The UA School of Theatre, Film & Television’s Professional Training Company

Arizona Repertory Theatre (ART) serves as the public laboratory and showcase for the School’s professional training programs. The performers who constitute the resident actor training company are students from the Bachelor of Fine Arts program in Acting and Musical Theatre. The company is modeled directly after professional examples such as the large classical repertory theatres in the U.S., Canada and Europe. Students function as young professionals in a setting where the rules and discipline of the contemporary theatre are observed. Operating rules are modeled after those of the Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States. The repertoire is selected primarily from classical and musical works, and is designed to serve as the integral extension of the student’s classroom study and studio training.

Our acting training emphasizes Stanislavski based process skills, period style and classical texts, voice and movement skills, stage combat, screen acting, and musical theatre. Our productions are noted for their quality and ambitious scale, and our students leave the program with an honest view of themselves as actors and solid preparation and marketable skills for a difficult and demanding profession. Our graduates are well-placed in the professional world and in academic theatre throughout the country and abroad.

The Design and Technology division offers comprehensive training to students who seek careers in professional theatre. This training is a balance of academic study of theatre and production responsibilities. The Design and Technology program provides students with a thorough understanding of the collaborative theatrical production process. Students gain artistic, analytical and research skills required in developing designs for period and contemporary theatrical productions and learn craft and artistic skills in one or more areas of design to support theatrical production.

The Theatre Studies division provides students with a thorough knowledge of theatrical scholarship through core courses in Theatre History and Dramaturgy that emphasize critical studies, historical awareness, and theatre’s role in the community. Students are encouraged to use the tools of theatre research to bridge text with performance through practical and research-oriented projects.

Students come to our program from all across the country. We are very proud of the quality of our students, the work they produce while at the UA, and the many successes they have had since graduation. We hope that our efforts build upon the past achievements of all those who have preceded us, while at the same time provide a model of education and training for the new century.