
BA in Theatre Production and Design
Selinsgrove, USA
DURATION
4 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline *
EARLIEST START DATE
Request earliest startdate
TUITION FEES
USD 54,440 / per year **
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* November 1 — Early Action 1. November 15 — Early Decision. December 1 — Early Action 2. February 1 — Regular Decision admission application deadline; late applications welcome as space permits. March 1 — International Students
** tuition 2022-23
Scholarships
Explore scholarship opportunities to help fund your studies
Introduction
Professional experiences and expectations
Get hands-on experience in a wide range of production and design disciplines to refine your interests, hone your skills, and prepare you for a lifetime of creativity in theatre.
You’ll work as the professionals do, and you will assume responsibilities that stand out on resumes.
Students just like you, run most of the production operations here. Our productions couldn’t exist without student dedication.
Our hands-on production labs are small and focused on your development. And our productions rival any conservancy program in scope and quality.
Our students often begin performing on the main stage in their first semester.
- There are four mainstage productions each year, including a student-directed show and a major musical;
- You’ll collaborate with the Department of Music on their annual opera program;
- We offer a second stage season-experimental, edgy, and fueled by students’ artistic desires.
SU Theatre Season Highlights the Urgency of Climate Change Action
In selecting a theme for its Main Stage season, Susquehanna University’s Department of Theatre made a bold decision: climate change. The theme is represented on and off stage, from the selected plays to the sets and costumes. The theme was chosen with hopes of inspiring students to make sustainable lifestyle changes, no matter how small.
Gallery
Curriculum
Requirements for Major
When you enroll at Susquehanna, you’ll be paired with an advisor and application tool to guide you in your course planning and scheduling. The following is an excerpt from the complete course catalog. Enrolled students follow the requirements of the course catalog for the academic year in which they declare each major and/or minor, consult with their advisor(s), and the Academic Planning Tool.
Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts in Theatre
Susquehanna offers a major in theatre with three emphases: performance, production and design, and theatre studies. Majors complete university Central Curriculum requirements plus 52 semester hours of courses in one of the three theatre emphases. These include introductory courses and specific emphasis requirements. A grade of C- or better is required for any course to apply to the major or minor. Courses may count toward only one emphasis or minor. The department also expects theatre majors and minors to participate each semester in department theatre productions and activities supervised by department faculty.
Theatre Major Emphases
Students fulfill the university Central Curriculum requirements, participate fully in department productions and successfully complete the following courses:
24 Department Requirements
- 4 THEA-151 Acting Fundamentals
- 4 THEA-252 World Theatre 1
- 4 THEA-253 World Theatre 2
- 4 THEA-258 From Page to Stage
- 4 THEA-340 Stage Management and Theatre Operations
- 4 THEA-453 Dramatic Theory and Criticism
Students also choose one of the following options:
- Option One: Performance Emphasis
- Option Two: Production and Design Emphasis
- Option Three: Theatre Studies Emphasis
- 4 THEA-452 Seminar in Theatre
28 Option Two: Production and Design Emphasis
- 4 THEA-142 Stagecraft
- 4 THEA-143 Scenic Production
- 4 THEA-152 Theatrical Design Fundamentals
- 4 THEA-501 Production Lab
- 8 Choose 8 semester hours from the following:
- 4 THEA-246 Scenic Design
- 4 THEA-341 Costume Design
- 4 THEA-342 Stage Makeup
- 4 THEA-345 Lighting Design
- 8 Choose 8 semester hours from the following:
- 4 THEA-144 Costume Technology
- 4 THEA-452 Seminar in Theatre (repeatable with topic change)
- 4 THEA-254 African-American Theatre History or THEA-240 Theatre and Violence
14 Electives
The remaining 14 semester hours may be chosen from the courses below:
- 4 THEA-142 Stagecraft or THEA-143 Scenic Production or THEA-144 Costume Technology
- 4 THEA-246 Scenic Design or THEA-345 Lighting Design
- 4 THEA-342 Stage Makeup or THEA-341 Costume Design
- 4 THEA-251 Acting II: Voice and Movement
- 4 THEA-260 The Choreopoem
- 4 THEA-451 Directing
- 4 THEA-452 Seminar in Theatre (repeatable once with department head approval)
- 1 THEA-502 Dramaturgy (repeatable once)
- 1 THEA-501 Production Lab (repeatable once)
No more than 4 semester hours from the following may be included:
- 1 THEA-101 The Musical
- 1 THEA-102 Student-Directed Production
- 1 THEA-103 Acting Workshop
- 1 THEA-104 Advanced Acting Workshop
- 1 THEA-105 Experimental Acting Workshop
Honor Society
Students who meet the requisite national and local standards are eligible to join Alpha Psi Omega.
Minor in Theatre
When you enroll at Susquehanna, you’ll be paired with an advisor and application tool to guide you in your course planning and scheduling. The following is an excerpt from the complete course catalog. Enrolled students follow the requirements of the course catalog for the academic year in which they declare each major and/or minor, consult with their advisor(s), and the Academic Planning Tool.
