Theater Major
Major Description
The mission of the Theater Department (THEA) is to graduate self-empowered, well-informed, creative storytellers engaged in their communities. The Theater Department considers the critical and creative study of the theatrical discipline to be an essential component of a liberal arts education. Offerings include courses in Theater Arts (acting, design, directing, playwriting, stage management), Theater Methods (dramatic literature and criticism, performance studies, theater history), and Technical Theater (lab and hands-on technical production). Foundational coursework introduces theater techniques, theories, literature, and discourses. Advanced courses prepare students to articulate their visions of theater both on stage and in writing, and to engage in deep scholarly and artistic research. The department embraces a broad definition of theater and encourages artistic innovation.
The Theater department welcomes students who seek to develop a strong passion for expressing themselves or communicating about meaningful human issues through the artistic process. They are interested in developing their confidence and empathy, embodiment, and collaborative skills. Theater majors acquire many valuable and transferable career skills such as public speaking and presentation, teamwork, creative problem-solving, adaptability, emotional intelligence, time and project management, and attention to detail.
Admission to the Major
The theater department has created a wide array of options for students to begin their path through the study of theater in areas other than acting, such as playwriting, design, or performance practice.
The following chart details the Gateway Course Categories that must be completed or underway by the fourth semester in order to be approved as a theater major:
| Degree type | Area of Study |
|---|---|
| Gateway Courses | |
| Technical Theater (0.5 CR) | THEA105 (One 0.5 credit in the technical aspects of scenic/lighting or costumes) |
| Theater Arts (1.0 CR) | This includes courses in the areas of design, acting, playwriting, advanced technical theater, and performance practice |
| Theater Methods (1.0 CR) | This includes courses in the areas of dramatic literature, theater history, criticism, applied theater and service learning. |
| (See list of courses shown below) |
Major Requirements
Theater Major Requirements (These requirements are in addition to the Gateway courses)
- Three (3) credits in Theater Arts courses, which must include one design course (THEA359 - set design, THEA383 - costume design, THEA360 - media design or THEA305 - lighting design). One credit (and only one credit) of Performance Practice* (THEA427/THEA428/THEA431/THEA432/THEA433/THEA435/THEA437) is also required for this category. One instance of the course THEA183 (The Actor's Experience) or THEA180 (Reading Plays for Production) may be counted towards the Performance Practice requirement (for .5CR).
- Two (2) credits in Theater Methods courses. Only one course may be 100-level.
- One (1) credit of Technical Theater (THEA329/THEA331/THEA335) earned in .25, .5 and 1.0 credit increments through participation in department production related positions.** These opportunities are posted on the Theater Department Virtual Callboard throughout the year as projects/production needs develop.
- One (1) credit Theater Elective, which includes THEA courses and courses cross-listed with the department in all areas, including Technical Theater, Theater Arts, and Theater Methods. This will allow students to deepen their knowledge within an area of theater that they are interested in, or conversely to increase the diversity of courses that they take in the major during their time at Wesleyan. For this category, majors will need to select a course to count as their elective and submit that choice in their major certification form to be approved by their major advisor.
*Performance Practice credits are earned by participating in a Theater Department project (Mainstage or Capstone Productions) as a performer/actor, director, assistant director, stage manager, assistant stage manager, dramaturg, designer or assistant designer. Auditions and opportunity info for these will be posted on the Theater Department Virtual Callboard throughout the year as projects/production needs develop.
**Beginning with the class of 2027: in order to be eligible for any senior capstone project, students must have completed their Technical and Performance Practice credits by the end of their junior year.
