An Introduction to the Graduate Program
The UMass Department of Theater is not accepting any applications to its graduate programs this year, as no new students will be admitted in Fall 2010. We accept students 2 out of every 3 years, and we are currently in the "off" year of our application cycle. Please do not apply this year. We will once again be accepting applications next year (2010-2011) for admission starting Fall 2011. For more information about a specific graduate program, please contact the faculty member listed for that area.
Welcome
Welcome to graduate study at UMass Amherst.
Ours is a dynamic hands-on program that offers plenty of opportunities for practical experience with the guidance of a dedicated faculty of committed teachers with active careers in the professional theater. Our newly revised core curriculum provides a rigorous introduction to key issues affecting the theater of the future while attending to what has been learned from the theater of the past. Most importantly, UMass Theater is a place where excellence is pursued, where mentorship matters, where quality counts. It's a place where lives are changed.
The small size of our program — limited to a combined total of 15 students in all five of our MFA program areas — insures small classes, a maximum of personalized attention, and the opportunity to tailor programs of study to individual interests. Collaboration, creativity, discipline, craft and a strong personal sense of our collective past and of the possibilities of the future are the building blocks of our graduate program in theater. We value personal growth, artistic integrity, cultural sensitivity, and a commitment to the theater of the future. Our departmental production season serves as a teaching laboratory for students in each of our program areas: Directing, Dramaturgy, Scene Design and Technology, Lighting Design, and Costume Design.
Finally, we are committed to providing financial support for every full-time graduate student enrolled in our degree programs, including full tuition waivers, health benefits and generous stipends for the entirety of the three-year program. Questions should be addressed to Financial Aid Services at (413) 577-0555 or on the UMFA website.
The deadline for Graduate School applications is February 1. Don't hesitate to contact us if you have questions.
Sincerely,
Milan Dragicevich
Director of Graduate Programs
The Program
The Department of Theater at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, offers a professional training program in directing, dramaturgy, and scenic, costume and lighting design. Graduates of the three-year program receive master of Fine Arts degrees and are prepared to work in resident professional theaters, in colleges and universities, and in many other areas of performance. Graduates of the program include actor Bill Pullman, director Greg Leaming, playwright Constance Congdon, and production designer Douglas Kraner.
All M.F.A programs require a minimum of 60 credits for graduation, including
the same 12-credit Core Curriculum and, every semester, the specialized
Workshop/Studio for the specific program.
The graduate program begins with a first year designed to create community
and a shared language. In Group Studio, students create an original performance
drawing upon their collective experience and imagination. First-year
students also take Theater in Society — both to sharpen their research skills and to discover
the repertory in social and historical context — and Text Analysis, which
examines play texts as structures that imply potential productions. First-year
students also participate in production through the studios and workshops in
their areas of specialty.
In the second and third years, students focus more closely on their M.F.A. program area: directing, design, or dramaturgy. Depending on their interests, students may also take advantage of the academic resources of UMass as a whole and the other institutions in the Five College Consortium. All programs culminate in a third-year thesis project.
Graduate students are full participants in the Department of Theater production season, working collaboratively under the guidance of faculty artists. In an average year, the Department of Theater presents four to five fully mounted main stage productions. It also hosts a number of other co-productions and special events. Additionally, there are occasions for studio and lab work, many of them through the “Studio 204” series.
There are also numerous opportunities outside the academic course of study. Students in the design program sometimes assist faculty designers with their professional commitments. Due to our relationship with regional companies, graduate students undertake internships at such places as New WORLD Theater and Hartford Stage.
Download a list of graduate courses (PDF)
Learn more about the directing program
Learn more about the dramaturgy program
Learn more about the scene design and technology program
Learn more about the lighting program
Learn more about the costume program
Assistantships
Graduate students in theater are eligible for appointments as assistants
in the areas of teaching, research, production and administration. Full-time
appointments require service amounting to 20 hours per week during the academic
year. Assistantship stipends are competitive and include a full-tuition waiver.
Each graduate assistantship appointment is for a specific period, not to exceed
one year. In the appointment of graduate assistants, preference is given to those
who demonstrate exceptional artistic promise and who have appropriate qualifications
for available assignments. Subject to availability of funds, full-time assistants
are usually renewed for a total of three years, provided that the student remains
in good academic standing, is making satisfactory progress toward the degree,
and has carried out the duties of previous appointments at a high professional
level. Funding cannot be guaranteed for students who take a leave of absence
from the program. Graduate students in theater who are awarded assistantships
may not receive simultaneous funding for which services are required without
the express permission of the Department of Theater.
Admissions Procedures and Program Policies
Applicants follow the procedures for admission established by the Graduate School at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. In addition, the Department of Theater requests that applicants submit a number of additional items.
Students can be admitteds to the program in one of several categories. There are opportunities for limited transfer credit, as well as special considerations on tuition of New England residents.
Learn more about admissions procedures
In order to remain students in good standing, students are urged to comply with the program's policies regarding degree and residency requirements, leaves of absence, and statute of limitations. Failure to comply with these as well as the policies laid out in the student handbook could result in dismissal from the program.
Download The Department of Theater Handbook (PDF)
Graduate program contact information:
Milan Dragicevich
Graduate Program Director
Department of Theater
112 Fine
Arts Center
University of Massachusetts
151 Presidents Drive Ofc. 2
Amherst, MA 01003-9331
413.545.6814
Student Work and Links
- Lighting Design MFA student Jonathan Hicks shares his thoughts about design and his work in our program and elsewhere on his blog Havenworth Performing Arts Center.
- Dramaturgy MFA student Liana Thompson was the literary associate at Williamstown Theatre Festival last summer.
- Directing MFA student Shawn LaCount directed Assassins for Bostons'
Company One, of which he is the artistic director. The production
has been nominated for an
Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Award. The production received a nomination from the group for Best Musical as well.
More information about the Program
