BA in Theatre Arts
California State University-Chico — Chico, CA
About this program
California State University, Chico's BA in Theatre Arts is offered through the Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance within the College of Humanities and Fine Arts at Chico State's campus in Chico, California, approximately 90 miles north of Sacramento. The program is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST) and provides focused, pre-professional training within the context of a broad liberal arts education. Through applied studio courses, workshops, and full productions, students develop an immediately useful set of theatre skills to prepare them for entry-level professional theatre employment or advanced study in professional training programs and graduate schools. The study of textual analysis, literature, and theatre history grounds students in the cultural context of theatre and develops their ability to think critically, reason clearly, imagine creatively, and communicate effectively about theatre and its world. The BA is a well-balanced degree. After completing a shared common core with the BFA in Musical Theatre — covering foundational acting, design, history, literature, and the required Social Justice in Theatre course — BA students diverge into a flexible mix of lower and upper-division electives across performance, technical theatre and design, and dramatic literature and history. Six theatre elective courses (18 units) are chosen from options including Movement for Actors, Voice for the Actor, Intermediate Acting, Scene Study, Styles in Acting, Acting for the Camera, Acting in Musical Theatre, Stage Management, Scenic Design, Lighting Design, Costume Design, Scenic Painting, Children's Literature in Performance, and Seminar in Design and Technical Production. Eight units of Theatre Practicum are required, giving students direct hands-on production experience through roles in rehearsal, performance, costume practice, scene and light work, production assistant work, and special problems. Students are also required to complete a Directing course in the foundation core. All students must either participate in auditions for all theatre productions or make portfolio presentations while enrolled. Advising is mandatory, and students need a laptop throughout the program. All Chico State theatre and musical theatre students take the Social Justice in Theatre course, which equips them with tools to advocate for equity and inclusion in the theatre community. All faculty are active members of the Musical Theatre Educators' Alliance and trained in Theatrical Intimacy Education. Students and faculty create Community Agreements prior to each production to ensure a safe working environment. There is no graduate theatre program at Chico State, meaning undergraduates receive all available production opportunities without graduate student competition. The Theatre Arts Club produces additional student-led shows and festivals throughout the year.
Audition & application overview
- Requires a live or recorded audition
None for admission; production casting auditions held within the department each semester after enrollment
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