<p>Both these schools are known for having excellent theater departments in a liberal arts college.</p>
<p>Please talk about any experiences regarding these two departments, but keep in mind the following questions I have:</p>
<p>1) How many department shows does your school do?
2) How many student shows?
3) Do you do musicals?
4) Is it easy to direct as a student? What is the process for directing? (meaning how do you direct a show? do you have to apply to a committee?)
5) Did you have to take some required classes as a theater/drama major that you felt were kind of redundant seeing as you already had a solid background in theater?</p>
<p>Hopefully, someone will have the answers to some of your subjective questions, but I suggest calling the schools because many of your questions are fact-based. Most schools will be happy to tell you about how you go about applying to direct a show, for example, the number of student-directed shows per year, and some may even tell you how many students apply to direct. Hopefully, too, you can tour the schools, at which point you can get some of both kinds of answers. </p>
<p>Vassar’s fall productions are here: </p>
<p><a href=“Drama - Productions | Vassar College”>http://drama.vassar.edu/productions/</a></p>
<p>Note that these are department productions: there are many, many, many student productions as well.</p>
<p>Vassar absolutely requires a specific course which you must be enrolled in before participating in department productions. Most of the students who take the course have a very solid background in theater, and most are a bit miffed that they have to take it- but once they are in it they actually seem to enjoy it and get something out of it. From Vassar’s perspective, it ensures that everybody is brought into the local customs of how things work there.</p>
<p>Vassar has pretty strong NY ties (kept fresh through the Powerhouse Theater program in the summers) which is a bonus for students. For example, Erica Dinklage is directing the spring play this year. </p>
<p>But… imo the differences between the drama departments is secondary to the massive difference between the two colleges. Muhlenberg has a strong church affiliation, and is considerably less academically competitive for admissions. Suggest figuring out which place would suit you better before focusing on the drama bit- even drama majors have to go outside the theater, and Vassar makes you take a lot of your classes outside your major.</p>
<p>@collegemom3717<br>
Thanks for your response!
I’m a little confused because you said that the link listed all department shows, but from what I see it’s actually all student shows listed and only one department show. This is going under the assumption that “mainstage” means “faculty-directed” which I think most people use synonymously with “departmental”, and that senior thesis shows are still considered “student shows”.</p>
<p>Sorry- I just pulled & posted the link for fall productions, and I know that it is not exhaustive on the student show front. The drama departments at the colleges are best placed to give a comprehensive answer on exactly how many of what type of production they do in any given term or year. But seriously, please put as much into researching the college as the drama programme.</p>
<p>Collegemom3717, I am not sure what you mean by a strong church affiliation at Muhlenberg but I beg to differ if you think it affects the theatre department. There is a chapel on campus, it is used for convocation, a gospel choir, optional Sunday services and for an honors program when you first hit the Dean’s list. You can get married there too. That is about the extent of the “strong church affiliation” from where I sit. While not as academically competitive for enrollment as Vassar, Muhlenberg’s theater program is nationally recognized. Muhlenberg also has amazing stats for getting their students into professional and graduate programs. If the op is truly interested in theater it probably would make sense to visit and investigate both programs. </p>
<p>@collegemom3717 Don’t worry, I have done (and have been doing since freshman year) way too much research for all of my colleges and have actually been told by my college counselor and my mom and my tutor that it’s becoming excessive and that I need to stop because I’m overwhelming myself. 
I obviously haven’t listened because I’ve just made an account on College Confidential </p>
<p>@MirandaAugust64, I love that you’re taking charge of this, don’t let anyone tell you not to. But I do think you might want to consider a less recognizable icon, since admissions people do drop in here sometimes and could probably figure out who you are. (And yes, it is somewhat ironic that I am posting this next to my own recognizable photo, but I went through this with my S two years ago, so it probably doesn’t matter if anyone knows who I am at this point.)</p>
<p>@Jkellynh17 Seriously??? Ugh, okay, thanks for letting me know. (Although my username is similar to my email…so that sucks.) </p>
<p>It probably doesn’t matter that much as long as you watch what you say, but yeah, why take a risk? </p>
<p>Just went on a Muhlenberg tour. The church thing from what I can tell seems limited to the chapel (like many, many other schools have), red doors on every building (except the po) and a huge sculpture they painted red and really pissed off the artist. Can’t remember all religious affiliations (and non religious) but for some reason I remember one – 33 percent Jewish…so the Lutheran thing seems pretty vestigial overall from what I can see. </p>
<p>@StringPop yeah deff they’re very jewish i hear </p>
<p>It seems to be a fairly religiously diverse community overall, accepting of all faiths – and non faiths. </p>