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Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre/Design/Technical

Pictured | Ashley Berger-Turner | Theatre, Costume Design | Goshen, Indiana (hometown)
Club Affiliations | Japanese Pop Culture Club (treasurer),  Japanese Club Club 


Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre/Design/Technicall
(Specialties in Scenic, Lighting, and Costume Design/Technology)

The BFA in Theatre with a Concentration in Design/Technical with a Specialty in (Scenic, Lighting, or Costume Design and Technolgy) is intended to prepare students for the professional world or to continue on to graduate studies with an intensive focus on a specific area of design and production. The Technical Theatre program at IUSB is designed to give students a broad background of theatre history and theatre industry with an emphasis in the design and technical aspects of theatre. Students have the opportunity for extensive production experience in many capacities including the opportunity to create their own fully realized designs. Design and Technical students also have the opportunity to work in either the scene shop or costume shop furthering their educational goals in this lab setting. Students are encouraged to take summer employment or internships in the field of theatre design and technology.


Academic Advising

College policy on advising requires that students meet with their academic advisors at least once each year, and in some departments, prior to each semester’s to enrollment. Advising holds are placed on all Ernestine M. Raclin School of the Arts students prior to advance registration and are released following advising. Students with a declared major are advised in their academic units. To determine who your advisor is and how to contact them, see One.IU.


Theatre Upper-Divisional Review

All students are considered pre-Bachelor of Arts and pre-Bachelor of Fine Arts students until they pass an upper-divisional review or entrance audition. Students are expected to successfully complete this review at the earliest possible point in their academic careers. Once students earn between 50 and 60 credit hours they are scheduled for their upper-divisional review, which must be undertaken at this time.

Students undertaking this review are expected to perform the following:

  • Design and Technical Production students should present a portfolio appropriate to the year of study and a current resume for all faculty at reviews.
  • All students will participate in an interview.
  • The audition should show breadth (work in all the areas that a student has studied) and quality (a careful selection of the best work in the student’s area of concentration). The faculty expects to see work that demonstrates ability and improvement.
  • The faculty expects students to present their work in good condition and in a manner that expresses their personal development, course of study, or academic goals. For the interview, students are expected to have outlined their achievements so far and goals for the future, as well as to address any faculty questions.
  • At the conclusion of the review, the faculty may choose to accept a student into the appropriate degree programs, Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Fine Arts with, or without, provisions outlined by the faculty. The faculty may also decide to rehear students if work in some areas requires improvement.
  • In certain cases, the faculty may decline to accept a student into the degree programs, if the quality of either their classroom or studio work is deemed insufficient. A student may attempt to pass upper-divisional review only two times. Each hearing counts as one attempt; failure to meet provisions within a specified time counts as one attempt. Failure to attend a scheduled review counts as one attempt.
  • A student can elect to attempt to audition into a program prior to their upper-divisional. This must be communicated by the 7th week of the semester to the student’s academic advisor. Please remember that you may audition for an academic program up to two times throughout your course of study.
  • One bonus entrance audition (not counted as part of your two) attempt is included in the first semester of matriculation in the pre-theatre programs. This opportunity will be held in the October entrance auditions. If you are interested in auditioning early, we encourage contacting your academic advisor to find out more details.

For further questions about this review process, please see the academic advisor or reference the Theatre and Dance Student Handbook.


Degree Requirements (125 cr.)
Degree Map >>

Students receiving the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree must complete 125 total credit hours including:

  • Success accomplishment of computer literacy placement exam (0 cr.); OR
    Computer Literacy Course (counts as 3 credit elective)
  • THTR-T 228 Design for the Theatre (Visual Literacy)
  • THTR-T 190 Literary and Intellectual Traditions
  • THTR-A 190 Art, Aesthetics, and Creativity; OR
    THTR-A 399 Art, Aesthetics, and Creativity
  • Successful accomplishment of THTR-D course in Performance Concentration (Health and Wellness)
  • Theatre Core (31 cr.)
  • Design/Technical Concentration (33 cr.)
  • Specialty (9 cr.)

  • At least 30 credit hours must be at the 300– or 400–level
  • Successful participation in major season productions each semester as directed by the chair of theatre and dance
  • Courses for the major must be completed with a grade of C- or higher
  • All courses are 3 credit hours, unless otherwise noted.

Major Requirements (73 cr.)
Theatre Core (31 cr.)
  • THTR-T 120 Acting I: Fundamentals of Acting
  • THTR-T 225 Stagecraft 1
  • THTR-T 230 Costume Technology I
  • THTR-T 340 Directing I: Fundamentals of Directing
  • THTR-T 341 Theatre Production I (1 cr.)
  • THTR-T 342 Theatre Production II (1 cr.)
  • THTR-T 343 Theatre Production III (1 cr.)
  • THTR-T 405 Stage Management
  • THTR-T 470 History of the Theatre 1
  • THTR-T 471 History of the Theatre 2
  • THTR-T 483 Topics in theatre and Drama
  • THTR-T 485 Capstone Project (1 cr.)

Select one from the following

  • THTR-T 326 Introduction to Scenic Design
  • THTR-T 335 Stage Lighting Design
  • THTR-T 339 Introduction to Costume Design

Design Technical Concentration (33 cr.)
  • FINA-F 100 Fundamental Studio-Drawing
  • THTR-T 249 Drafting and Color Media
  • THTR-T 327 Period Styles
  • THTR-T 330 Rendering
  • THTR-T 332 Scene Painting
  • THTR-T 348 Digital Theatre Design
  • THTR-T 392 Theatre Internship
  • THTR-T 434 Historic Costumes for the Stage
  • THTR-T 449 Profession of Theatre Design

Select two from the following (not repeatable from Theatre Core)

  • THTR-T 326 Introduction to Scenic Design
  • THTR-T 335 Stage Lighting Design
  • THTR-T 339 Introduction to Costume Design

Select Specialty (9 cr.)
Costume Design and Technical Production (9 cr.)
  • THTR-T 290 History and Design of Stage Makeup
  • THTR-T 430 Costume Technology II
  • THTR-T 433 Costume Design II

Lighting Design and Technical Production (9 cr.)
  • THTR-T 424 Stagecraft 2
  • THTR-T 425 Introduction to Theatrical Drafting
  • THTR-T 438 Advanced Stage Lighting Design

Scene Design and Technical Production (9 cr.)
  • THTR-T 424 Stagecraft 2
  • THTR-T 425 Introduction to Theatrical Drafting
  • THTR-T 426 Fundamentals of Scenic Design

Theatre Electives (9 cr.)
  • Select any THTR courses not already listed

Free Electives (7 cr.)
  • If student takes the Computer Literacy class above (Fundamental Literacy), only 4 credits of electives are required

Academic Bulletins

PDF Version

2020-2021 Campus Bulletin
2019-2020 Campus Bulletin
2018-2019 Campus Bulletin
2017-2018 Campus Bulletin
2016-2017 Campus Bulletin
2015-2016 Campus Bulletin
2014-2015 Campus Bulletin

Please be aware that the PDF is formatted from the webpages; some pages may be out of order.