The Hollywood Reporter names BW a Top 25 Drama School in the World

BW's "strong undergrad music theater program" catapulted the University onto this year's list of the best.

Under the headline “You Wanna Be an Actor? THR’s 2023 Top 25 Drama Schools in the World,” The Hollywood Reporter is recommending a Baldwin Wallace University education.

The magazine, which bills itself as the “Heartbeat of Hollywood” and “the world’s definitive source of entertainment news," placed BW on the list with prestigious schools from Los Angeles to London.

THR reporter Caitlin Huston wrote, “The Hollywood Reporter consulted with educators and industry execs to determine its annual ranking of the best schools for an acting degree.” The elite schools were chosen for emphasis on “job placement, self-taped auditions and representation.” 

In particular, THR noted that BW’s “strong undergrad music theater program, helmed by director Victoria Bussert, has seen almost all graduating seniors from the past 14 years sign with representation following the school’s New York showcase.” 

Proof on stages coast to coast

“Take a look at our grads from the past 5-10 years and the frequency that they work; our track record speaks for itself,” notes BW Music Theatre music director Matthew Webb. “We give our students the skills to become self-sufficient artists.”

Among the most notable BWMT alumni successes in the past year, Colton Ryan ’17 received a Tony nomination for his performance in the new Broadway musical “New York, New York.”

Ryan is currently joined on Broadway by BW grads in productions of "& Juliet" (Veronica Otim ’20), "MJ" (Matthew Frederick Harris ’18), "Merrily We Roll Along" (Corey Mach ’10), "Back to the Future" (Nick Drake ’20), "Book of Mormon" (John Kenton Kramer ’16 and Andrew Nelin ’21), "The Lion King" (Antwuan Holley ’12) and "New York, New York" (Mike Cefalo ’17). 

Baldwin Wallace Music Theatre alums are also finding success on major National Tours. Marcus M. Martin '20 stars as the Genie in "Aladdin" and Roderick Lawrence '11 can be seen as Ike Turner in "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical," along with other grads in "Beetlejuice," "Hadestown," "Hamilton," "Les Miserables," "Dear Evan Hansen" and "Ain’t Too Proud."