Bachelor of Arts in Theatre

The College of Arts and Humanities (ARHU) offers courses designed to ensure students are ready to enter the workforce, along with integrated and individualized academic and career advising. Alumni continue on to graduate school or forge their careers in a variety of industries and fields. The creative ways to apply your ARHU degree are truly limitless! Here are some placements specific to theatre majors:

• Arena Stage
• The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
• Lookingglass Theatre Company
• Manhattan Theatre Club

• New York University
• Northwestern University
• University of California, San Diego
• Yale University

• The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center
• Shakespeare Theatre Company
• Walt Disney
• Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
• Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

• Costume Construction and Design
• Financial Entrepreneurship for Arts Leaders
• Play Directing I and II
• Scenic Design
• Theatre History I and II
• Voice for the Actor I and II

First, take a look at the curriculum requirements for the theatre major. Also take a look at the ARHU website for academic planning at the College of Arts and Humanities.

The B.A. theatre degree is not a limited enrollment program and thus any University of Maryland student may declare theatre as a major or double major. An audition, review or interview is not required. The theatre major requires 55 credits of coursework, with 28 of those credits at the 300/400 level. This is a considerable amount of varied and complex work. Adding theatre as a double or triple major should not be done without considerable thought as to the impact on your ability to graduate in a timely fashion. The theatre major has mandatory advising every semester; advising blocks will not be lifted without the required advising session.

All students must create an academic plan that integrates major requirements, general education and ARHU requirements. Your B.A. theatre advisor will give you a packet of information to assist you with this task. 

A theatre major or double major may be declared in any semester that you are registered at the University of Maryland. Freshmen must successfully complete their first semester at UMD before adding a double major. Students who are not currently registered and are candidates for re-enrollment must contact the Registrar's Office to re-enroll before declaring theatre as a major. It is strongly suggested that students be in good academic standing when changing majors or adding a second major. Your theatre advisor may suggest registering for a class on a trial basis before actually declaring the major.

Entry-level theatre courses require the student to be a major, so declaring in the time period before pre-registration begins is advisable. Waiting to declare after the pre-registration period is over will result in theatre courses being full and you will have to wait for another semester to begin coursework. Meeting college benchmarks at 30-60-90 credits is mandatory; students who do not fulfill these requirements may be asked to select another major.

• An appointment must be made; declaring a major cannot be handled on a walk-in basis. Contact Susan Miller, the coordinator of student services and academic advisor, at smille13@umd.edu.
• Review this page carefully, especially the curriculum requirements.
• At the advising meeting, paperwork will be filled out and signed.
• Turn in the Academic Plan Degree Requirement Checklist Form to a College of Arts and Humanities advisor. Call (301) 405-2108 to schedule an appointment.

Jennifer Barclay
Director of Undergraduate Studies<
301.405.6683
jbarclay@umd.edu 

Susan Miller
Coordinator of Student Services and Advisor
301.405.6694
smille13@umd.edu

In the theatre major, mandatory advising each semester provides students with the opportunity to build a relationship with their advisor for the purpose of gaining assistance in planning their educational career, learning the skills needed for academic success and learning how to access the variety of resources and services available to them on the University of Maryland campus.

For more general information about undergraduate requirements, fees and registration, see UMD's Undergraduate Catalog.

The theatre program includes a series of “foundation” courses to help students build a stronger, more uniform knowledge base, and to better prepare for upper-level course work. In addition, the curriculum introduces students to faculty-taught upper level courses sooner, allows students to take co-requisite courses their first year and emphasizes upper-level course work in specialty areas.

B.A. theatre students are required to complete:

• 49 credit hours of coursework
• 28 credit hours must be at the 300-400 level

No grade less than C- may be applied toward the major (including supporting courses). In addition, no course for the major may be taken as pass/fail or audit (including supporting courses).

• 30 credit benchmark: THET 222, 223 and either THET 116 or TDPS 201
• 60 credit benchmark: TDPS 201, THET 116, THET 222, THET 223, 2 THET 479 courses, 12 credits from a combination of area menus and supporting courses
• 90 credit benchmark: 3 TDPS 479 courses, 27 credits of area menu and supporting courses

Students who do not meet benchmarks may be asked to leave the major. A course time conflict outside of TDPS is not an acceptable excuse for not meeting your benchmark.

In the listing below, all courses are three credits unless otherwise noted. Prerequisites are listed in the undergraduate catalog or the schedule of classes on www.testudo.umd.edu. Courses listed in the area menu are ones that are regularly offered, but not necessarily each semester. Other courses, which satisfy the requirement, will be announced as they are offered. Please note that some courses require prerequisites and auditions.

• TDPS 201 – “Introduction to Technical Production"
• THET 116 – “Fundamentals of Theatrical Design"
• THET 222 – “Foundations of Acting and Performance"
• THET 223 – “Text and Context in Western Theatre"
• TDPS 479 – “Production Practicum” (1 credit). Four total credits required (positions must be completed in three different areas. For many positions, TDPS 201 is a prerequisite).

Area menu courses provide advanced training in three areas: performance, design/production and history/theory. Students select courses from each area as delineated below. Students must audition and/or complete prerequisites for some courses.

Courses marked with an asterisk (*) require auditions. Students may only audition twice for any course requiring an audition for enrollment. Many courses have prerequisites. Please check Testudo online for registration information.

