If
you have questions or wish to make an appointment, please email:
Lowry Marshall, Undergraduate Advisor
For information on the Dance Program (non-degree):
Julie Strandberg, Director
of Dance Program
or
Michelle Bach-Coulibaly
Dance Faculty
Apply to the College Admission Office:
Frequently Asked Questions:
When
applying to the University, do I need to set up an audition?
As a liberal arts program, it's not appropriate for us to hold auditions.
If you are accepted at Brown, all of our Department's activities and offerings
will be open to you. Since members of the Theatre, Speech and Dance faculty
do not normally become directly involved with the undergraduate admissions
process, an interview is not required. We do recommend a visit so that
you can take the campus tour and sit in on a class to observe our spectacular
students in action. While you're on campus, you should have many opportunities
to chat informally with students and faculty.Would
it be possible to
sit in on some classes while I am visiting the campus.
Yes, check out the class
schedule and email the instructor.
How do I find out about auditions, technical positions, and other theatre
related openings?
The green doors at the entrance to Lyman Hall (off Lincoln Field) are
used to post all cast lists only. The main bulletin board is just inside
the building where all audition notices, and other information is posted.Is
most of your theatre faculty adjunct?
We have only one adjunct acting teacher in the undergraduate program.
She is a Juilliard graduate and a fully qualified and very gifted
teacher.
How large are most of the classes in your department?
Size depends entirely on the nature of the class. First year acting
classes have 18 students. Some performance classes (such as a movement
class we’ll offer in the Spring) have as few as 16 students but most
have 18 to 20.
How many theatre majors typically graduate each year?
We graduate about 20 per year, but that number does vary. The
answer is a little misleading because many serious theatre students who
are concentrating in other areas would consider Brown theatre their
“home on campus.” We don’t advantage concentrators
in any significant ways.
Do freshman ever get leading roles in plays, or do they mostly go to
the upperclassmen?
Freshmen consistently play leading roles (I have
a freshman in a lead in ANNA IN THE TROPICS right now and last year the
female lead in my production of THE GLORY OF LIVING was a freshman), but
of course, most leading parts do go to upper classmen because there are
more of them and they have greater experience, training and maturity.
I think this fact only indicates that our students are better
actors when they graduate than they were when they entered Brown.
Is there any kind of requirement
you must fulfill in order to perform in a show, for example, to have worked
backstage for one previous show, or to have completed a course?
No.
Do the people that do theatre/theatre majors tend to stay together,
do the theatre people form their own community?
Yes, but there are always new people coming into the community.
Who usually directs the shows?
Faculty direct the mainstage shows. Students direct all the rest.
Between 70 and 90 shows a year of one kind or another go up on the
campus.
How many musicals are put on a year?
At least three, one of which is a full-length original book musical.
Are any of the classes by audition only?
No.
Would a double major in theatre arts and another academic area be feasible?
Absolutely.
Is it common?
Yes.
How many performing venues are there?
7 or 8
Would I be able to take voice lessons there from someone in the department,
or would I be able to take voice lessons through the consortium with Trinity
Rep?
You could take voice lessons through the applied music program in the
Music Department.
I've read through the courses offered - they look wonderful -
so from that I can get a pretty good idea of the balance between studying
theatre history and studying the craft of it, but what do you feel the
main emphasis is put on?
We emphasize the development of individual artistic vision. We’re
interested in turning out students who are unique, confident, entrepreneurial
artists. We emphasize the ‘whole artist’ and encourage
Brown students to work outside their comfort zone. We want actors
to write, design, direct and writers to act, direct, etc.
If I'm planning on pursuing theatre professionally after college, do
you feel I'll be prepared after being a theatre major?
The majority of our most talented performers go on to graduate training
in one of the top ten graduate acting programs in America. Some
do go directly into the business, but that is less and less the norm as
most young actors today realize that advanced training will allow them
to become the very best performers they can be.
What is the Becker Library?
The Becker is the Theatre Department library of scripts, books, and other
interesting stuff. Inside the Becker, which is located on the second floor
of Lyman Hall, you will also find copies of all the scripts for shows
being auditioned foron campus.What
are some of your alums doing?
Go to our Alums
& Friends page.
What playwriting opportunities exist on campus?
Playwriting courses are offered through both the Theatre Department (Introduction
to Playwriting Workshop) and Brown's Creative Writing Program.
What directing opportunities exist on campus?
There are a wide variety of directing opportunities available to you.
PW offers its directors a chunk of money, a black box, an elaborate lighting
system, etc. to cast and direct their own play. S&B invites one senior
theatre concentrator each year to direct a show in one of the Mainstage
theatres (this is called the "senior slot").
What design and production opportunities exist on campus?
There are design and production opportunities all over Brown campus. The
Department of Theatre, Speech and Dance rely heavily on students for both
design and production on Sock and Buskin shows, visiting guest artist,
as well as dance concerts. The Brownbrokers musical, produced by Theatre,
Speech and Dance, is fully designed by students, technically run by students,
and mentored by the production staff of the department. Outside student
groups such as Production Workshop, Musical Forum, and Shakespeare On
the Green are always looking for excited students to design and be involved
technically.
