Theatre and Dance, as studied at The College of Wooster, emphasizes the relationship between scholarship and artistry, investigating both the range and depth of the human experience.

The Theatre and Dance Major and Minor curricula offer a broad range of knowledge designed to examine acting, directing, dance, design and technology, history, literature, playwriting, and theory, focusing in each area on the importance of analyzing texts in their various modes: the written text, the visual text, and the physical text.

While the Theatre and Dance student may choose to specialize in one of these particular areas of the discipline for their Senior Independent Study, the departmental philosophy remains dedicated to the liberal arts belief in developing, through its interdisciplinary curricular structure, a combination of historical and critical analysis in relationship to the study of various performance texts, resulting in the creation of the artist/scholar.

Special Programs

The Theatre and Dance Department offers renewable scholarships to first-year students who show promise in acting, directing, playwriting, design and technology, or dance. The department employs students in the scene and costume shops, the box office, and the Media Center. Summer opportunities include the chance to audition for Wooster's resident summer professional company, The Ohio Light Opera. Wooster also offers theatre and dance students off-campus opportunities with the Great Lakes Colleges Arts Program in New York, internships with professional theatres, and study abroad at renowned schools of drama.

Features of the Department

Students are taught by full-time faculty members in lectures and workshops. Lecture sections average between 15 and 25 students. The challenging and stimulating atmosphere of small classes demands better preparation and provides opportunities for discussion and questions. Professors become well acquainted with students; they are able to advise students on course selection and career directions.

The Theatre and Dance Major

The theatre and dance major and minor curriculums offer a broad range of knowledge designed to examine acting, directing, dance, design and technology, history, literature, playwriting, and theory, foucusing in each area on the importance of analyzing texts in their various modes: the written text, the physical text, and the visual text.

While the theatre and dance student may choose to specialize in one of these particular areas of the discipline for their Senior Independent Study, the departmental philosophy remains dedicated to the liberal arts belief in developing, through its curricular structure, a combination of historical and critical analysis in relationship to the study of performance, resulting in the creation of the artist/scholar. The artist/scholar model also informs the departmental producion season, and contributes to the diversity of traditional and non-canonical performance and course offerings.

Life After Wooster

Wooster theatre and dance majors choose diverse career paths. Some pursue advanced study at schools such as Yale, Columbia, Purdue, Ohio State, Florida State, NYU, and the University of Washington. Some work for professional theatre companies, while others join arts organizations such as the Cleveland Opera Company or Opryland U.S.A.

After graduation theatre major Ilana Brownstein '98, MFA, Yale University, became a literary manager and director of new play development and commissions at the Huntington Theatre Company in Boston while Erin Koster (04) completed her MFA in Stage Management at Columbia University and continues to work in and out of New York, most recently finishing Democracy in America at PS122 with Broadway Director Annie Dorsen of Passing Strange fame and Christopher Durang's Beyond Therapy in Williamstown and then Bay Street in Sag Harbor (the Hamptons). Other graduates work in jobs unrelated to theatre but participate in community theatre. The broad liberal arts background offered at Wooster and the research skills gained through I.S. prepare students for a wide variety of careers.

Scholarship Opportunities

Eligibility: Any first-year student entering The College of Wooster in the Fall. Scholarship awarded on the basis of acting, directing, playwriting, design and technology, or dance. Applicants need not be a prospective Theatre and Dance major. Applicants must apply for admission to The College of Wooster by submitting the Common Application to the Office of Admissions by January 15.