Learning Outcomes

Our goal is to nurture artist-scholars who are well read in dramatic literature, who understand the social and historical contexts of that literature, who appreciate contemporary performance and dance, who think critically, who master discipline-specific skills, and who make compelling artistic choices on stage.  The Theatre Department expects that upon graduation all students will be able to:

  • Demonstrate understanding of the social and artistic movements that have shaped theatre and dance as we know it today.
  • Apply discipline-specific skills to the creation of performance.
  • Analyze, and interpret texts and performances both in writing and orally.
  • Demonstrate knowledge of theatre and dance history and literature and draw connections between theatrical practices and social contexts in both modern and pre modern periods.
  • Practice collaborative skills in various theatrical contexts.
  • Develop and apply process skills in rehearsal, production and classroom settings.
  • Demonstrate problem-solving skills in the creation of artistic work.
  • Demonstrate proficiency in one or more area-specific skills: acting, directing, choreography, design, technical theatre, management, playwriting, or dramaturgy.

Our theatre major is divided into three concentrations.  We also have a minor, and a focus in theatre or dance.  Upon graduation all students will be able to demonstrate proficiencies specific to at least one concentration or minor:

1. Performance concentration (acting, directing, and playwriting)

  • Analyze a script for given circumstances, objectives, actions, obstacles, and character relationships; apply that analysis to the creation of performance.
  • Play physical actions in performance.
  • Apply vocal (breath, resonance, articulation) and physical (grounded presence, kinesthetic awareness, flexibility, tempo) technique to the creation of performance.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of style through performance of classical and contemporary texts as well as devised work.
  • Apply skills of listening, articulation, awareness and collaboration through the creation of performance as a member of an ensemble.
  • Demonstrate principles of stage directing (including an understanding of staging, imagery, pace, concept, and acting) by directing short scenes and plays.
  • Demonstrate principles of the playwright’s craft (including an understanding of dramatic action, character creation, structure, and dramatic dialogue) in constructing short scenes and plays.

2. Dramatic Literature and Theatre History concentration

  • Demonstrate thorough knowledge of theatre history and literature from the Greeks to the present by analyzing, interpreting, and writing about plays, performances and primary texts from the major periods of the theatre.
  • Demonstrate the ability to draw informed connections between the theatre and other fields of inquiry.
  • Discuss and explain major theories of performance from Aristotle to the present, and apply that understanding the analysis of texts and performances.
  • Develop and apply research skills in writing about dramatic texts and theatrical productions in relation to social, artistic, and intellectual contexts.

3. Design and Technical Theatre concentration

  • Communicate design ideas to collaborators through graphic skills, language and research.
  • Participate in the collaborative creation of theatre through the application of design skills.
  • Demonstrate understanding of the different technologies and techniques used in the creation of theatre.

4. Dance minor

  • Demonstrate a physical understanding of a variety of dance forms, individual movement vocabulary, and technique through performance.
  • Develop physical and artistic self-awareness and integrate theory into the physical practice.
  • Demonstrate visual, kinesthetic, and textual literacy of various dance forms through informed writing and conversations about artistic works.

Articulate in written and verbal form the role of dance in social, cultural, and historical contexts.