Total major program requirements: 2.5 credits (Gateways) + 7 credits = 9.5 credits
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Theater Arts | ||
| THEA110 | Drafting for Theatrical Design | 1 |
| THEA125F | Performing Contemporary Playwrights (FYS) | 1 |
| THEA143 | Gospel, Rap, and Social Justice | 1 |
| THEA145F | Clash of the Titans: Classical vs. Contemporary Voices in Theater and Film | 1 |
| THEA180 | Reading Plays for Production: Conceiving for Performance | .5 |
| THEA183 | The Actor's Experience | .5 |
| THEA185 | Text & Visual Imagination: Introduction to Eco Design for Performance | 1 |
| THEA199 | Introduction to Playwriting | 1 |
| THEA221 | Rescripting America for the Stage | 1 |
| THEA237 | Performance Art | 1 |
| THEA239 | Songwriting Workshop | 1 |
| THEA245 | Acting I | 1 |
| THEA248 | Ethical Design for Stage and Fashion | 1 |
| THEA259 | Face the Blank Page | 1 |
| THEA265 | Acting for the Camera: Film, Theater, and Television in the "Post"-Pandemic World | 1 |
| THEA265Z | Acting for the Camera: Film, Theater and Television in the Age of Zoom | 1 |
| THEA279 | Music Theater Workshop | 1 |
| THEA281 | Introduction to Directing | 1 |
| THEA284 | Dressing the Imagination: From Page to Stage | 1 |
| THEA285 | Acting II: It's All Greek to Me | 1 |
| THEA286 | Solo Performance | 1 |
| THEA301 | Immersive Theater: Experimental Design, Material Culture and Audience-Centered Performance | 1 |
| THEA305 | Lighting Design for the Theater | 1 |
| THEA315 | Stage Management | 1 |
| THEA319 | Advanced Acting: Shakespeare/Shakespeare Deconstructed | 1 |
| THEA328 | Breaking New Ground Residency: The Masses Are Asses Radio Play | .5 |
| THEA345 | Advanced Scene Study: Modern Times and the Old School World | 1 |
| THEA355 | Voice & Movement for Actors: Embodying Imagery and Language into Acting Text | 1 |
| THEA359 | Space Design for Performance | 1 |
| THEA360 | Media for Performance | 1 |
| THEA381 | Directing II | 1 |
| THEA383 | Introduction to Costume Design for Performance | 1 |
| THEA384 | Advanced Costume Design & Construction | 1 |
| THEA385 | The Working Theatermaker: Acting Beyond the University | 1 |
| THEA385Z | The Working Actor: Acting Beyond the University | 1 |
| THEA386 | Musical Theater Performance | 1 |
| THEA390 | Performance Ensemble | 1 |
| THEA399 | Advanced Playwriting: Long Form | 1 |
| THEA427 | Theater Projects - Performance Practice | 0.25 |
| THEA428 | Theater Projects - Performance Practice | 0.25 |
| THEA430 | Theater Projects - Performance Practice | 0.5 |
| THEA431 | Mainstage Production - Performance Practice | 0.5 |
| THEA432 | Theater Projects - Performance Practice | 1 |
| THEA433 | Mainstage Production - Performance Practice | 1 |
| THEA434 | Applied Scenography: From Idea to the Stage | 0.5 |
| THEA435 | Performance Practice in Design A | 0.5 |
| THEA437 | Performance Practice in Design B | 1 |
| Theater Methods | ||
| ENGL369 | Performance Remains: Slavery in the Black Dramatic Imagination | 1 |
| FGSS353 | Destroying the Audience: Limits of Performance and Representation in the Theater of (Non) Being | 1 |
| MUSC232 | Instrument-Body | 1 |
| THEA114Z | Incarcerated Stories: Documenting In/Justice | 1 |
| THEA115 | America in Prison: Theater Behind Bars | 1 |
| THEA135F | Documentary Performance: Theater and Social Justice (FYS) | 1 |
| THEA150 | Introduction to Performance Studies | 1 |
| THEA150F | Introduction to Performance Studies (FYS) | 1 |
| THEA172F | Staging America: Modern American Drama (FYS) | 1 |
| THEA175F | August Wilson (FYS) | 1 |
| THEA202 | Greek Drama: Theater and Social Justice, Ancient and Modern | 1 |
| THEA203 | Playing in the Theater Archive: An Introduction to Performance Studies | 1 |
| THEA204 | A Nation and its Theater: Cultural and National Identity in Performance | 1 |
| THEA210 | Shakespeare | 1 |
| THEA215 | Latinx Theater in the U.S.: Analysis & Performance | 1 |
| THEA216 | Performance Curation as Relational Praxis | 1 |
| THEA217 | Performing Democracy: Theater, Activism, and Community Engagement | 1 |
| THEA231 | Classic Spanish Plays: Love, Violence, and (Poetic) Justice on the Early Modern Stage | 1 |
| THEA232 | Instrument-Body | 1 |
| THEA233 | All Ah We: Contemporary Afro-Caribbean Drama & Performance | 1 |
| THEA235 | Writing on and as Performance | 1 |
| THEA236Z | Writing the Body | 1 |
| THEA238 | The Intercultural Stage: Migration and the Performing Arts in the Hispanic World | 1 |
| THEA243 | Chinese Theater and Drama | 1 |
| THEA254 | The World of Federico García Lorca: Tradition and Modernity in the Spanish Avant-Garde | 1 |
| THEA261 | Sites of Resistance & Memory: Theater, Performance & Political Consciousness in Contemporary Spain | 1 |
| THEA263 | Mythic & Modern: Reappropriating Classical Themes in Contemporary Drama and Performance | 1 |
| THEA266 | Black Performance Theory | 1 |
| THEA267 | Revolution Girl-Style Now: Queer Performance Strategies | 1 |
| THEA269 | Introduction to Performance Studies | 1 |
| THEA280 | Award-Winning Playwrights | 1 |
| THEA290 | Staging Race in Early Modern England | 1 |
| THEA291 | French and Francophone Theater in Performance | 1.25 |
| THEA292 | Spectacles of Violence in Early Modern French Tragedy | 1 |
| THEA297 | Latin American Theater and Performance | 1 |
| THEA302 | Contemporary Theater: Theories and Aesthetics | 1 |
| THEA310 | Shakespeare's Macbeth: From Saga to Screen | 1 |
