Mar 18, 2024  
USC Catalogue 2019-2020 
    
USC Catalogue 2019-2020 [ARCHIVED CATALOGUE]

Theatre (MFA)


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The Master of Fine Arts in theatre allows the choice of an area of emphasis in theatre performance studies including acting, directing, dramatic writing or theatrical design.

Seventy-two units of study at the 400- or 500-level are required for the acting emphasis, 72 units for the dramatic writing emphasis and 48 units for the directing and theatrical design emphases. Regardless of the emphasis, at least two-thirds of the units must be at the 500 level or higher. In design, instead of a conventional thesis, the MFA student completes a final project in the area of design and defends it orally before the design faculty. A grade point average of 3.0 must be achieved in all graduate work taken in the School of Dramatic Arts. Graduate candidates whose undergraduate degrees are in disciplines other than theatre may be required to satisfy undergraduate prerequisites in theatre as determined by School of Dramatic Arts faculty.

Curricula for the Master of Fine Arts Degree


Total units: 72


Total units: 48


Theatrical Design Emphasis


Two seminars, one of which must be


400- or 500-level electives


  • 400- or 500-level electives by advisement, 5 units of which must be at the 500 level Units: 10

Total units: 48


Total units: 72


A minimum of 72 units of graduate course work must be completed prior to the degree being granted. Thesis Requirement: The student is required to complete a thesis portfolio consisting of four theatre projects: (1) a fulllength original play, (2) a full-length original play or an adaptation, (3) a full-length screenplay, (4) a project that is either a play of any length, or a short subject or feature length script, a set of television speculative scripts (either in three half-hour short form of drama from the same TV program or a set of characters; or one-hour long form) or an interdisciplinary/multimedia project (approved in advance by the dramatic writing faculty.) An oral defense and review by program faculty and the developing portfolio is required when the student has completed two-thirds of the program, generally in the fall term of the student’s third year.

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