<p>I know Houston has a thriving theatre scene, which is what draws me to Rice, as well as its academic excellence. My problem, however, is that I will most likely major in theatre, with the intention of being involved with shows 24/7, or as close to it as I can get. I've looked at the department's website, but it is sparse, and I'm not impressed with the production photos. Somewhere on the site, it mentions a study abroad option which seems attractive, but by no means the best offering I've seen; concerning internships, the site only mentions that students have been accepted to competitive internships at theaters such as the Alley. As for the curriculum, it does not seem all that comprehensive, but I could be wrong.</p>
<p>Are any of you familiar with the theatre program? Have you seen any shows? If you know any students, how do they like the program? And those who graduate--would you think that they were amply prepared to work professionally? I am also posing these questions in the Theatre/Drama sub-forum, but I wanted some input from actual Rice students.</p>
<p>If you haven’t already, I’d suggest that you contact Christina Keefe or Matt Schlief depending on your area of interest (acting vs technical/design). You can find their emails on the theatre website.</p>
<p>Theatre at Rice falls into multiple realms: department shows (one per semester - current production is The Drunken City), the Rice Players (student club - another show per semester, also in Hamman Hall), and college theatre (much less professional and a totally different atmosphere). So if you combine all 3, you can be involved 24/7 with productions. Theatre is more of a side interest for me (I’m an engineering major) and most of my friends that are theatre majors are double majoring in something else as well. As a freshman, it’s very easy to get involved. I worked on both the Rice Players show and Macbeth (dept show) last semester. I really wish photos from Macbeth were posted on the website, as it was an incredible production. (This will give you an idea: [Rice</a> University | News & Media](<a href=“http://www.media.rice.edu/media/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=16404]Rice”>http://www.media.rice.edu/media/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=16404))</p>
<p>FYI, an initiative was recently passed to set aside money for a new arts building on campus. (Hamman Hall was designed as a lecture hall and pseudo-performance space- there are desks attached to the armrests of the seats. The rest of the visual arts department is scattered in various buildings around campus.) I do not know anything more about a possible timeline at this time.</p>
<p>The Rice Theatre program is a small and relatively new department that is working to establish itself. I was involved in several productions on the technical side and was working on a theatre double major (with chemE). </p>
<p>The pros : Small program. Good access to working with professors. Easy to get involved even with no experience at all. ETC EOS lighting board to work with</p>
<p>The cons: The building is awful (As adamb mentioned, it was a lecture hall. There is NO fly space, only 3 of the electrics move). Program is young. Equipment is limited, no moving lights yet.</p>
<p>If you want to be part of building a program or working with a young program, this is a fun place. If you are looking for a firmly entrenched department with large amounts of resources, this is not the place. That said, Matt and Cristina are awesome.</p>
<p>Finally, most places I have seen want an MFA to work professionally (to be a designer etc.). This is just a bachelors degree.</p>