DEGREE
Bachelor of Fine Arts
CAREER IDEAS
Actor/Actress, Artists and Repertoire Agent, Dance or Drama Teacher, Technical Director/Manager, Theatre & Media Director
Manhattanville College’s Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) in Musical Theatre degree program provides a well-rounded education for the career-oriented musical theatre student. If your passion encompasses singing, acting, and dancing, start gaining experience right away at Manhattanville. As a musical theatre major, you’ll experience a flexible curriculum that can be molded to your needs and have opportunities to apply your studies from day one. In addition to our faculty-directed production season, you will find opportunities to perform at workshops, festivals, and as part of student run clubs, building your resume and skills for successful auditions after graduation.
B.FA. in Musical Theatre Overview
Just a short trip away from the world-famous stages of New York City, Manhattanville uniquely teaches students the technique and artistry needed for a career in musical theatre Students in Manhattanville’s musical theatre program:
- Have the opportunity to audition for six mainstage productions each year, including two musicals
- Learn from expert professionals in the classroom and through private lessons
- Study and practice their craft in four on-campus performance venues in addition to off-campus festivals and events
Our B.F.A. in Musical Theatre will expand your performance skills, develop a deep understanding of the genre, and build critical professional skills such as communications and media, writing, and digital media production through general education courses, helping students prepare to fulfill their dreams of a performance career.
Entrance Audition
Students applying to Manhattanville’s B.F.A. in Musical Theatre must complete the entrance audition process.
Evaluated by a panel of expert faculty members, the entrance audition measures your current level of artistry as well as your predicted ability to successfully complete the curriculum. The entrance audition is also used to recommend scholarships for musical theatre students. Prospective first year, transfer and current Manhattanville students who would like to enter the musical theatre program must audition either live or via video through our ACCEPTD portal.
The complete audition package includes:
- One short contemporary monologue
- Two songs in different styles, one up-tempo and one ballad, of any length
- Dance in any style, 30-60 seconds
- Resume detailing musical theatre skills and experience
- Headshot and/or photo
What do our audition evaluators look for? A balance of current achievement as well as your potential. We’ll select students based on the three areas of the discipline:
- Current and Potential Acting Ability
- Current and Potential Dancing Ability
- Current and Potential Singing Ability
Learn how to submit an entrance audition for the musical theatre degree program.
Requirements and Outcomes
The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre degree requires 120 credits distributed among core major courses, general education courses, and electives. Core courses entail professional-level study in singing, acting, and dance, while our general education requirements offer a liberal arts context.
Requirements include:
- Entrance audition
- 60-70 credits in musical theatre performance, piano, acting, dance, stagecraft, and production courses
- 8 credits of applied voice
- 30 liberal arts credits
- Attendance at on-campus concerts, recitals, and plays
- Senior Recital
Review complete requirements for the B.FA. in Musical Theatre.
Musical Theatre Courses
As a musical theatre major, you’ll expand your abilities in voice, movement, and acting as well as your knowledge of theatre history in America and around the world. Courses focus on studying performance craft and the essentials of musical theatre, but you’ll also receive training in basic technical theatre.
Designed to be as hands-on as possible, many courses, workshop-style courses, and seminars include opportunities to practice and perform various genres. Musical theatre major classes include:
- Voice
- Musical Theatre Performance Seminars
- Cabaret Performance Workshop
- Acting for Musical Theater: Scene to Song
- Auditions
- Piano Class (students may substitute private lessons)
- Dance for Musical Theatre
- Ballet, Modern Dance, and Tap
- Acting, Voice and Speech
- Stagecraft
- Production Practicum
Career Outcomes in Musical Theatre
Whether you’re itching to get your first acting job or you envision a career performing year-round, our theatre degree program builds the experience and abilities that get you there. Alumni of Manhattanville’s robust musical theatre program have gone on to perform in national tours, off-Broadway, and in regional theatres, performing everything from plays to musicals to opera. You may have seen our alums in:
- Ragtime
- A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder
- The Wizard of Oz
- Les Misérables
- Chicago
- The Drowsy Chaperone
- 42nd Street
- New York City Opera’s Candide directed by Hal Prince
Our alums have proudly performed at:
- Arena Stage
- Trinity Rep
- Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera
- Ocean State Theatre Company
- Theatre By The Sea
- Maine State Music Theatre
- College Light Opera Company
- Barrington Stage
- New York International Fringe Festival
- Theater Works
- Cirque Dreams
The skills you learn in the Manhattanville musical theatre program can start you on the road to a a variety of careers on screen, in print, and behind the scenes. Several of our graduates have been booked as extras in award-winning television shows and in feature and indie films, regional commercials, and national print ad campaigns, including a campaign for Reebok. Backed by the well-rounded undergraduate curriculum, students have even started their own theatre companies after graduation.
