The first year is a highly disciplined period of training, with a concentration on the basic principles of craft that lead to extraordinary acting. Models of realism are explored through work on a variety of scenes by contemporary and modern playwrights, as actors identify practical tools for mining the printed text for given circumstances, character, objective, and action.
The second year begins with a focus on verse drama and creating embodied performances of Shakespeare. The emphasis on developing an expansive sense of truth through heightened and extended language continues with work on diverse texts from world literature.
The third year includes work on the plays of August Wilson. Students also have courses in Monologue work, on camera, transferring their techniques to the medium of film.