These opportunities often become available through the influence of our faculty and staff of working professionals. Upon graduation, students who earn a concentration in Technical Theater have developed a strong résumé of practical experiences that can be used to seek admission to graduate school or to look for work in the professional theater.

Students must maintain standards of performance.

Musical Theater Performance Concentration

The Musical Theater Performance Concentration provides students with a comprehensive education in the skills and discipline of musical theater. Students take a sequence of courses in acting and theater history, dance techniques and styles, and singing and musicianship, as well as courses that integrate the individual areas of study at an increasingly sophisticated level of achievement. Working closely with the Music Department, we emphasize the synthesis of acting, singing, and dancing in order to prepare students for the demands of a field in which the “triple threat” performer often gets the job. In addition, the program enables students to take elective courses in areas related to musical theater, such as directing, composing, stage management and design, marketing and management, and journalism and criticism. At every opportunity, students are encouraged to put into practice what they are learning in the classroom through hands-on engagement in the preparation and presentation of performances produced in the department. Students are encouraged to audition for musical theater productions and non-musical plays. In the classroom, students work with a faculty of professionals in the field, who bring their expertise to the art, craft, and business of the theater. This pragmatic approach prepares students to face the challenging realities of making a life in the performing arts. Students graduate with knowledge of how to look for work, with the desire and ability to do the work, and with an understanding of the need to grow as an artist beyond graduation.

Students must maintain standards of performance.