• THET 210 – “Movement for Actors"
• THET 285 – “The Art of Communication and Presentation"
• *THET 310 – “Voice for the Actor I"
• *THET 324 – “Acting: Character Development"
• *THET 325 – “Acting: The Acting Process Part I"
• THET 330 – “Play Directing I" [prerequisite, all six fundamentals courses]
• *THET 360 – “Voice Archetypes"
• *THET362 – “Alexander Technique"
• *THET 411 – “Voice for the Actor II"
• *THET 420 – :Acting IV: Language and the Actor"
• *THET 424 – “Movement II: Advanced Studies in Movement for the Actor"
• *THET 425 – “Acting: The Acting Process Part II"
• THET 430 – “Play Directing II"
• *THET 451 – “Musical Theatre Workshop I"
• *THET 452 – “Musical Theatre Workshop II"

Many courses have prerequisites—see Testudo online for registration information.

• THET 273 – “Theatre Graphics I"
• THET 274 – “Introduction to Stage Management"
• THET 282 – “Stage Makeup"
• THET 284 – “Stage Costume Construction I"
• THET 371 – “Scenic Design I"
• THET 372 – “Stage Property Design"
• THET 373 – “Rendering for the Theatre I"
• THET 377 – “Lighting Design I"
• THET 380 – “Sound Design"
• THET 383 – “Costume Design I"
• THET 384 – “Costume Construction II"
• THET 435 – “Advanced Costume Construction"
• THET 457 – “Advanced Lighting Technology"
• THET 465 – “History of Fashion” (not a theatre history course)
• THET 470 – “Advanced Stagecraft"
• THET 471 – “Design Studio in Scenery"
• THET 472 – “Scene Painting I"
• THET 473 – “Rendering for the Theatre II"
• THET 474 – “Stage Management"
• THET 475 – “History of Art, Architecture, and Décor"
• THET 477 – “Design Studio in Lighting"
• THET 481 – “Theatre Graphics II"
• THET 482 – “Scene Painting II"
• THET 483 – “Design Studio in Costume"

• THET 390  - “Theatre History I “
• THET 391 - “Theatre History II”

Choose one course among the following:

• THET 408 – “Seminar: Theory and Performance Studies “
• THET 488 – “Special Topics in Theatre History before 1800” [THET 223 required; one 200/300 level theatre history course is recommended]
• THET 489 – “Special Topics in Theatre History from 1800 to the Present” [THET 223 required; one 200/300 level theatre history course is recommended]
• THET 498 – “Seminar: Theatre History”

These courses are not regularly offered and undergraduates need to take the 400-level version not the 600-level graduate course version.

For supporting courses, 12 credits must be THET courses and 15 credits must be upper level (300/400). Supporting course credits may come from the list below OR from any of the courses listed in the performance, design/production or history/theory menus OR any combination of the four menus (performance, design/production, history/theory and supporting courses). Students may petition to their advisor for other suitable courses to count towards this requirement. When selecting supporting courses, remember that sufficient upper level (300/400) courses must be taken—a student will only be able to take one or two at 100-200/level. Remember that courses in other departments may not be offered every semester or even every year. For course prerequisites, contact the department that is offering the course or check Testudo.

• ARTH 200 – “Art of the Western World to 1300”
• ARTH 201 – “Art of the Western World after 1300”
• ARTH 250 – “African ArtARTH 275 - Pre-Columbian Art”
• ARTH 290 – “Art of Asia”
• ARTT 100 – “Two Dimensional Art Fundamentals”
• ARTT 110 – “Elements of Drawing”
• ARTT 150 – “Introduction to Art Theory”
• ARTT 200 – “Three Dimensional Art Fundamentals”
• ARTT 334 – “Elements of Sculpture”
• ARTT 353 – “Elements of Photography”
• ARTT 354 – “Elements of Computer Graphics”
• CLAS 374 – “Greek Tragedy in Translation
• CLAS 375 – Ancient Comedy”
• DANC 200 – “Introduction to Dance”
• DANC 283 – “Foundations of Dance History”
• DANC 310 – “Dance Lighting”
• DANC Performance [up to 3 courses total may be used with permission of advisor]
• ENGL 205 – “Introduction to Shakespeare”
• ENGL 244 – “Introduction to Drama”
• ENGL 304 – “Major Works of Shakespeare”
• ENGL 305 – “Shakespeare & Contemporaries”
• ENGL 403 – “Shakespeare: The Early Works”
• ENGL 404 – “Shakespeare: The Later Works”
• ENGL 434 – “American Drama”
• ENGL 450 – “Renaissance Drama”
• ENGL 451 – “Renaissance Drama”
• ENGL 454 – “Modern Drama”
• LATN 301 – “Plautus”
• LATN 302 – “Ovid”
• MUSC 480 through 485
• MUSC Performance (up to 3 courses total may be used with permission of advisor)
• SPAN 424 – “Drama of the Sixteenth Century”
• SPAN 436 – “Spanish Baroque Drama”
• SPAN 437 – “Spanish Drama of the Seventeenth Century”
• SPAN 456 – “Nineteenth Century Drama & Poetry”
• SPAN 462 – “Twentieth Century Drama”
• SPAN 473 – “Latino Drama”
• THET 286/386 – “Experiential Learning” (up to 6 credits may be used)
• THET 429 – “Actors Studio” (up to 6 credits may be used)
• THET 479 – “Theatre Practicum” (up to 4 credits above the requirement in the Foundation Series)
• THET 499/399/299 – “Independent Study” (up to 6 credits may be used)

See above for a list of degree requirements and a sample academic plan for the B.A. in theatre.

No, we do not require an audition to declare the theatre major. We do require auditions/interviews for theatre performance classes, and upper level dance technique classes, Main Stage productions and the Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) award.

Yes! Many of our students choose to double major. Students are welcome to double major in any other major offered at UMD. Popular double majors include communication, kinesiology, computer science, english, biological sciences, government and politics, business, psychology, etc.

We do not offer a minor in dance or theatre.

Yes! All UMD students are welcome to audition for TDPS productions, get involved with student groups and take some TDPS classes.