Theatre Arts

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As a theatre arts student at Wilkes, you’ll pursue preprofessional training with a focus on acting/directing, design/tech or dance. Become a well-rounded theatrical artist who can discover career opportunities on the stage, big or small screen, or emerging online outlets.

Program Snapshot

Program Type	Format	Credit Hours
Major, Minor	On Campus	121 (18 for minor)

Why Study Theatre Arts at Wilkes?

Performing arts students at Wilkes enhance their creative abilities through an integrative approach to theatre practice in the context of a liberal arts education.

Our small, repertory company-sized department provides robust, hands-on experience as soon as the first semester on campus. Explore the classics, Broadway-style productions, relevant modern plays, dance concerts and innovative works.

What Will You Learn as a Theatre Arts Student?

Gain a solid foundation through hands-on experience in all facets of theatre, while you enhance your talents and skills through the focus of your choice: acting/directing, design/tech or dance.
Interpret and develop an understanding of theatrical texts while exploring techniques including improvisation, diction, dialect and stage movement. Accept feedback with confidence and use it to enhance your growth as a theatre artist.
Through class, lab and production experience, learn to work as part of a team to bring performances to the stage.

Upcoming Audition Dates

Once you’ve been accepted to Wilkes, you need to schedule a portfolio presentation and interview for admission to the Theatre Design and Technology program and eligibility for scholarship awards.

Find out more about requirements for the Theatre Design and Technology interview and contact us for your time slot.

Schedule Your Interview

Program Highlights

Active Learning

Take your learning from the page to the stage as you gain plenty of hands-on experience. Our low faculty-to-student ratio and a close-knit department — about the size of a small repertory company — gives you ample opportunities to practice your craft.

Business of Theatre

While you enhance your creative skills and talents, we prepare you to navigate the business side of the entertainment industry. Learn how to audition, craft a resume and tailor your work to a variety of stage and screen media.

Networking Opportunities

Our students and productions earned recognition from the American College Theatre Festival sponsored by the Kennedy Center. The annual festival is only one of the industry networking opportunities available to our majors.

It’s nice because it’s small. You’re not a number. Your professors know you.
Brianna Rowland '21

main stage productions each year, including two musicals

black box productions annually

478

seats in the Darling Theatre of the Dorothy Dickson Darte Center for the Performing Arts

Wilkes University Theatre stages four main stage productions each year, two musicals and two non-musicals, plus multiple black box productions.

Our main performance space, the Darling Theatre in the Dorothy Dickson Darte Center for the Performing Arts, features a 34-foot-deep proscenium stage and 478 seats.

The theatre boasts a hydraulic orchestra pit, state-of-the-art lighting, a 36-line set and a scene shop with the most modern safety standards, as well as extensive costume and prop facilities.

You can create smaller, innovative work in our intimate black box theatre or explore a range of movement styles in our dance space.

The Darte Center, also known to the Wilkes community as the DDD, also hosts several rehearsal rooms for you to get your work up on its feet. As a theatre major at Wilkes, you have plenty of space outside the classroom to hone your talents.

Careers & Outcomes

The entertainment field is one of the largest industries in this country and offers a wide variety of opportunities that both include and extend beyond the stage and screen production space.