Theatre is Best When it Incites and Excites
The Department of Theatre fosters a courageous, self-driven creative process working both within and outside of existing structures with a goal of using your art to create a pathway to success.
undergraduate experience
The MSU Department of Theatre offers you a personalized experience. We empower our students to think about a character from various vantage points, use technology to design and create new worlds, and examine the past in order to understand the present and influence the future.
graduate experience
Degree Areas
BACHELOR in Theatre
Bachelor of Fine Arts
The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre is designed for students wishing to prepare for a professional career in theatre and other media.
Master of Fine Arts
Masters of Fine Arts provided for in both Acting and Design. The programs aim to prepare students to be a professional design, artists and educators.
Minor In Theatre
In addition to preparing students for careers that are directly related to theatre, the minor will afford opportunities to expand creative, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills.
Minor In Musical Theatre
Students study musical theatre and its practical foundations; consisting of individually prescribed blocks of courses designed to provide a guided performance and academic experience tailored to each student’s career goals.
Minor in Dance
Students study dance and its practical applications. The minor consists of technique-based courses designed to provide a wide variety of skills in conjunction with practical leadership within the discipline.
Featured News
U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Funds English Language Exchange Program at MSU
This summer, more than 20 English educators from around the world came to Michigan State University’s campus to be immersed in the language and culture
MSU Department of Theatre Confronts Anger and Fear with ‘Othello’ Production
The Michigan State University Department of Theatre presents the William Shakespeare tragedy “Othello” Nov. 7-16, 2025, at the Pasant Theatre in the Wharton Center for Performing Arts. Directed by Ji Won Jeon, Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre, this production asks what happens when fear takes control, not just in one man’s life, but in a divided society.
Free Tickets Offered to MSU Students for Department of Theatre Productions
Michigan State University students can receive free tickets to the remaining MSU Department of Theatre productions in the 2025-2026 season, “Secrets & Spotlights.” To receive a free ticket, students need to show their MSU student ID at the Wharton Center Ticket Office in the days prior to the show or at the ticket booth where the production is being held just prior to the show. One free ticket will be given per student per production.
Theatre Prof Serves as Assistant Fight Director for Broadway Production
Alexis Black is always up for a good fight. And since February 2022 she has been choreographing stage combat for the Tony Award-nominated production of Macbeth…
MFA Candidate Receives National Kennedy Center Award for Theatre Design
Kasee Arnett, an MFA Design Candidate from Michigan State University, earned a spot to compete in the national competition in which she received the Distinguished Achievement Award…
MSU Researches a Neurodiverse Approach to Theatre Education
One of the first of its kind in the world, the Department of Theatre has produced a play that is written specifically for a neurodiverse audience …
Stage Management Student Works with Broadway Stars in NYC
From running rehearsals to communicating technical needs, stage managers, like Katie McArthur, work out the kinks of a production before and during its big debut….