About the Undergraduate Theatre Education and Performance Major
More than 100 years ago, Emerson College was among the first colleges to teach theater arts for young audiences. Today, our undergraduate Theatre Education and Performance BFA program integrates theatre arts and education in classrooms, communities, and onstage. Additionally, through our innovative Applied Theatre curriculum, students learn and practice how to use theatre for healing, justice, and joy with youth or adults in nontraditional places, such as prisons, hospitals, or community centers.
Housed within the Department of Performing Arts in the School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies, the BFA in Theatre Education and Performance develops students as artists and educators, engaging with top faculty in a variety of theatre areas, including Acting, Applied Theatre, Design, Dramaturgy, and Directing. These skills prepare students for employment in the arts, as performers and teachers, and community arts leaders and education-outreach specialists for professional theaters.
Available Concentrations
Students choose between two concentrations within the major during the application process: Performance for those wanting to receive more extensive acting training and Classrooms + Communities for those pursuing a primary focus on teaching and theatre work with youth (in and out of schools) and people of all ages in community settings.
About the Undergraduate Performance Concentration
Our students and faculty believe in the transformative power of theater. Employing the experience of stage performance in the classroom can be a revelation—and the start of a lifelong commitment to enlivening young minds and shaping society’s future.
Housed in the Department of Performing Arts in the School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies, the program’s foundation is in the liberal arts. Upon this, you build your proficiency in acting and teaching—mastering the fundamentals of dramatic arts in our two-year Actor Training Core alongside students in the BFA Acting program and learning the educational and teaching tools that can be applied in many exciting and fulfilling occupations.
About the Undergraduate Classrooms + Communities Concentration
Most people tend to think of theatre as entertainment, but it is so much more. It teaches, inspires, and transforms not only audiences, but also performers, participants, and communities. From exploring emotions and building confidence to instilling empathy, the theatre encourages personal voice and collective dialogue across diverse communities.
Emerson College’s undergraduate Classrooms + Communities concentration is grounded in the liberal arts and in the fundamentals of the dramatic arts. Housed in the Department of Performing Arts in the School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies, the program’s experienced faculty provide students with educational and teaching tools that can be applied in many exciting and fulfilling occupations. And, most importantly, students engage young minds and shape society’s next generation, through school-based teaching and empowering multigenerational community members through arts-based practices.
Theatre Education and Performance has provided me with such important information and perspective on our education systems and structures under an arts lens. On top of that, I have been able to continue my practice of being a performer, allowing me to become more of a well-rounded educator and artist.
Real-World Experience as a Performer and Educator
Theatre Education and Performance majors have ample opportunity to gain real-world learning experience. Here are a few examples:
- Emerson Stage is the producing organization within the Department of Performing Arts. Its nine-show season offers more than 120 opportunities for actors, 100 positions for design staff, 70 for production staff, and another 70 for theater management staff and 30 artistic staff—all reserved exclusively for Performing Arts students.
- The Theatre Education and Performance program is connected to over 60 area schools and theater companies in the Greater Boston area. Students work alongside theater teachers in schools through various observation and student teaching opportunities.They also intern at Huntington Theatre Company, Central Square Theater, American Repertory Theater, and Lyric Stage Company, among others. Students have the opportunity to hone their skills for the camera by acting in student films produced on real working sets on campus and on location through our Visual and Media Arts (SOF) Department.
- Our campus is home to a vibrant student theater scene with 30 student performance organizations, including Kidding Around, Emerson Shakespeare Society, RareWorks Theatre Company, Musical Theatre Against the Grain, and Emerson Urban Dance Theatre.
- Students have the opportunity to hone their skills for the camera by acting in student films produced on real working sets on campus and on location through our School of Film, Television, and Media Arts.
- As the professional presentation and production organization of the Office of the Arts at Emerson College, ArtsEmerson brings industry-leading theater and film from all over the world to the heart of downtown Boston. Through master classes, networking events, discounted tickets, and free student rush, ArtsEmerson gives students the chance to learn from cutting-edge artists.
Careers for Theatre Education and Performance Majors
Our Theatre Education and Performance graduates pursue careers in professional theater, community outreach, teaching at all levels, and arts-based work in community settings. Graduates who complete student teaching and pass the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure will have met all the requirements of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education–approved program, leading to initial licensure as a teacher of theatre at all levels (pre-K to 12+). Examples of careers include:
- Professional Actor
- Theatre Teacher
- Teaching Artist in Schools, Theaters, Afterschool Programs, and Community Spaces
- Children’s Theater Manager
- Educational Outreach Coordinator
- Acting Coach
Notable Performing Arts Alumni
- Alex Ates, Director of Arts, Kent Denver School
- Daniel Begin, Associate Director of Education and Artistic Associate, Greater Boston Stage Company
- Christopher Brindley, Theatre Arts Teacher and Director, Department Head of Performing Arts, Framingham Public Schools; Vice President, Executive Council Member, Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild
- Marisa McIlrath Jones, Associate Director of Education and Practical Learning, Huntington Theatre Company
- Adam Riccio, LHMC, Expressive Arts Therapist, Dana Group Associates; Adjunct Faculty at Lesley University
- Adaire Robinson, Performing Arts Faculty, Noble and Greenough School
- Roxanne Schroeder-Arce, Playwright, Director, Dean of the Chaddock and Morrow College of Fine Arts at Ohio University
Through exciting hands-on processes like playmaking and studying best practices in multicultural education, we learn how to best create safe and successful learning environments for our future drama classrooms. We explore the use of theater as a tool for social and emotional growth, among others, but, most importantly, how teaching drama is simply empathy building.
