Acting

The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting (BFA) program in the School of Theatre & Dance is competitive with the best university acting programs in the country, both in intensity and in class time devoted to professional training. Throughout four years of study, students will progress through a well-coordinated series of core theatre studies covering theatre history, dramatic theory, text analysis, directing, stagecraft, costuming and special topics as well as their performance studies in acting, musical theatre and audition techniques. 

Freshmen and sophomore students receive four to six hours of acting instruction per week.  Beginning in the sophomore year, students also receive an additional four hours per week in stage movement and in voice and speech.  These first two years are set against the backdrop of a rigorous and wide range of liberal arts course work.  

Acting Studio Program

The junior and senior years for the BFA in Acting are known as the Studio Acting Program and continue work in movement, voice and speech, and acting with twenty hours a week dedicated to actor training.  This conservatory-style training within an academic setting allows the Studio faculty to elevate and intensify the actor training with a select group of students (see Student Assessment below).  The Studio Acting Program also includes graduate students in the Master of Fine Arts Acting degree program.

The junior year is grounded in contemporary American realism, early Modern realism and non-realistic European drama with method study primarily in Meisner Technique.  The senior year is dedicated to classical work in Shakespeare and Comedic Styles (Commedia, Restoration, Comedy of Manners) as well as Acting for the Camera and Musical Theatre.  Other topics of study include Suzuki, movement composition, Laban efforts, stage combat, fencing, masks, Fitzmaurice, Linklater, Roy Hart, dialects, voice-overs, performance art, improvisation, clowning and audition techniques. 

The BFA Acting students along with our MFA Acting students and the BFA students in the Musical Theatre Studio are the core of the School's casting pool for five to six main stage productions as well as 10-12 workshop and second stage opportunities per year.  

Student Assessment

Routine assessment is vital to the continued growth and success of the Studio Acting Program.  This assessment includes and occurs with daily in-class critiques, faculty reviews, end-of-semester evaluations as well as rehearsals and public performances.  These types of assessment, both formal and informal, monitor the development of the BFA student's technique and process development, their artistic growth and commitment, and application of the craft and study of Acting to the other liberal arts.  

Examples of student assessment and progress within the BFA in Acting include:

• Audition for entry into the program
  • Requirements for auditioning and specific dates for our Audition/Portfolio Days may be found on the College of Creative Arts website (https://ccarts.wvu.edu/academics/audition-and-portfolio-review-day). 
• Auditions for credit-bearing performance opportunities (THET 200/300/400)
  • Acting majors will participate in a number of opportunities designed to incorporate classroom and process skills into public performance. 
  • At the completion of each of these productions, the students will receive an evaluation of their participation.
• End-of-sophomore year assessment for continuation in the BFA in Acting and advancement to the Studio Acting Program
  • After two years of actor training and study, there is an assessment process for students to move on to the Studio Acting Program and their junior year of study.  This process allows the Studio faculty to ascertain a student's potential for professional development as an actor.  This assessment includes review of a student's GPA, credit hours, an essay of professional goals, attendance, class participation as well as an audition of material and genres covered within the first two years of study.
  • Students seen as having professional potential and a good academic standing will proceed into their junior year and the Studio Acting Program.
  • Students seen within this assessment as not having professional potential or with academic issues are not invited to continue to the Studio Acting Program.  These students may be advised to consider different degree programs within or outside the School of Theatre & Dance. They may also be advised to continue their studies in Theatre and Acting, improve their academic standing and re-audition for the Studio Acting program in the following year.
• End-of-semester evaluations for students in the Studio Acting Program.
  • At the end of each semester, each Studio Acting student will take part in an evaluation that consists of a discussion of the student's progress in the areas of talent, trainability, demeanor, professional discipline and potential as well as the demonstrated acquisition of the identified learning goals.
  • These evaluations serve to monitor and record the student's progress toward the completion of the degree.
  • The evaluations will be administered by the Area Coordinator of Performance and shall include participation and feedback from Studio Acting Program faculty.
  • Written evaluation forms will be used to indicate areas of strength and weakness. The written evaluation form will be shared with each student, and a copy will be placed in the student's advising file to be used as part of the ongoing assessment of the student's progress in the Studio Acting Program.
  • At the discretion of the Area Coordinator of Performance, students who do not successfully pass this evaluative review will be either put on probationary status or removed from the Studio Acting Program.

Acting

1. Demonstrated ability to act (i.e., to project one's self believably in word and action into imaginary circumstances, evoked through improvisation or text).

2. Demonstrated ability to engage effectively in improvisations both by oneself and in an ensemble.

3. Demonstrated ability to create characters convincingly from plays drawn from different genres and styles in an ensemble relationship with other actors.

4. A developed technique for analyzing the specific tasks required in performing varied characters from written plays.

5. Understanding of the specific demands of the acting styles for major periods and genres of dramatic literature.

6. Clear, articulate, and expressive speech, normally with demonstrated ability to use appropriate tools and systems to learn and perform dialects, and the ability to perform effectively in verse plays.

7. A flexible, strong, and controlled voice with trained breath support; appropriate vocal range and freedom from vocal and postural tension in rehearsal and performance; demonstrated ability to use the voice effectively as an instrument for characterization together with the ability to project the voice effectively in theatre spaces of varying sizes and in media productions.

8. A flexible, relaxed, and controlled body trained in basic stage movement disciplines, including dance and mime; demonstrated ability to use the body effectively on stage as an instrument for characterization and to be responsive to changing time/rhythm demands and spatial relationships.

9. An overview understanding of makeup materials and techniques.

10. Demonstrated comprehension of the basic business procedures of the actor's profession, including audition procedures, résumés, agents, and so forth.

11. Solo and ensemble performance experience in a variety of formal and informal settings shall be provided throughout the degree program including the opportunity for a significant role in a major production no later than the senior year.

• Must have at least a 2.5 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale for general admission.
• Must meet English Proficiency or request conditional admission and admission to the Intensive English Program (IEP).
• Please be advised that some Engineering majors may reach capacity and therefore will be restricted from entry.
• For direct admission to some colleges and majors, SAT or ACT scores are required and must be sent to WVU directly from the respective testing services. Please review the program requirements. For all other majors, international students are encouraged but not required to submit SAT or ACT scores, if available. SAT/ACT scores are useful for determining scholarship eligibility.
• WVU welcomes applications from students with IGCSE and O-Level Certificates from an approved UK exam board for admissions consideration. We require a minimum of five subject passes, of which two must be English and Mathematics. The average of the grades must be at least a 2.5 (on a 4.0 scale). A passing grade in the subject of English will be accepted as evidence of sufficient English ability.

1. Review the admissions requirements, English Language Proficiency requirements (scores are for undergraduate levels only) and our undergraduate application deadlines.
2. To apply for an on-campus program, complete either the WVU Application or the Common App and include the nonrefundable fee of $65.
   
   WVU Application The Common App

   To apply for an online program, use the steps for WVU Online Campus applicants.

3. Have your Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), International English Language Testing System (IELTS), Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic or Duolingo English Test scores sent to WVU.
4. Send the following information to WVU:
   • Copies of all official academic records/transcripts in original language of issue (transcripts from U.S. institutions must be sent to WVU directly from the institutions).
   • Copies of all academic certificates or diplomas in original language of issue.
   Note: Original or certified copies of official records/transcripts must be submitted after admission or upon arrival.
   • English translations of academic records/transcripts and certificates/diplomas.