The Master of Fine Arts in Acting
General Concentration and Directing Concentration
The MFA in Acting is a sixty (60) credit hour course of study (minimum) covering a comprehensive range of acting-oriented course work. All students accepted into the MFA Acting Program initially matriculate into the General Concentration. However, once accepted, students who have a strong interest (and a proven ability) in directing may apply and interview for a limited number of positions available in the Directing Concentration. Both MFA Acting concentrations are designed to produce professionals prepared to enter the academy and teach at the college/university level and/or compete in the professional theatre.
Both MFA in Acting concentrations have a forty-eight (48) credit hour core of common course work designed to instill professional level skill sets in such areas as: acting for the stage and screen, acting Shakespeare, acting in periods and styles, vocal production for the actor, dialects, the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), research and aesthetics, movement for the actor, auditioning and the business of acting, singing (musical theatre), dance (various styles), and stage combat (various weapons and styles; S.A.F.D. skills proficiency tests are available with instructor approval).
General Concentration students have a minimum of twelve (12) credit hours of electives to be drawn from a variety of acting, theatre, cinema and television related course work. In addition to taking the aforementioned forty-eight (48) credit hours of acting related course work, Directing Concentration students take nine (9) credits of directing related course work (THE 722 Advanced Directing for the Theatre 1; THE 723 Advanced Directing for the Theatre 2: Problems in Directing; THE 724 Stage Management) and a minimum of three (3) additional elective credit hours.
The Master of Fine Arts in Acting degree program culminates in a Thesis/Creative Project (3 crs.) and a Showcase Production of scenes and monologues in New York City. The “NYC Showcase” is presented to wide range of industry professionals as well as artistic directors from a variety of professional Christian theatre companies from across the country. Student “reels” consisting of short scenes from the student’s television, film, and stage work may also be distributed to selective agents and casting directors on the West Coast and New York.
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The Master of Arts in Theatre
Theatre Ministry Major and Theatre Studies Major
The Master of Arts (M.A.) in Theatre with a major in Theatre Ministry is a thirty-three (33) credit hour course of study (minimum) is the perfect degree for those wishing to make use of drama in church ministry or to start their own ministry-oriented company. All Theatre Ministry majors are required to do a ninety (90) hour off-campus internship in a professional, educational, or ministry-oriented environment.
The M.A. in Theatre with a major in Theatre Studies is a thirty-one (31) credit hour course of study and is an excellent choice for the drama teachers already state-credentialed at the B.A. level who wishes to pursue an M.A. degree. The Theatre Studies major can be done with a single eight-week long summer residency (two summer terms) and has the flexibility of a number of on-line courses. The final portfolio project may be directed off-campus. This degree program allows the flexibility necessary for high school teachers to pursue an M.A. degree in Theatre without having to give up their current teaching position.
The M.A. course of study delves into a wide swathe of topics and disciplines useful to the elementary, junior, and senior high school drama teacher or drama ministry coordinator. Areas of study include: acting, directing, stage management, the theatrical design process, theatre ministry, writing and producing children’s theatre, textual analysis, and make-up for the stage. A ninety (90) hour off-campus internship in a professional, educational or ministry-oriented environment is required. Both majors are required to complete a culminating experience chosen from the following three (3) options:
- Comprehensive Examination;
- Portfolio (Combination project: Research and Creative); or
- Thesis (Recommended for those likely to pursue the Ph.D.).
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Accreditation
Regent University is accredited by the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges (SACS). The Department of Theatre Arts degree programs were conceived and realized with National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST) standards in mind. The Department of Theatre Arts is currently preparing to seek accreditation of its degree programs by NAST.
Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival
The Department of Theatre Arts regularly participates in the Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival. Respondents are brought on-campus to comment on the six (6) departmental Mainstage productions each season. In addition to the Department’s Mainstage Season, student directors regularly produce shows in the Department’s Acting Laboratory. These productions are entirely student directed, acted, and produced. Students are also afforded the opportunity to attend the Virginia Theatre Association (VTA) “State Screening Auditions” for the SETC Spring Professional Auditions.
Cinema and Television Experience
The Department of Theatre Arts also enjoys an extremely close relationship with the Department of Cinema and Television. Theatre Arts students frequently participate as actors in CTV television and film productions. The Regent University Department of Cinema and Television has been the recipient of dozens of student achievement awards, including a Student Academy Award. Regent actors regularly leave with a high quality “reel” with which to begin their careers. Each spring the Department of Cinema and Television sponsors two festivals, the OTIS (an on-campus student run festival) and the NARO Festival (at an Art-Cinema house in the Ghent district of Norfolk) that screens the best of the best Regent student films.
The Virginia Beach BASH (a SAFD sanctioned Workshop)
The Department of Theatre Arts hosts The Virginia Beach BASH each spring. The “BASH” is a Society of American Fight Directors (SAFD) sanctioned, two-day-long regional stage combat workshop. The BASH features internationally recognized fight directors from the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. Recent staff members have included Richard Ryan, fight director on such films as Troy, The Last Legion, Stardust, The Golden Compass, and The Dark Knight; Anthony De Longis, fight master on Secondhand Lions, whip-master on The Mask of Zorro, and actor in Jet Li’s Fearless; as well as a number of SAFD Certified Fight Masters, such as Dale Girard (NCSA), Michael Chin (Fights4), David Brimmer (Broadway production of The Lieutenant of Inishmor), Geoff Alm, k. Jenny Jones and pyrotechnics expert John Wynne (Steven Spielberg’s War of the Worlds). All M.F.A. Acting students are required to attend the Virginia Beach BASH twice (2) during their three (3) years in residence. Each year, the Department of Theatre Arts awards, on a competitive basis, three (3) full scholarships to the BASH. A full scholarship is awarded to one member of each MFA Cohort. Also on a competitive basis, an additional two (2) students are selected each year to serve as journeymen. The journeymen assist the BASH staff and, upon completing assigned duties, may attend all classes for free. All Regent Theatre majors can register for the BASH at a 50% discounted rate.
Special Topics Courses (THE 775, 675 and 475)
Special Topics in Theatre courses, designed to complement regularly offered courses, are rotated in and out of the schedule each semester. The department regularly participates in “Modular Week;” during which regularly scheduled courses are placed on hiatus and, frequently, guest instructors (often international) offer week-long courses in specialty areas regular faculty do not cover. Special Topics courses are open to M.F.A and M.A. students. B.A. students may petition for admittance into selected Special Topics courses.
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