It is the mission of the Department of Theatre and Dance to provide training for professional, community, and academic theatres within the framework of the liberal arts education.

The Department of Theatre and Dance offers the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees. The Bachelor of Arts degree is a General Theatre Studies program. The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree program is limited to those students who demonstrate excellence or the potential for excellence in performance and/or production and design. It is 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. Minors in Theatre and 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-run 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. 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 Alpha Psi Omega, the national honorary dramatic society.

Admission to the Department

Bachelor of Arts - General Theatre Studies
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 General Theatre Studies program.

Bachelor of Fine Arts - Acting
In addition to admittance to the university, students must audition during the year prior to entering Fredonia at one of the designated audition dates. Audition information and application forms are available from the Department of Theatre and Dance office or on the departmental 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
See separate description under B.F.A. Musical Theatre.

Bachelor of Fine Arts - Production and Design
In addition to admittance to the university, prospective students must interview with the design faculty prior to acceptance into the program. 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. Production Design program select a specific track of study from the following options: Costume Design, Lighting Design, Technical Production or Scenic Design. Each track of study is outlined below.

Additional Requirements

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, periodic reviews of achievement/improvement are conducted for the B.F.A. Acting and Production Design student with the purpose of determining advancement/retention. At the conclusion of the fourth semester, the performance 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. General Theatre program.

Students in the B.F.A. Acting program 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. Acting and Musical Theatre majors are required to audition for all Department of Theatre and Dance productions.

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

All Theatre majors and minors are required to complete Theatre Practice obligations that are practical extensions of the classroom and vary in accordance with the specific programs. The Theatre Practice commitment requires approximately 10 clock hours per week and may, in special cases, require significantly more time. Theatre Practice credit does not count toward the total number of credits required in the B.F.A. Musical Theatre degree program.

All departmental 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 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.