WELCOME VIDEO: Theatre Arts Division Chair David Krasner

Bachelor of Fine Arts (B. F. A.) Degree

OVERVIEW

Five Towns College is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST). The Theatre Arts Program at Five Towns College offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts (B. F. A.) degree with concentrations in Musical Theatre, Acting, and Theatrical Design and Technology. Students interested in professional careers in Acting, Singing, Dancing, Musical Theatre, Set, Lights, and Costume Design, or Technical Direction will receive a conservatory education in these areas. Scroll down to see images of Five Towns College students doing what they love most!

For information about Theatre Arts Division auditions, click here.

For curriculum information, view the current Five Towns College Catalog.

VIDEO: Five Towns College Theatre Division Shows

Acting Concentration

Acting Majors receive training in the Stanislavsky System, using the exercises and tools from faculty who have trained directly with Meisner, Strasberg, Adler, and Hagen. Additionally students will train in physical theatre (movement, stage combat, Alexander Technique, and Viewpoints), voice, speech, and dialects, acting for Shakespeare and acting for the camera. All actors perform in our Senior Showcase for agents and casting directors.

FIVE TOWNS COLLEGE BFA ACTING CONSERVATORY TRAINING PROGRAM

At Five Towns College’s BFA Conservatory Acting Training Program, you will prepare for a career in performance with the following:

Emphasis on acting for stage, screen, film, and television
Emphasis on Voice-Over Acting (Voice and Diction 2)
Freshman acting showcase at the end of the Freshman year
Six fully mounted productions every year, half musicals, half plays
All Freshman audition for every show immediately upon arrival
Students are encouraged to find performing work even while at school
Acting Training in the Stanislavsky Method for stage and screen
Acting Training based on the great teachers: Michael Chekhov, Strasberg, Adler, Meisner, Hagan
Movement Training in Suzuki, Laban, Circus Techniques
Stage Combat
Comedy Improvisation Class
Voice and Diction, Accents and Dialects Classes
Multiple opportunities to act in student films
Show Business Career training, building your website
A yearlong Senior Showcase training, culminating in performances in New York for agents and casting directors (we average 50% immediate signing with agents every year)
You will be taught by graduates from Carnegie Mellon (CMU) and Cincinnati Conservatory of Music (CCM), receiving the same rigorous training at considerably less expense

For curriculum information, view the current Five Towns College Catalog.

VIDEO : A New Brain at the Five Towns College Performing Arts Center

Musical Theatre Concentration

Musical Theatre Majors develop the triple-threat skills in singing, dancing, and acting required for careers on Broadway and Regional Theatre. Five Towns College offers dance classes every semester in ballet, jazz, tap, contemporary, and theatrical dancing, as well as private singing lessons weekly, and intensive acting training. Students in Musical Theatre work with successful profession faculty in classes and with directors, as well as developing demo reels for their future careers in the business. As with the actors, musical theatre actors perform in a Senior Showcase.

For curriculum information, view the current Five Towns College Catalog.

VIDEO: DANCE program with Professor Hali Bekofsky

VIDEO: The Wolves at the Five Towns College Performing Arts Center

FIVE TOWNS COLLEGE BFA MUSICAL THEATRE CONSERVATORY TRAINING

At Five Towns College’s BFA Conservatory Musical Theatre Training Program, you will prepare for a career in performance and musical theatre with the following:

Emphasis on the triple threat of acting, singing, and dancing
19 Dance Classes, with public dance performances at the end of every year
Yearlong Music Skills training in keyboard, sight singing, and music theory
Yearlong Music Theatre class in Ensemble singing, dancing, and acting
Freshman acting showcase at the end of the Freshman year
Six fully mounted productions every year, half musicals, half plays
All Freshman audition for every show immediately upon arrival
Students are encouraged to find performing work even while attending school
Private, one-on-one individual vocal coaching lessons for 1 hour per week, every week
Two Concert Cabaret performances in New York City per year
Acting Training in the Stanislavsky Method for stage and screen
Business of Show Business Training, building your website
A yearlong Senior Showcase training, culminating in performances in New York for agents and casting directors (we average 50% immediate signing with agents every year)
Additional classes (electives) in Acting for Camera, Comedy Improvisation, Voiceover Training
You will be taught by graduates from Carnegie Mellon (CMU) and Cincinnati Conservatory of Music (CCM), receiving the same rigorous training at considerably less expense

VIDEO: Theatre Arts Division – Design & Technology: Set Construction on Next to Normal

Theatrical Design and Technology Concentration

Students in the Theatrical Design and Technology concentration develop skills in six areas: set, lights, costume, stage management, technical direction, and sound design for the stage, in order to prepare careers for all aspects of stage design and technology. Theatrical Design and Technology students participate in Stage Source in Boston, USITT, and other conferences for job placement.

All of our students are exposed to New York City professionals (agents and casting directors, as well as Broadway and Regional stage designers and directors) creating a working environment of academic and professional experiences.

For curriculum information, view the current Five Towns College Catalog.

See for yourself how Five Towns College Theatre Division students concentrating in Theatrical Design and Technology build a set for a show production below:

Through course work and practical application on stage, students will receive all the training aspects of a conservatory, with the added benefit of a small college environment that affords individualized and personalized attention. The Five Towns College Performing Arts Center hosts the main stage and produces high quality musicals, dramas, and comedies, directed by experienced professionals. There is also a Studio Theatre, Dancing Studio and many opportunities to perform for the community.

The focus here is hands-on training, wide-ranging performance opportunities, and a senior showcase in the last year, where you will perform before invited agents and casting directors in New York City. The campus is located about 45 minutes from downtown Manhattan and gives Five Towns College the advantage of being easily in reach of the City while offering the privacy of the suburbs, where students can hone their craft and develop the tools for successful careers.

The FTC Alumni Productions:

This initiative gives recent graduates the opportunity to perform and stay active in their profession. During the summer of 2023, the FTC Alumni Productions performed – Almost Sunshine; in 2022, they performed Skirmishes. Follow @FTC Theatre Arts on Instagram to see clips of all performances.

Actors, musicians, music producers, engineers, filmmakers, educators, executives, broadcasters and everything in between are featured in the Beneath the Bright Lights podcasts. Click here to stream other episodes via this website, or subscribe to this podcast via Stitcher, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Please visit the FTC Official YouTube Channel to view the Theatre Arts Division Playlist here.