Sample Courses
- Acting
- Directing
- Fundamentals of Design
- History of Theatre
- Intro to Technical Theatre
- Play Analysis for the Theatre
Popular Electives
- Costume Construction
- Global Dance History
- Introduction to Dance
- Monologue Workshop
- Playwriting
- Production Stage Management
- Scene Design I & II
- Sound Design
- Stage Lighting Design
- Stage Make-up
- Technical Direction
Recent Internships
- Arena Stage, Washington, DC
- Geva Theatre Center, Rochester, NY
- Glimmerglass Festival, Cooperstown, NY
- Imagination Stage, Bethesda, MD
- The Juilliard School, NYC
- McCarter Theatre Center, Princeton, NJ
- The Public Theater, NYC
- Round House Theatre, Bethesda, MD
- Roundabout Theatre Company, NYC
- Walt Disney World, Orlando, FL
- Williamstown Theatre Festival, MA
Alumni Spotlight
Erin Zimmerman '07
Major: Theatre and English
Career: Zimmerman is the theatre administrator and resident instructor at the Academy of Theatre Arts in Buffalo. She spends her days teaching, directing, working backstage, helping with technical elements, running front of house operations, and “fully absorbing myself in the world I have always loved. My time in the program at Geneseo gave me the skills I needed to do my job and do it well.”
Theatre Major
Why study theater and dance at Geneseo?
The theatre and dance programs promote creative stimulation in students dedicated to either discipline. Students will be trained in their respective fields, learning the fundamental skill sets necessary to perform and develop their own creative energies.
Faculty encourage students to get involved in directed studies, internships, study abroad experiences, and academic conferences. The department also has a long tradition of supporting one-on-one academic and professional advisement and individual student-faculty research. Theatre and dance students are well prepared to pursue careers or further education, and graduates have an excellent record of professional and graduate school placement.
Program Options
Additional Options
- Concentration in Dance (audition required)
- Concentration in Dance with Childhood Education with Special Education (1–6) (audition required)
- Concentration in Dance with Early Childhood/Childhood Education (B–6) (audition required)
- Concentration in Theatre
- Concentration in Theatre with Childhood Education with Special Education (1–6)
- Concentration in Theatre with Early Childhood/Childhood Education (B–6)
- Microcredential in Performance as Social Change
Program Highlights
- The theatre and dance department works to dignify and include the creative works and artistic contributions of Blacks, Latinx, Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, Native Peoples, the LGBTQ+ community, victims of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, women, and people with disabilities who have been historically ignored, diminished, or excluded.
- A longstanding commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion can be seen in the department’s faculty profiles, production chronologies, course offerings, open casting policies, and record of producing the works of diverse artists and guest instructors.
Example Careers
- Choreographer
- Costume Designer
- Educational/Children's Theatre Manager
- Lighting, Projection, or Sound Designer
- Publicist
- Scene Designer
- Stage Director or Manager
- Technical Director
Recent Employers / Graduate Schools
- Emerson College
- New York University
- The Ohio State University
- University of Memphis
- University of North Carolina School of the Arts
- Yale University
Contact Info
Johnnie Ferrell, Department Chair
ferrell@geneseo.edu
Brodie Hall 229
585-245-5844