| THEA316 | Advanced Topics in Performance Studies | 1 |
| THEA323 | Staging Blackness: African American Theater | 1 |
| THEA327 | Dangerous Acts: Theater, Transgression, and Social Justice, Ancient and Modern | 1 |
| THEA353 | Destroying the Audience: Limits of Performance and Representation in the Theater of (Non) Being | 1 |
| THEA363 | (Un)Popular Performances/Performances (Im)Populaires | 1 |
| THEA364 | Friendship and Collaboration: In Theory, In Practice | 1 |
| THEA365 | Greek Tragedy: Euripides | 1 |
| THEA369 | Performance Remains: Slavery in the Black Dramatic Imagination | 1 |
| THEA371 | Sister Acts: Black Feminist/Womanist Theater of the African Diaspora | 1 |
| THEA391 | The Live Event: Politics and Practice of Creating Site-Specific Performance | 1 |
| THEA393 | Afterparty: End Times, Pleasure, and Clean Up | 1 |
General Education
In order to be eligible for Honors in Theater through a Capstone Thesis Project, students must be Gen Ed Stage1 compliant. In order to be eligible for High Honors in Theater through a Capstone Thesis Project, students must be Gen Ed Stage 2 compliant. See Guidelines and Proposal Requirements for Senior Capstone Projects in Theater for more information.
Student Learning Goals
The theater department teaches the fundamental tools of theater-making and emphasizes collaborative, exploratory work in order to give our students the ability to operate in and change the real world without hesitation and with confidence. Our goal is to graduate self-empowered, well-informed, creative storytellers engaged in their communities.
We believe that theater can be created from multiple points of entry, such as utilizing plays and text; movement and physical composition; objects and visual elements; sound and music, to name a few. Therefore, we invite and welcome all students; particularly, those with a strong passion to express themselves and to be willing to fail, fall, laugh, and grow, while changing themselves and others in the process.
The theater department faculty believes in the power of performance as a transformational discipline, as an embodied process that, through technique, methodology, study, and commitment, has a unique capability to ask hard questions about who we are as a society, and serve as a rehearsal space for alternate futures.
Study Abroad
Students are encouraged to spend a semester at Wesleyan-approved programs abroad or to petition for approval of other programs in countries of their choice. For information, contact the Office of Study Abroad.
Wesleyan pre-approved programs with focus on theater:
- British American Drama Academy, London
- CIEE, Buenos Aires
- C.V. STARR, Chile
- For Wesleyan policy on the programs not on the approved list, contact the Office of Study Abroad.
Prizes
Rachel Henderson Theater Prize: Awarded annually to the student who, in the estimation of the theater faculty, has contributed most to theater at Wesleyan over the course of their undergraduate career.
Outreach and Community Service Prize: Awarded to the senior theater major who, through their work in the Theater Department, has done a significant service in the community.
J.Peter Adler ’90 Memorial Fund: Established in 1997 with gifts from family and friends in memory of J.Peter Adler ’90, the J.Peter Adler Memorial Fund provides two awards per year to support a student theater production: one in the fall and one in the spring semester. An avid theater lover, J.P. participated in Second Stage while at Wesleyan as a non-theater major. He died suddenly in 1995. The Adler Fund is awarded with preference to first-time directors of non-academic theater productions and, whenever possible, to non-theater majors. The fund may also support student theater productions associated with the Theater Department or other entities, such as senior thesis productions.
Honors
Preliminary honors proposals are due during spring of junior year. Students can submit proposals for either critical or creative honors theses.
Preliminary proposals will be judged based on clearly expressed objectives and evidence of research and preparation. Judgments will be based equally on preliminary research, clarity of the objectives of the process, and rationale for staging a given production. Please consult Guidelines and Proposal Requirements for Senior Capstone Projects in Theater (inclusive of honors thesis projects), as well as honors eligibility details.
The Honors Committee will award honors on the basis of the readers’ evaluations. All departmental readers must recommend honors for a candidate to be successful. Students are entitled to copies of the readers’ comments. The honors tutor is responsible for assigning a grade for the courses THEA409 and THEA410; this grade need not reflect the decision of the Honors Committee to award or deny departmental honors.
The Honors Committee will evaluate eligible theses according to the following criteria: consideration of the readers’ evaluations, originality of research and thesis topic, the student’s performance in courses as reflected in his or her transcript, compliance with the General Education Expectations, and the extent to which the student’s educational experience reflects the philosophy, goals, and diversity of the department.
Capstone Experience
Theater Capstone Optional
SENIOR THESIS - two semesters
SENIOR PROJECT - one semester