Austin Peay State University
About
Austin Peay State University’s Department of Theatre & Dance offers both a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Theatre Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Theatre/Dance with concentrations in Acting, Musical Theatre, Design, or Stage Management. The BA provides a flexible liberal arts-oriented path ideal for double-major students, while the BFA delivers rigorous pre-professional training through auditions and portfolio review. Both tracks emphasize performance, design, theory, and scholarship, guided by faculty who remain active professionals in their fields.
The BA degree—with a concentration in Theatre—allows students to explore acting, production technology, theatre history, and directing in a well-rounded curriculum. It is structured for students who wish to combine theatre study with other academic interests such as English, business, or psychology. This degree pathway encourages broad intellectual development alongside practical theatre training.
The BFA concentration programs in Acting, Musical Theatre, Design, and Stage Management provide intensive training focused on artistic and technical excellence. Musical Theatre students, for example, receive instruction across diverse styles ranging from classical to contemporary, including camera acting, voiceover, and motion capture. All BFA tracks culminate in professional-level performance or portfolio opportunities including showcases and design work.
Students benefit from a robust production schedule and exposure to guest artists. The department supports numerous visiting professional artists each year, offering masterclasses, workshops, and performance feedback. This frequent engagement enriches student learning and connects classroom theory to real-world practice, fostering professional readiness.
Graduates from APSU’s Theatre program are well-prepared for entry-level roles in theatre, dance, performance design, and stage management—or for graduate school. The program’s blend of flexible BA pathways, selective BFA training, real-world production experience, and industry linkage equips students to pursue creative careers regionally or nationally with confidence.
Degrees & Programs
Degrees
BA, BFA, Minor
Majors / Emphases
Acting, Dance, Musical Theatre, Stage Management, Drama & Theatre
Audition requirements
BFA Concentration Acting – Two contrasting monologues totaling no more than three (3) minutes. Please submit a headshot and resume, unofficial transcripts, as well as 2 letters of recommendation.
BFA Concentration Musical Theatre – One 32 bar cut of a golden age song (pre 1965), one 32 bar cut of modern age song (post 1965), and one modern monologue. Please note that all auditions must have accompaniment (NO acapella auditions) and must feature your voice only. Please watch and learn one of the combinations below entitled BFA Musical Theatre Dance for Dancers OR BFA Musical Theatre Dance for Movers (click to enlarge). Please do whatever combination you feel most comfortable with. If you can tap, please send a video of yourself doing a short demonstration. Video submissions should be no more than five (5) minutes total. Please submit a headshot and resume, unofficial transcripts, as well as 2 letters of recommendation.
BFA Concentration Dance – Please provide videos showcasing two of the following 4 styles: Ballet, Musical Theatre, Jazz, or Modern. If you can Tap, please include a video showcasing your Tap abilities. Video submissions should be no more than five (5) minutes total. Please submit a headshot and resume, unofficial transcripts, as well as 2 letters of recommendation.
BFA Concentration Designers/Technicians: Please send a digital portfolio showcasing your work in your area of expertise (Lighting, Sound, Set Design, Costume Design, Stage Management). Please submit unoffical transcripts, as well as 2 letters of recommendation.
You will have 3 - 5 Minutes to give an oral presentation of your particular area of focus in theatre production. This presentation should include information about the work you have done previously and the work you are interested in doing in the future.
You should limit the number of productions or areas that you speak about to 3 productions or roles within the productions. That way you can speak fully and completely about that work instead of trying to get through your entire resume in the allotted time.
We would recommend narrating over a power point, prezi, keynote presentation so that you can tell us about your work while we are looking at your work.
Please upload your videos to youtube or vimeo and send us LINKS ONLY. Submissions of files will not be accepted. Email the links to auditions@apsu.edu.
Contact Information
- Website URL
- Programs Website
- Phone
- 1-931-221-6768
- pickardd@apsu.edu
Social Media
Alumni
Alumni profiles
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Famous Graduates
Treston Henderson (BFA Music Theatre) Jennifer Whitcomb-Olivia (BA Theatre Performance and Dance) Lexi Putter (BFA Acting/Directing)
Videos
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