I’m a rising senior this year and I am really passionate about theatre, it’s the one thing I feel like I never get tired doing. I’ve previously been looking at a lot of smaller liberal arts schools w/ strong political science programs but I’ve realized it’s really important to me that I attend a school w/ an active theatre department and potentially major or at least minor in tech theatre/theatre.
I live in the Pacific Northwest and am curious if anyone has recommendations for which schools on the West Coast have strong programs as most lists are completely comprised of East Coast and Midwest schools. I have a 3.97 GPA, 1330 SAT (planning to retake and improve).
Affordability is another aspect that I have to consider so any WUE schools or private schools that can potentially offer merit scholarships are great.
Generally speaking, any university with a graduate theatre program offering MFAs will have a large and robust theatre department with plenty of classes and opportunities for undergrad involvement, particularly on the tech side. Look, for example, at the Universities of Arizona, Washington, and Oregon. If you have grad students pursuing MFAs in design (costume, scene, lighting) there is always a need for students to help with the production end of things, whether you’re a major, a minor, or an enthusiastic non-major. Most BA degrees with a theatre major will allow you to get a broad background in the field, yet still spend lots of time in your area of interest (technical theatre, in your case).
Many years ago I double-majored (theatre and history) at a state flagship. By the time I graduated I had gained a ton of experience, had developed a decent portfolio of design and tech work, and went on to an MFA in design. I subsequently taught in smaller private and LAC theatre departments which, while good, were a little less lively than their large state counterparts. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as smaller schools/programs have their own advantages and suit some students better – it’s just the nature of the size of the departments and the scope of their programs. As someone interested in technical theatre, you will likely find opportunities wherever you end up. Best of luck to you!
Which specific aspect of technical theater?
Design? (and if so, lighting, projection, sound, set, costumes, makeup?)
Construction itself? (and if so, stagecraft, sound system, lighting system, rigging?)
Stage management?
Is U Nevada at Las Vegas in the WUE? That would be one place to look for sure.
College Navigator finds 90 public and private non-profit colleges and universities in the US that offer bachelor degrees in theater tech or theater arts/stagecraft. https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?s=all&p=50.0502&l=93&ct=1+2
You could use similar search terms with some of the other college-matching search engines and see if more turn up.
Wyoming. WUE at Wyoming is very (extremely) competitive, but there is the Brown and Gold scholarships which would give you $7000 (or $10,500 if your SAT goes up, which is the WUE amount) http://www.uwyo.edu/admissions/scholarships/non-residents/bgcommitment.html About 4-5 years ago they built a new $10M theater and dance dept. The department puts on 6 big productions per year with lots of smaller productions. There are also 2 smaller theaters. The head of the department runs a summer theater program at one of the Montana schools and takes a crew there for the summer too. The theater and dance programs have about 175 students. There are additional theater and dance merit scholarships too, which stack with the WUE/Brown & Gold, and there are a few alum scholarships too. It’s really quite inexpensive.
U of Northern Colorado has a healthy department too and does have WUE scholarships. I know a few (instate) kids who have gone to Colorado State in Ft Collins for theater, and that’s a WUE school too.
We are in the NW too. Check out Southern Oregon University. Techs get to work with OSF professionals. https://sou.edu/academics/theatre/programs/theatre-ba-bs/