Performance Opportunities
Mainstage Musical Productions
While earning your bachelor’s in musical theatre, you’ll learn to prepare for professional auditions while gaining on-stage experience bringing you closer to your career goals. This happens through student participation in our six show mainstage season, which includes at least two musicals each year, as well as multiple concerts that are capstone events for classroom studies.
Senior Musical Theatre Recitals
Seniors graduating from the B.F.A. in Musical Theatre give a capstone recital. The recital is a celebration of all of the skills students have learned in the BFA program, and a chance to perform current audition repertoire for a cheering crowd before launching into live auditions in the industry.
Broadway at Manhattanville Club
Broadway at Manhattanville (B@M) is the musical theatre club on campus. Made up of students from the performing arts programs as well as non-performance majors, the B@M mission is to develop a space where anyone can perform and discuss their love of musical theatre.
Facilities & Events
Performance Venues
Manhattanville’s robust musical theatre facilities include four dedicated on-campus venues. These flexible spaces provide a home for any performance, from a one-person cabaret to a 40 person musical.
- Little Theatre: Performance space for musicals, plays, and dance concerts
- The EX Theatre: The black box space, used for workshops, experimental theatre, and events such as Fresh Ink, our new works project
- Reid Castle: Home of Manhattanville’s annual Shakespeare Festival
- Pius X Hall: Hosts recitals and workshops
In addition to these performance spaces, we have multiple individual soundproof practice rooms available for private lessons, practice and rehearsals.
Current Manhattanville Theatre Season
Manhattanville hosts six mainstage productions each year, as well as countless smaller events and performances.
Find out what’s happening in the current Manhattanville theatre season and reserve event tickets.
Full-Time Faculty
- Beth Burrier -- Musical Theatre, Cabaret, Vocal and Musical Theatre Ensembles, The Quintessentials
- Carmelo Comberiati -- Music History, Ethnomusicology
- Olivier Fluchaire -- Violin Instruction, Strings, Chamber Ensembles, Music History, Music Theory
- Geoffrey Kidde -- Music Technology, Music Theory, Music Composition
- Harvey Rachlin -- Music Business
Faculty Emeriti
- Francis Brancaleone
- MaryAnn Joyce-Walter
- Anthony LaMagra
Performance/Part-Time Faculty
Voice
- Diana Canova -- Voice
- Ronald Cappon – Voice
- Faith Esham – Voice
Keyboard
- Charles Blenzig -- Jazz Piano
- Diane Guernsey -- Piano
- Flora Kuan -- Piano
- Jeongeun Yom -- Piano
- Miles Plant—Organ
Strings
- Olivier Fluchaire – Violin/Viola
- James Lorusso – Guitar
- Marta Bedkowska-Reilly – Cello
- Ji Hyun Son – Viola
Brass/Woodwinds
- Bruce Eidem -- Lower Brass
- Geoffrey Kidde – Flute
- Ken Kraut -- Trumpet
- Jeremy Goldsmith – Clarinet
- Kristen Mather de Andrade -- Clarinet
- Stefani Borissa Starin -- Flute
Percussions
- Andrew Swift -- Percussion
Composition
- Geoffrey Kidde – Composition
Musical Theatre
- Michael Bartoli -- Musical Theatre
- Beth Burrier -- Musical Theatre
- Miles Plant-- Musical Theatre
Music Technology
- Jeremy Goldsmith -- Music Technology
- Andrew Swift -- Music Technology
Ensembles
- Beth Burrier – The Quintessentials Vocal Pop Group
- Olivier Fluchaire – Orchestra, Chamber Ensembles
- Jeremy Goldsmith -- Chorus, Vocal Ensembles
- Flora Kuan -- Chamber Ensembles
- Terrence Reynolds -- Jazz, Wind, and Brass Ensembles
- Andrew Swift – Midi Band and Small Jazz Ensemble
Apply to the B.F.A. in Musical Theatre
Manhattanville’s Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre degree program supports in-class training with multiple ways to apply your skills on the stage and beyond. If you’re searching for a musical theatre degree backed by experience, visit our beautiful campus just minutes from the theatres, halls, and studios of New York City.
Ready to apply? Review admissions information and apply today. Or, request more information to learn more.