Theatre: Acting & Directing Major | Baldwin Wallace University

OVERVIEW

Explore your theatrical expression and develop the technical and narrative skills needed for a successful and rewarding career in acting and directing.

Baldwin Wallace's theatre major integrates extensive hands-on learning with comprehensive coursework. You'll build skills in acting, voice, movement, make-up, audition techniques, script analysis, directing, stage management and more.

Foundation courses in literature, history, performance, technical and collaborative studies help you develop analytical skills and insights into professional theatre. Small class sizes, individual attention and faculty mentoring are at the core of the program. You’ll be encouraged to participate in professional apprenticeship opportunities nationally and abroad.

BW faculty are practicing professionals with contacts at Cleveland’s Great Lakes Theater, Cleveland Public Theatre, Beck Center for the Arts and Dobama Theatre, as well as Idaho Shakespeare Festival and Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival.

Through these opportunities, you'll gain experience, earn Equity points, network and build an impressive resume. On campus, you can get involved in theatrical productions through performance, design and construction, production, management and marketing.

With both proscenium and black box theatres, BW offers traditional and contemporary audience settings that provide a variety of learning environments, including theatre in-the-round, thrust staging and more.

"Intimate Apparel" by Lynn Nottage
BW produces a wide range of plays, including classics and new works.
"Quality Street" by JM Barrie
BW takes a fresh approach to the classics, as evidenced by this acclaimed staging of a neglected masterpiece.
Backstage at Baldwin Wallace
Actors prepare in two large, well-lit dressing rooms. BW has an outstanding costume department that treats all students like professionals.
"The Diviners" by Jim Leonard Jr.
A busy production schedule means there are many opportunities to perform on the BW stage beginning freshmen year.
"What is Love?" - a devised play based on "Romeo and Juliet"
Entirely student written and conceived, this production represents one of the many ways BW students benefit from exceptional hands-on learning opportunities. Technical skill, innovation, creativity and a commitment to new works are hallmarks of the theatre major.
"The Two Noble Kinsmen"
Stage combat classes are offered as an elective to BA in theatre students. Weapons taught include rapier, dagger, hand-to-hand and broadsword.
Faculty-student collaboration
One-on-one coaching and mentoring are at the heart of BW’s theatre major.

Career Opportunities

Actor
Director
Critic
Theatre manager
Stage manager
Playwright
Casting or talent agent
Dramaturg

Four Specialized Programs of Study

At BW, theatre majors can focus their studies in acting and directing, dance and movement, design and technical and stage management. All programs include a solid foundation of courses designed to give students a comprehensive overview of theatre.

Study Theatre in London

Heighten your understanding and appreciation of British theatre through a study abroad experience. The program is a three-week, credit-earning immersion course in British theatre that includes a nine-day trip to London. It is led by BW theatre faculty.

Perform in Zambia

Every other year, BW theatre students work with Barefeet Theatre Company in Lusaka, Zambia to devise an original theatre piece and perform it for African children in need. This program is a credit earning immersion course. It is led by BW theatre and film faculty. This trip also involves going on a game drive and visiting Victoria Falls.

Standardized Patient Program

BW theatre students have the opportunity to serve as standardized patients for BW's nursing program and physician assistant program. Student actors memorize symptoms and play characters so that healthcare students can practice newly learned skills and bedside manner.

CURRICULUM

Offered as a major and a minor, theatre offers four programs of study: acting and directing, dance and movement, design and technical and stage management. BW also offers a major in music theatre through its Conservatory of Music and a BFA in acting.

The theatre major provides a broad perspective of the literature, history and creative practices of the discipline. Courses prepare students to appreciate and participate in theatre at all levels of performance, production, direction, design and management.

You can study acting, directing, voice and movement, scenic and costume design, lighting, stage management, theatre history and more. You also can take special seminars in contemporary topics.

The theatre major prepares students to:

Develop an awareness and appreciation of theatre and/or dance as art forms and as a vital asset to society
Acquire competency in their chosen area of study
Acquire an understanding of the history of the theatre and/or dance including its literature and criticism
Develop responsible standards of criticism regarding the aesthetics of theatre and/or dance
Develop research skills/techniques applicable to scholarly and/or production needs
Develop an understanding of the collaborative nature of theatre and/or dance by active participation in production work within the program

STUDENT EXPERIENCES

Experiential learning bridges classroom study with real-world opportunities. You can enhance your studies through theatre productions, internships, co-curricular activities and student organizations.

Student Organizations

Theatre Arts and Performance

This organization supports student theatre artists and those interested in theatre on campus. It informs students of events and opportunities in theatre, maintains an open forum for student ideas and projects, and raises awareness of on- and off-campus theatrical events.

United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT)

The BW student chapter of USITT is committed to strengthening the skills of technical theatre students while carrying out the mission of the national organization. USITT serves to create vibrant dialogue among practitioners, educators and students.

Facilities

The Department of Theatre and Dance is located in Kleist Center for Art & Drama. It houses two theatres: Mainstage and Black Box Theatre.

The Mainstage Theatre is a large 512-seat proscenium theatre. The stage has a 67-foot fly loft with a counterweight system. The stage opening is 44' by 24' with an extended 15-foot apron, ample wings and depth measuring 30 feet. This facility also boasts a new lighting system installed by ETC. With over 200 dimmers, lights are operated on an Emphasis board including a WYSIWYG program.

The Black Box Theatre is a smaller, flexible theatre with seating between 100-250. This unique studio space is intended to provide a variety of seating arrangements, including proscenium, three-quarter-thrust and in-the-round. The theatre has a balcony around three sides and a lighting grid 23 feet above the stage floor. This space also boasts a new Strand Century Lighting system with a 520 series light board.

Off-Campus Experiences

Baldwin Wallace's close proximity to Cleveland and its nationally ranked arts organizations offers outstanding learning and performance opportunities. BW students worked with many of them, including: