Believing that the best training for a career in the theater is a broad-based liberal arts education, Princeton does not have a concentration in Theater. Instead, we offer a certificate in Theater and encourage students, should they have the inclination, to make connections in their artistic work between their fields of concentration and their love of the theater. The program offers the kinds of courses and co-curricular activities that will allow the student, upon graduation, to move into the best graduate conservatories to pursue advanced training in playwriting, acting, directing, design, stage management, and dramaturgy. But most students who take courses in the program do not elect to enter the certificate program; they simply enroll in the courses that interest them. Students with a particular interest in and commitment to the arts, however, may want to obtain the program certificate.

Theater Certificate

Normally, students apply to become a certificate student in the spring of their sophomore year, but we can accept applications through the spring of their junior year. Certificate Application Form

To obtain a certificate in Theater, students must complete:

(1) Four practical courses chosen from offerings in acting, directing, playwriting, design, and criticism.

(2) One course in dramatic literature or performance history and criticism

(3) Some kind of independent work in the junior or senior year. This work might take the form of a practical project, such as the direction of a major production, the study and performance of a major role, the writing of a play, or the design of a production, under the supervision of our faculty and professional staff. If the student's department permits, he or she might chose to complete one part of the departmental independent work (senior thesis or one junior paper) on a topic approved by the program in Theater faculty dealing with some facet of theater in relation to that department's subject matter. This independent work could take the form of a textual, cultural, or theoretical study; or it may be a combination of research and practical work supervised by the program faculty and the student's department.

(4) A certain number of hours of technical work on theater productions staged by the program.

Admission

Some Theater courses require interviews and/or applications.  For more information on courses click here.