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Majors & Minors
Musical Theatre (BFA)
PROGRAM OVERVIEW The musical theatre program provides students with a solid theatre education and experience. Students take classes in movement, voice, and acting styles. Courses in mime and stage combat are also offered. Musical theatre students take a series of support courses in music as well as upper level performance courses. Students are also given opportunities to hone their skills as performers within experimental productions, performances as part of classroom work, and the annual musical.
The primary difference between this program and programs at other institutions is the amount of experience and cross training students can receive. In addition to specific intense training in musical theatre, students will also learn and gain experience in every other aspect of theatre production. This approach gives students both a greater appreciation for the profession as a whole and valuable experience beyond their specific area of expertise.
FACULTY Currently, there is one full-time faculty member devoted exclusively to the Musical Theatre program. Courses required for the degree involve all seven faculty members in the department.
ACADEMIC PREPARATION There are no prerequisite high school courses or requirements needed for enrollment in the theatre program, but students should have a well-rounded academic high school curriculum. Previous involvement in high school and/or community theatre is strongly recommended.
AUDITION REQUIREMENTS (Acting, Directing, Musical Theatre, Theatre Education, students) Acting students will need to prepare two contrasting monologues; these pieces must be memorized. It is recommended that one piece should be comedic in nature; the other should be serious. Select roles that are fairly close to your own age range and try to avoid unnecessary challenges such as accents, etc. Each monologue should be approximately 2 minutes in length.
Musical Theatre students must prepare two songs in addition to their two monologues, one upbeat song and one ballad. Each song, or section of a song, should be approximately 32 bars in length. The monologues should be approximately 2 minutes in length.
An accompanist will be provided for group auditions. Please bring your music marked up where appropriate and in the correct key. If you are attending an audition on an individual basis please bring a recorded accompaniment on tape or CD.
GROUP AUDITION/PORTFOLIO REVIEW DAY SCHEDULE For incoming students to the fall 2009 school year the admissions audition dates are: Saturday, January 31, 2009 or Saturday, February 14, 2009. Please call the Theatre Department at 515-271-4031 or e-mail Judy Drury at judy.drury@drake.edu to register before January 23, 2009. Please provide the following information:
- Full Name, Complete Address, Phone number
- Name of High School or Transfer School, Year of Graduation
- Auditioning for Admission only or Admission and Scholarship Consideration
REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJOR The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in musical theatre requires 56 credit hours in theatre arts, 15 hours in music, and the Drake Curriculum.
DRAKE CURRICULUM The Drake Curriculum, required of all undergraduates, is designed to help students meet personal and professional goals as they acquire fundamental knowledge and abilities in ten Areas of Inquiry, including communication, critical thinking, artistic experience, historical consciousness, information and technology literacy, international and multicultural experiences, scientific and quantitative literacy, values and ethics and engaged citizenship. Students work closely with their academic advisers to craft a program of study in general education that prepares students for civic and professional leadership.
The Drake Curriculum also requires first-year seminars, which foster development of critical thinking and written and oral communication skills through a topical focus; and a Senior Capstone, in which students demonstrate the capacity to bring information, skills and ideas to bear on one project.
INTERNSHIPS & OPPORTUNITIES Students participate in a rigorous curriculum of course work, but students also learn by doing. The Department offers a wide range of performance/production opportunities designed to give students the opportunity to experience the practical application of what they have learned in the classroom.
Students have the option, with faculty consent, of studying at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center, part of the National Theatre Institute in Waterford, CT. This intensive program allows students to work with numerous theatre professionals and to establish possible career ties within the theatre industry. The department constantly receives news of internships in all aspects of theatre and encourages its students to take part. Theatre students also participate in numerous study-abroad programs.
CAREER OPTIONS Typical career paths for theatre arts graduates include regional theatre, teaching, and radio/TV. A number also have entered and completed graduate programs throughout the country.