Fast Track Master of Arts Degree in Theatre Directing

Admission Info

Location: Chicago
Start Term: Summer

All applicants must submit a Roosevelt University application and all required supplemental items by the priority deadline of February 1 to be considered for admission. For more information, please see our admission requirements page. Applications for entry continue to be accepted and reviewed (if space is still available) until March 15.

Once the initial Roosevelt University application has been submitted, the next step is to complete the CCPA supplementary application through GetAcceptd.com. This is also where you will go to pay the $50 application fee.

In completing your secondary application on GetAcceptd.com you must submit the following:

• A list of all productions you have directed, including location and year
• A list of all undergraduate and post-graduate theatre courses you have taken, including location and year
• A teaching resume, if applicable, including schools, years, and courses taught
• A related experience resume, including technical experience, performance experience, and workshops given or attended
• An essay on how you hope the program will impact your work as a director
• A mini-portfolio containing pictures from a production (six photos maximum) and a reflection (two-page maximum) on the applicant’s involvement, approach and process in mounting the production

Once all application materials have been received, applicants will be contacted to set up an interview.

The Fast Track tuition is charged by the credit hour, which is found under the Graduate Section on the tuition page. Tuition for the summer is due by the first week of class. A limited amount of University scholarships are available and students can also apply for loans through the Financial Aid Office. Some graduate students have been able to secure support and grants from their teaching institution/local areas as well as scholarships from private organizations.

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Sample Theatre Directing Courses

The program focuses on refining directorial skills, exploring new approaches to rehearsals and production preparation, and developing one’s own aesthetic in directing and theatre-making. Sample topics (specific modules may vary year-to-year), explored from a director’s perspective:

• Theatre Design/Tech: costumes, sound, set, makeup, lighting, props, stage management
• Movement, Stage Combat, Voice, Circus Arts, Theatrical Intimacy Training
• Acting Methodologies: Laban Movement Analysis, Michael Chekhov Technique
• Stage Direction: Shakespeare, Period Plays, Contemporary Plays, Musical Theatre, Latinx Plays, Black Plays, Dramaturgy, Literary Adaptation, Devising
• Creation of a Directing Book, Actor Coaching

View the course catalog for the Fast Track MA in Theatre Directing.

Program Components

Located in the heart of downtown Chicago, CCPA is just steps away from Chicago's bustling theatre district that includes the Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Lookingglass Theatre and Chicago Shakespeare.

As an integral component of the Fast Track program, students are taken to various Chicago area theatres to view productions as an extension of the classroom experience. Opportunities to meet the actors, directors and others involved in the productions are included as a part of the theatre-going experience when possible.

Jim Iorio, Director of the Master of Arts in Theatre Directing Program
jiorio01@roosevelt.edu