<p>How prestigious is the Theatre/Acting Department/programs at Duke? By this I refer to the qualifications of the instructors, possible alumni accomplishments, recognition on a national scale, etc.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I am by no means an expert to answer this question as I have no experience whatsover with the theatre department. However, in my impression, it is viewed as a small department that most students partake in as a second major or minor. Duke is not viewed as a great artistic school (including drama, dance, music, painting, etc.), and most students who major in these fields have another "more traditional" major as their first one. </p>
<p>However, I do know a couple students who focused solely on drama and enjoyed it, and there are tons of opportunities to get close with professors since there are very few students who actually focus only on theatre. Duke theater, though, is definitely not seen as a "prestigious" program as far as theater programs go - it's not even close to programs like NYU, Northwestern, etc.</p>
<p>By far the most famous faculty is Manny Azenberg whose plays have been nominated for 134 Tony Awards and have won 40. Here's a list of Duke faculty: <a href="http://fds.duke.edu/db?dir-37-114-0-4-0%5B/url%5D">http://fds.duke.edu/db?dir-37-114-0-4-0</a></p>