Do I need experience to get involved?
No
How can I usher for productions?
Call the box office (863-2838) or stop by during regular box office hours
(Tues.-Fri. 12noon- 5pm) to sign up. Usher training is done on nights
of performance. Open to all underclassmen and graduate students. It is
also a wonderful opportunity to see free theatre! A
note from Lowry Marshall:Glad
to hear of your interest in Brown. I can tell you, in just a few words,
that Brown does 80-90 productions a year, that anyone who can get accepted
at Brown can take our classes. We don't audition for classes--just for
our shows; majors and non-majors are treated equally. We are not a conservatory,
and our primary focus is on the growth of our students imaginations and
confidence rather than on teaching a narrow band of skills. We encourage
entrepreneurism and experimentation in our students.
We don't have a single method or philosophy in our acting/directing classes.
We encourage each student to develop his or her own "method"
over the years spent with us.
We believe our program is the best liberal arts theatre major in the country.
Brown is a place to get a great education while you grow as an artist.
No other program in the U.S. sends more students to the top five MFA programs.
We have many students at Brown whose parents work in the industry, which
I think says a lot about the image of our program within the profession.
Brown theatre graduates are omnipresent in New York and L.A. Two out of
seven of the Arts and Letters Pulitzer's this year were won by former
Brown Theatre students, including the award for Playwriting. Paula Vogel,
who's the head of our Playwriting program, is herself a Pulitzer Prize
winner.
Our students are what make our program so very special. I believe that
they are the best in America, and our faculty tries very hard to give
them the individual attention and encouragement that they deserve. I would
urge you to come for a visit at a time that classes are in session and
sit in on one of my acting/directing classes. You'll learn most by talking
to the students and watching them work.
UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM
The Department of Theatre, Speech, and Dance offers an undergraduate concentration in Theatre Arts which combines the study of dramatic literature, theatre history, and dramatic and theatrical theory with the opportunity to take practicum courses in various theatre arts, including playwriting, acting and directing, design, dance, and film and video making. As essential aspect of Brown theatre program is the engagement of the student in theatrical performance in order to help him or her to arrive at a fuller understanding of the relationships between drama as literature and theatre as enactment. The theatre arts program at Brown forms part of a stimulating creative community at the nation's seventh oldest University.
The Academic Program
The undergraduate academic and production programs at Brown combine to offer the student a vital and well-integrated theatre experience. The concentration program leads to a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theatre Arts, making full use of Brown's flexible curricula. A total of twelve courses are required in theatre history, dramatic literature and theory, and studio and technical production. Along with courses stressing scholarship and research, sequential practicum courses are available from the Freshman year in acting and directing, playwriting, dance, and technical direction and design.
The concentration draws heavily from course offerings throughout the University and interdisciplinary work is stressed. In addition to an excellent faculty in Theatre, students have access to distinguished faculty members from such Departments and Programs as English, Classics, Comparative Literature, Afro-American Studies, Anthropology, Music, Modern Culture and Media, Religious Studies, and American Civilization. Students can also take courses at the Rhode Island School for Design. Participation in exchange programs in the United States and abroad is possible and Double Concentration and Honors programs are also available.
Graduates in Theatre Arts from Brown are currently attending many of the finest graduate and professional theatre programs throughout the world and have attained a high degree of success in academic and professional theatre.
The Production Program
Over 40,000 people view theatre events on campus yearly, with five spaces fully devoted to production. Between 80 and 90 productions are presented each year by producing groups that include: Sock and Buskin (faculty directed and designed), Production Workshop (student controlled, directed, and designed), Rites and Reason (dedicated to promoting original plays that deal with Afro-American experience), Brownbrokers (producers of an annual student original musical), Musical Forum (student producers of musical theatre) and the semi-professional Brown Summer Theatre. In addition several dance recitals featuring Modern, Ethnic and Fusion works choreographed by students, faculty and visiting artists are given each year and the Department sponsors Dance Extension, a touring dance repertory company.
The tradition of good theatre at Brown dates from well back into the 19th century and the involvement of hundreds of student participants yearly underscores the vitality and avid interest in theatre arts at the University. The Brown theatre and dance facilities provide opportunities for the use of varied production methods: proscenium, arena, environmental, and three-quarter round. Productions are cast from auditions open to all members of the student community.
Few universities--if any--have approached Brown's program in longevity and productivity. Hundreds of former participants in Brown's theatre arts program now live and work not only as actors, directors, dancers, technicians, playwrights, scholars, and teachers, but also in many other professions in cities and towns throughout the United States and abroad. They have brought with them a heightened sensitivity to dramatic literature and a strong awareness of the complexity and creativity involved in the theatrical event.
The Department offers undergraduate assistantships for qualified students in the areas of technical production, costuming, library supervision, and box office management.