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University of Pittsburgh    
2022-2023 Graduate & Professional Studies Catalog 
    
 
  Oct 12, 2024
 
2022-2023 Graduate & Professional Studies Catalog [Archived Catalog]

Performance Pedagogy in Theatre Arts, MFA


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Designed to equip working, professional actors with the tools to expand their employment opportunities in teaching at the college and university level, the MFA in Performance Pedagogy at the University of Pittsburgh offers a dynamic synthesis of teaching, practice, and scholarship.

This program is based on the premise that the professional actor has already gained a level of craft and broad experience that can become the foundation for solid teaching skills. Therefore, emphasis is placed on exploration and strengthening of pedagogical techniques as related to areas of acting and performance training.

Each student is given the mentorship of an experienced teacher of performance and works closely with the mentor to create opportunities for independent studies in pedagogy and curriculum development. Students gain experience applying theory to the practice of teaching acting and performance classes every semester, creating a course, conducting master class workshops, working on production assignments, and coaching or advising undergraduate students as needed. Students are encouraged to develop an area of specialty and to develop other areas of training in order to broaden their knowledge and remain competitive in the academic market.

Degree Requirements


The curriculum for the MFA degree in Performance Pedagogy centers around three focus areas:

1. Pedagogical Study

2. History/Literature/Criticism

3. Practice of Acting and/or other performance styles

4. Other Electives

Each semester students are expected to carry a 15-credit load in addition to teaching two performance classes. Classroom teaching serves as fulfillment of the student’s work obligation to the university in addition to providing a laboratory for applying the pedagogical ideas under study.

# of courses required (list core courses, etc.)

60 credits are required for the program: 36-39 credits in pedagogy; 15 credits in History, Literature and Criticism; and 3-6 credits in electives.  Core courses include: Techniques in Performance Pedagogy, Course Development, Production Mentorship, and Directed Studies in Pedagogy.

Thesis and Final Examination

The thesis project is the final requirement for the Performance Pedagogy degree. It is comprised of an original, created course, a substantial written document that serves as a teaching guidebook for other instructors interested in using the thesis topic in the classroom, and an oral defense of the written document. The thesis document identifies a pedagogical question, investigates that question through research and classroom work, and identifies conclusions reached and considerations for future revisions of the course. Thesis documents typically range from 40-80 pages in length and are directly connected to the created course devised by the student.

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