Minor in Theatre
Students are expected to participate in departmental theatre productions and complete 20 semester hours:
4 Choose 4 semester hours from:
- THEA-151 Acting Fundamentals
- THEA-142 Stagecraft
- THEA-252 World Theatre 1
- THEA-253 World Theatre 2
16 Choose 16 additional semester hours from:
- THEA-151 Acting Fundamentals
- THEA-142 Stagecraft
- THEA-252 World Theatre 1
- THEA-253 World Theatre 2
- THEA-240 Theatre and Violence
- THEA-143 Scenic Production
- THEA-144 Costume Technology
- THEA-160 Theatrical Design Fundamentals
- THEA-246 Scenic Design
- THEA-251 Acting II: Voice & Movement
- THEA-258 From Page to Stage
- THEA-340 Stage Management & Theatre Ops
- THEA-341 Costume Design
- THEA-342 Stage Makeup
- THEA-345 Lighting Design
- THEA-101 The Musical
- THEA-102 Student-Directed Production
- THEA-103 Acting Workshop
- THEA-104 Advanced Acting Workshop
Course Options
Theatre Courses
- THEA 100 Introduction to Theatre, Credits: 4
- THEA 101 The Musical, Credits: 1
- THEA 102 Student-Directed Production, Credits: 1
- THEA 103 Acting Workshop, Credits: 1
- THEA 104 Advanced Acting Workshop, Credits: 1
- THEA 105 Experimental Acting Workshop, Credits: 1
- THEA 142 Stagecraft, Credits: 4
- THEA 143 Scenic Production, Credits: 4
- THEA 144 Costume Production, Credits: 4
- THEA 151 Acting Fundamentals, Credits: 4
- THEA 160 Theatrical Design Fundamentals, Credits: 4
- THEA 200 Dramatic Literature, Credits: 4
- THEA 240 Theatre and Violence, Credits: 4
- THEA 246 Scenic Design, Credits: 4
- THEA 251 Acting II: Voice and Movement, Credits: 4
- THEA 252 World Theatre 1, Credits: 4
- THEA 253 World Theatre 2, Credits: 4
- THEA 254 African American Theatre History, Credits: 4
- THEA 258 From Page to Stage, Credits: 4
- THEA 260 The Choreopoem, Credits: 4
- THEA 340 Stage Management & Theatre Operations, Credits: 4
- THEA 341 Costume Design, Credits: 4
- THEA 342 Stage Make-Up, Credits: 4
- THEA 345 Lighting Design, Credits: 4
- THEA 351 Acting III: Period Styles, Credits: 4
- THEA 451 Directing, Credits: 4
- THEA 452 Seminar in Theatre, Credits: 4
- THEA 453 Dramatic Theory and Criticism, Credits: 4
- THEA 501 Production Lab, Credits: 1
- THEA 502 Dramaturgy, Credits: 1–4
- THEA 503 Honors Study, Credits: 4
- THEA 504 Internship Credits: 1–8
Dance Courses
- DANC 101 Conditioning, Credits: 2
- DANC 140 Jazz/Tap, Credits: 2
- DANC 150 Modern Dance, Credits: 2
- DANC 155 Contemporary Ballroom Dance, Credits: 2
- DANC 250 Historical Partner Dance, Credits: 2
- DANC 301 Advanced Topics in Dance, Credits: 2
- DANC 502 Individual Investigation, Credits: 1–4
Program Outcome
Learning Goals
- Students will develop proficiency in the methods of creating artistic and scholarly work and acquire abilities to integrate the study and practice of theatre.
- Students will learn how to create and contribute to the discipline of theatre by recognizing and employing relevant and worthy theatre, non-theatre and interdisciplinary sources to inform their creative and scholarly activities.
- Students will articulate artistic and scholarly vocabularies drawn from written, visual and physical texts that will support their continued practice and study of theatre.
- Students will learn how to reflect upon and assess their work in critical and constructive ways by applying concepts, theories, and methods within academic and professional contexts.
Career Opportunities
Set the scene for your career
Our graduates are working in the bright lights of Broadway and the film industry in Hollywood.
Everything from stage management to front-of-the-house operations is preparation for your amazing theatre career. Your input and artistry are valued by our faculty who are working theatre professionals. And the work you do—your scenic designs, costumes, sound, and lighting—shares the stage with the actors.
Learn about theatre operations on both sides of the curtain, including professional-style production management, execution of design elements, play direction, and engaging with the theatre-going public in patron services.
Recent graduates have gone on to school at:
- Bowling Green State University
- California Institute of the Arts
- Florida State University
- Kent State University
- Illinois State University
- The New School, New York City
- Ohio University
- Roosevelt University, Chicago College of Performing Arts
- University of Arizona
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- University of Houston
- University of Maryland at College Park
- University of Missouri-Columbia
- University of Pittsburgh
- University of Texas – Austin
- University of South Carolina
- Villanova University
- The Yale School of Drama
Recent graduates have gotten jobs at:
- Arden Theatre Co.
- ArtsPower National Tour
- Berkshire Theatre Festival
- Cirque du Soleil
- Delaware Theatre Company
- Disney Cruise Lines
- Glimmerglass Festival
- Merry-Go-Round Playhouse
- NetWorks Productions (Broadway tours)
- New Jersey Shakespeare Festival
- Playwrights Horizons
- Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival
- Portland Stage Co.
- Syracuse Opera
- Walnut Street Theatre
- Weston Playhouse Theatre Company
English Language Requirements
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About the School
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