Department of Theatre and Dance

Paul Gatrell (Chair), Jim Al-Shamma, Debbie Belue, Shawn Knight, Brent Maddox, Jessica Mueller, Shirley Blackburn*, Ross Bolen*, Jeff Obafemi Carr*, Alicia Fuss*, Carrie Gerow*, Colleen Garatoni*, Allison Hardee*, Nettie Kraft*, Allison Little*, Sean Martin*, Eric Pasto-Crosby*, Maggie Pelton*, Santiago Sosa, Cynthia Tucker, and Shabaz Ujima*.

*Adjunct Instructor

The Belmont University Theatre program is a student-centered professional training program that prepares students for work in a variety entertainment fields. The Department of Theatre and Dance is committed to a liberal arts foundation as an effective means of preparing students who want to pursue theatre as a life’s work. This commitment is reflected in the system of training that stresses the collaborative and inter-disciplinary nature of the theatrical performance and production process.

Vision:

The Department of Theatre and Dance is committed to developing the compassionate, well-rounded artist, possessing a professional work ethic and a desire to serve the greater community through the transformative power of the performing arts.

Misson Statement:

Our mission is to mentor students in the development of their artistic skills, creative abilities, and critical faculties by providing them with a solid foundation of history, theory, technique, and practical experience in the theatre and related disciplines.

The Department of Theatre and Dance Values:

We value:

The ideal of ensemble and collaboration to create truly transformative art
Challenging students through rigorous training in a liberal arts setting
Students with personal integrity and a strong work-ethic
Diverse student artists with a broad range of competencies
Theatre that integrates the artistic with the academic
An actor training program with an intensive foundation in the Meisner technique
Creating a compassionate Christian program that endorses the entertainment artist’s civic and moral duty to engage and transform the world locally and globally.

Department of Theatre and Dance Goals: Bachelor of Arts

Students will master the vocabulary and language that reflects the standard terms and concepts used in the dramatic arts.
Students will be able to explain the foundational knowledge that impacts upon the major and minor movements of past and contemporary theatrical arts.
Students will demonstrate basic competencies in the following areas: acting, directing, scriptwriting, theatre criticism, theatre history, and production design.
Students will contribute to the cultural and artistic environment of Belmont University and the Nashville community.
Students will acquire practical and professional experience in a variety of areas within the performing arts.
Students will integrate a broad coverage of the field of theatre with an intensive liberal arts curriculum.

Department of Theatre and Dance Goals: Bachelor of Fine Arts

Students will master the vocabulary and language that reflects the standard terms and concepts used in the dramatic arts.
Students will be able to explain the foundational knowledge that impacts upon the major and minor movements of past and contemporary theatrical arts.
Students will demonstrate professional competencies in one of the four following areas: Performance, Directing, Production Design, and Theatre Education.
Students will contribute to the cultural and artistic environment of Belmont University and the Nashville community.
Students will acquire practical and professional experience in a variety of areas within the performing arts.
Students will integrate an intensive regimented training program with incremental stages of development and experience in preparation for a professional career in the theatre and related fields.

Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Individual Emphasis Goals

The BFA in Performance:

Students will demonstrate, through intensive training, the techniques and skills necessary for professional actors
Students will exhibit the appropriate preparation for graduate study in acting

The BFA in Production Design:

Students will demonstrate, through intensive training, the techniques and skills necessary for professional set designers, costume designers, or lighting designers
Students will exhibit the appropriate preparation for graduate study in design

The BFA in Directing:

Students will exhibit the appropriate preparation for graduate study in directing
Students will demonstrate, through intensive training, the foundational techniques and skills necessary for professional directors

The BFA in Theatre Education:

Students will demonstrate, through intensive training, the techniques and skills necessary for elementary and secondary education
Students will attain the appropriate credentials to teach theatre in grades K-12
Students will exhibit the appropriate preparation for graduate study in theatre education