CAS Planning
Theatre Department Mission Statement:
The Theatre Department at the University of Southern Maine is dedicated to providing a quality education geared to developing critical as well as practical skills in its students. As the most comprehensive theatre program in Maine, we emphasize the study of theatre as part of a solid, undergraduate foundation. Our theatre major teaches theatre as a liberal art with a strong academic component. We also provide professional training in performance techniques, including acting, directing, oral communication, design, and technical theatre. The theatre Department serves the community at large as a producer of quality theatre and developer of an educated audience. Our production season is chosen to serve as a laboratory for our classroom study and to present work, which is found only on college campuses. We endeavor to make our program accessible to all and encourage nontraditional students pursuing their education. Finally, the Theatre Department continually strives to assist students attempting to enter graduate programs or related job markets.
Theatre Department Goals:
Provide a broad-based and diverse educational experience in theatre and oral presentation.
Promote Theatre Department visibility and reinforce the value of theatre and arts based approaches to education.
Create an educational environment that is supportive and responsive to student needs.
Provide an educational environment that is supportive of faculty growth and development, and responsive to faculty needs.
Theatre Department Objectives:
Provide a broad-based and diverse educational experience in theatre and oral presentation.
1. Stimulate a multi-cultural educational environment through:
a. Student/Community workshops.
b. Curriculum.
c. Department produced plays and functions.
d. Guest Artists.
e. Exchange programs.
2. Act as a conduit for student access to community, regional and national programs through:
Department curriculum that includes community based intern programs and community based projects.
Association with local, regional and national organizations, festivals and competitions.
Outreach efforts that are linked to specific department produced plays and functions.
Association with local / state-wide primary and secondary school programs.
Promote Theatre Department visibility and reinforce the value of theatre and arts based approaches to education.
3. Nurture program and support links with other departments and schools within the USM community.
4. Nurture links with the state-wide educational community.
5. Nurture links with community and state programs, and theatre / arts organizations.
6. Provide Department produced plays and functions that stimulate broad-based community interest.
Create an educational environment that is supportive and responsive to student needs:
7. Provide a curriculum that includes full faculty/staff/student participation in specific department functions, workshops, and discussions.
8. Provide comprehensive academic / production advising for all theatre majors.
9. Maintain ongoing academic monitoring and evaluations for all theatre majors.
10. Provide individual interviews with the full faculty / staff for all theatre majors during their sophomore year and at graduation.
11. Provide full faculty/staff discussion, monitoring, and evaluation of production work for all theatre majors.
Provide an educational environment that is supportive of faculty growth and development, and responsive to faculty needs.
12. Encourage and support faculty involvement in local, regional and national organizations and programs.
13. Encourage and support faculty efforts in creative achievement and research at the local, regional, national, or international level.
14. Encourage and support curriculum development.
15. Address salary compression, differential, and inequity issues.
FULL-TIME FACULTY / STAFF
8 Tenure-Track Faculty:
Discipline
o 3 Acting / Directing
o 3 Tech / Design
o 2 History / Dramatic Literature
Degrees
o M.F.A. Performance; [2] M.A. Theatre.
o M.F.A. Scenic Design; M.F.A. Costume Design; M.F.A. Lighting Design.
o [2] Ph.D. Theatre History / Dramatic Literature.
Load
o 9 Credit Load per Semester including:
§ Design Faculty: Minimum of 3 Design Projects per Year.
§ All other Faculty: Minimum of 1 Directing Project per Year.
2 Professional Staff:
Position Titles
o Costume Director: Costume Construction / Costume Practicum Instructor.
o Technical Director: Scenery Construction / Stagecraft Practicum Instructor.
1 Classified Staff:
Position Title
o Department AA
§ Office Management
§ Production / Department Budget Management
PART-TIME FACULTY / STAFF
7 Faculty:
Teaching Responsibility
o Multiple Core "F" Courses per Semester.
o Average of 4 Dance Courses per Semester.
The Musical Theatre Major requires 3 Dance Courses for graduation.
o Acting II: Voice is offered each Semester.
2 Professional Staff: [Shared Positions with the School of Music]
Position Titles
o Director of Arts Promotion: ¼ time to Theatre.
o Arts Events Director / Concert Manager: ¼ time to Theatre.
STUDENTS
95 Theatre Majors
20 Musical Theatre Majors
5 Theatre Minors
DEGREES OFFERED
Bachelor of Arts in Theatre
Required for Graduation
o 70 Theatre Credits
§ Approximately 1/3 each in Performance, Tech / Design, and History Literature.
§ 33 credits in 100/200 courses
§ 30 credits in 300/400 level courses
§ 7 credits in labs.
o 8 Theatre Production Projects
§ Minimum of 2 in a performance discipline
§ Minimum of 2 in a tech / design discipline
Minor in Theatre
Required for Graduation
o 21 Theatre Credits
§ 3 Credits each in Performance, Tech / Design, and History / Literature
§ 12 credits in elective courses
o 1 Theatre Production Project
Bachelor of Music in Performance: Musical Theatre
This degree is offered as a collaboration between the Department of Theatre and the School of Music
Required for Graduation
o 96 Credits
§ 30 Credits in Theatre Courses
§ 66 Credits in Music Courses.
o 4 Theatre Production Projects
§ Minimum of 3 as a performer [1 chorus role, 2 major roles]
§ Minimum of 1 in a tech / design discipline.
SCHOLARSHIPS
The following scholarships are funded through private gifts to the Department.
o Grannia: 2 awards per year
o Petereit: 1 award per year
o Millard: 1 award per year
o Minors ??: 1 award per year
THEATRE PRODUCTIONS
6 PER YEAR
2 SPA
FUNDED THROUGH BOX OFFICE $39K
Theatre Camp
Musical Theatre Camp
International Readers Theatre [Undergraduate / Graduate]
Michael Chekhov Theatre Institute [Undergraduate / Graduate]
Theatre Internships
Portland Stage Company
Public Theatre
Maine State Music Theatre
Comments on:
Admission policy Re: auditions
Student contact: Open House, Sophomore Interviews, Workshop Grades, Independent Projects (3 person committees), Graduation Interviews, Portfolio Review
New programs
BFA in Theatre [enter thru a gate process]
Less intense BA
Major / minor in Dance
Theatre Ed [K-12 Certification in Theatre]
Theatre Ed [K-12 Certification in Theatre]
Grad Cert Programs geared for Maine Teachers seeking HQT status.
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