Theatre and Dance

Office: 212 Rockefeller Arts Center

(716) 673-3596

Thomas Loughlin, Chairperson

Website: http://www.fredonia.edu/department/theatredance/

It is the mission of the Department of Theatre and Dance to provide training for professional, community, and academic theatres within the framework of a liberal arts education. The Department of Theatre and Dance is nationally accredited by the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST), and offers the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in several areas. The Bachelor of Arts degree is a general Theatre Arts program. The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree programs are limited to those students who demonstrate excellence or the potential for excellence in Dance, Acting, or Theatrical Production and Design. They are designed for those students who enter the university with a firm idea of their professional goals. In conjunction with the School of Music, the department offers study leading to the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre degree.

Students should contact the Department of Theatre and Dance for information regarding auditions or portfolio reviews for all B.F.A. programs.

Minors in Theatre or Dance are available as well, allowing the pursuit of a secondary interest in theatre or dance as support for a major area or for personal growth and satisfaction. Theatre students may participate in the Walter Gloor Mainstage Series of departmental productions and the Performing Arts Company (PAC), a Student Association supported theatre group at the university. PAC presents two productions each semester and sponsors workshops and experimental theatre productions. The department presents five productions each year. All shows produced on campus by any organization are open to participation by any and all students registered for classes during that semester.

Juniors and seniors who contribute significantly to the theatre program and who attain a grade point average of 3.25 in their major may be eligible for initiation into Alpha Psi Omega, the national honorary dramatic society.

Admission to the Department

Bachelor of Arts - Theatre Arts

All students who indicate Theatre as their first major preference and are academically accepted by the university are automatically admitted to the Bachelor of Arts: Theatre Arts program.

Bachelor of Fine Arts – Acting

In addition to admittance to the university, students must audition during the year prior to entering Fredonia on one of the designated audition dates. Audition information and application forms are available from the Department of Theatre and Dance office or on the department website.

Transfer students should audition for the B.F.A. Acting program during the semester before transferring. The B.F.A. Acting degree requires four years for completion.

Bachelor of Fine Arts - Musical Theatre

The Department of Theatre and Dance and School of Music jointly offer study leading to the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre degree. The program is limited to those students who demonstrate excellence in acting, dance and singing and who are firmly committed to professional careers in musical theatre performance. Students must audition during the year prior to entering Fredonia at designated audition dates. The auditions consist of acting, dance and singing. Audition information and application forms are available from the Department of Theatre and Dance, or on the theatre and dance website at http://www.fredonia.edu/department/theatredance.

Transfer students should audition for the Musical Theatre degree the semester before transferring. The B.F.A. requires four years in the degree program for completion.

Bachelor of Fine Arts – Dance

The B.F.A. in Dance provides training for dance professionals within a liberal arts education. In addition to intensive technical training in a variety of dance styles, additional studies in choreography, repertory, dance history, kinesiology, and musical training are required. The Dance program curriculum is consistent with the guidelines developed by The National Association of Schools of Dance. Acceptance to the Dance major is by audition only. Audition information and application forms are available from the Department of Theatre and Dance office or on the department website.

Dance majors are required to audition for the Fredonia Dance Ensemble, the pre-professional training ensemble. Dance majors are expected to take at least one or two technique classes per semester. They are welcome to participate in the assorted dance clubs on campus. The dance program sponsors activities throughout the year including performances, master classes, and workshops with professional artists.

Dance majors are required to complete a minor, allowing the pursuit of a secondary interest or as support for professional career goals. Recommended minors include Arts Administration (21 credit hours), Theatre (22 credit hours), Business Administration (24 credit hours), Communication (18 credit hours), Film Studies (21 credit hours), or Sport and Exercise Sciences (22 credit hours).

Bachelor of Fine Arts – Theatrical Production and Design
In addition to admittance to the university, prospective students must interview with the production and design faculty for acceptance into the program. A portfolio of creative work should be part of this process. This may be done during the year prior to attending Fredonia or B.A. General Theatre Studies' students may be admitted during their first year in residence. Students who are accepted into the B.F.A. Theatrical Production and Design program select a specific track of study from the following options: Costume Design, Lighting, Technical Production or Scenic Design. Each track of study is outlined below.

Additional Requirements

Students who are not accepted academically by the university will not be admitted to any B.F.A. program regardless of the results of their audition or portfolio review. Students must be academically accepted by the university AND pass their audition or interview for acceptance into any B.F.A. degree program.

Students who do not succeed in gaining admittance into one of the B.F.A. degree programs may choose to attend SUNY Fredonia as a B.A. Theatre Arts major and audition or interview a second time for their desired program. Under no circumstances may a student audition or interview more than twice for any program. Students who have completed 60 credit hours or more as a B.A. Theatre Arts major may no longer audition for the B.F.A. programs. Students who transfer into the department as B.A. Theatre Arts majors and wish to audition or interview for a B.F.A. program must do so within the first two semesters of their arrival.

Audition or interview results are not released to a potential student unless and until they are admitted as a major in the Theatre and Dance department.

Transfer students admitted into B.F.A. degree programs should expect to spend a minimum of three years on the SUNY Fredonia campus.

In addition to the specific and individual courses, there are periodic reviews of achievement/improvement for the B.F.A. Acting, B.F.A. Musical Theatre, B.F.A. Dance, and B.F.A. Production and Design students with the purpose of determining advancement/retention. At the conclusion of the fourth semester, the performance, dance or design faculty reviews the student and a determination made as to permission for continuance in the program. Students with unfavorable evaluations will not be permitted to continue study in the B.F.A. but may continue in the B.A. Theatre Arts program or select another major.

Students in the B.F.A. Acting and Musical Theatre programs must present acting juries at the conclusion of each semester, and must perform a senior recital or a leading role in a departmental production during their fourth year.

B.F.A. Musical Theatre students must also present vocal juries at the conclusion of each semester, and must perform a senior recital consisting of acting, singing and dancing components, or perform a lead role in a musical.

B.F.A. Acting and Musical Theatre majors are required to audition for all Department of Theatre and Dance productions, and to perform as cast.

B.F.A. Theatrical Production and Design students, prior to graduation, must formally present portfolios and may participate in a senior design exhibit.

All Theatre and Dance majors and minors are required to complete Theatre and Dance Production obligations that are practical extensions of the classroom and vary in accordance with the specific programs. The Theatre and Dance Productions commitment requires approximately eight (8) clock hours per week but may, in certain cases, require significantly more time. Theatre and Dance Productions credit does not count toward the total number of credits required in the B.F.A. Musical Theatre degree program.

All department majors must successfully complete a minimum of 30 upper-level credit hours and appropriate supporting courses as determined by faculty advisement. Students who are on academic probation will not be permitted to perform in public performances nor will major technical production crew assignments be permitted.

Transfer students in the B.A. General Theatre Studies degree program must complete at least 60 percent (27 credit hours) of their major at Fredonia.

Further department policies and procedures are outlined in the department Student Handbook. Student majors in Theatre and Dance agree to be bound by these policies as a condition of being a major in one of the department’s degree programs.

Theatre and Dance

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