Our Bachelor of Arts in Theatre combines a liberal arts education with professionally-focused training. 

We believe that theatre artists are makers, creators, devisers, designers, writers, leaders, activists, and entertainers.  So, at the heart of our program is the belief that every student should be given the training and resources they need to realize a unique vision for their life, education, and creative work.

Our major is the place to train intensively as an actor; join an entirely student-produced, designed, and directed Studio Theatre; write, devise, and produce your own work; train as a designer using state-of-the-art technology; and develop a scholarly understanding of culture and art. Students are admitted to the major based on an audition or interview, or what we call our “gateway” process; and graduates enjoy an excellent record of placement in jobs at professional theatres on Broadway and off-Broadway, in film and television, and as teachers, theatre makers, and leaders in the arts.

Faculty are distinguished for their professional accomplishment and student-centered teaching.

If you want to specialize further, our Theatre major offers four “concentrations”: Performance, Design and Technology, Theatre Education, and Theatre Studies. A student may be admitted into multiple concentrations. Concentrations are not required. Prospective students can be admitted into the concentrators upon their initial audition/interview into the Theatre Major. Incoming students may still be admitted as unconcentrated Theatre Majors and audition/interview for a Theatre Studies, Theatre Education, or Design and Technology concentration later in their first year or in a subsequent year or for the Performance concentration at the beginning of their second year or in a subsequent year.

Theatre education is a space where we build a community for learning together, engage in purposeful play, ask critical questions, and use the tools of theatre to communicate and express complex ideas. JMU considers a theatre teacher as both an artist and an educator and the Theatre Education Concentration at JMU prepares individuals for a variety of opportunities within the field.

The theatre education program includes strong content preparation for teaching in schools and communities, including: drama education, theatre education, arts integration, teaching artistry, and youth theatre. The program promotes graduates who are: 1) culturally responsive practitioners; 2) professional drama/theatre educators; 3) articulate arts education advocates; and 4) reflective artists, teaching artists, and educators. The program supports the National Core Art Standards and the Virginia Standards of Learning for Theatre Arts.

The Theatre Education Concentration is only open to theatre majors through an interview process (as an incoming freshman, transfer student, or current theatre major). Students in the the Theatre Education Concentration complete the theatre major requirements, the required professional education courses, a school practicum placement, and two eight-week blocks of student teaching. Students complete licensure requirements simultaneously with their degree requirements.