Theatre Arts, Associate of Arts Degree in Liberal Arts

The Associate of Arts degree in Theatre is ideal for students interested in all aspects of Theatre including acting, directing, playwriting and technical theatre. This degree offers a broad-based liberal arts curriculum with ample studio courses. Majors will graduate with a strong foundation in Theatre Arts that can be further developed at a four-year institution. Since the A.A. Theatre degree complies with the Statewide Transfer Agreement, graduates of the program can seamlessly transfer with junior status to a four-year public university in New Jersey. Recent graduates of the program have transferred to Montclair State, Ramapo, Rutgers, Drew, UCLA, NYU, University of the Arts, and Marymount Manhattan College.

Raritan Valley Community College stages four student productions a year, similar to what students will find at four-year institutions. The majority of the productions are presented in the Welpe Theatre. The Welpe is a Black Box Theatre that can seat up to 300 patrons and the intimacy it provides is ideal for students learning the craft of acting on stage. The Theatre Department works at finding a balance to the production season that will give the students the opportunity to work on modern plays as well as the classics. Scene nights are also presented at the end of the year, with students performing work that has been prepared throughout the spring and fall semesters in their studio classes. It’s also common for student-run groups to stage shows at least once a year.

Regardless of whether a Theatre major plans on pursuing a B.F.A. or B.A. degree after RVCC, most of the well-known Theatre practitioners have emphasized the importance of a liberal arts education. It is considered critical for the actor, director, or playwright to have such a foundation. Furthermore, the A.A. Theatre degree provides room for other educational opportunities. Aside from working on stage or film, graduates of Theatre programs have gone on to careers as casting directors, agents, artistic directors at Regional Theatres, and K-12 teachers. Many four-year Theatre graduates also consider post-graduate studies.

Graduates are able to:

• understand the role of the actor/director/playwright
• demonstrate technical proficiency and artistic synthesis in vocal, physical and emotional development in performance
• identify in an historical, cultural and societal perspective the genres of theatre with exemplary authors and works
• analyze stylistic elements of theatre pieces and significant authors, including structural parameters, language, aesthetic factors and interdisciplinary requirements
• investigate careers in the theatre arts