We are seeking bold, adventurous MFA students eager to collaborate in an innovative INTERDISCIPLINARY acting curriculum for the THEATER OF THE FUTURE. There are SIX KEY ELEMENTS of the new MFA Interdisciplinary Acting Program:

• The interdisciplinary study of acting for Theater, Film, Television and Digital Media: Of the eight quarters of acting classes, at least three quarters (one year) will focus on acting for the camera, microphone and motion capture.
• An emphasis on time-honored Theater conservatory courses of voice, speech and movement.
• The promotion of the collaborative ensemble: In their first quarter of the new MFA programs in Acting, Directing and Playwriting, students of all three programs will collectively study acting, voice, movement, directing, and playwriting. In subsequent quarters, students will be frequently reassembled in collaborative teams to create group projects. Actors will be encouraged to form their own theater and film ensembles where they can share ideas and participate in collaborative production.
• The study of Film and Theater History drawn from the extraordinary resources of the UCLA Film and Television Archive and the Theater Special Collections.
• The “actor-producer”: Actors will learn to “capture” their collaborations not only on the stage, but also on film and with other contemporary technologies. For this reason, the new MFA Acting Program will offer ancillary courses in basic computer technologies (such as video and sound editing). Actors will also be able to take courses in producing and theater business in order to learn how to develop their own projects.
• Central to the actor training is the participation in performance as part of the yearly UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television production season: Projects will include performances of classical and contemporary plays, film and television projects, and new student-generated work.

We are already engaged in projects that reflect our goals for the new MFA Acting Program. Here are some of the highlights from our last two academic years:

Fall Quarter 2010:

First-year MFA actors and first-year MFA film directors participated in a two-week workshop with film director and writer Kasi Lemons.

Second-year and Third-year MFA actors performed Hamlet and the musical Life After High School at the Los Angeles Theater Center.

Winter Quarter 2011:

First-year MFA actors studied classical acting in a ten-week course with theater and film actor, Olivier Award winner and Tony nominee, Alfred Molina.

Second-year and Third-year MFA actors performed Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard directed by Tony Award winner Mel Shapiro and the contemporary Ugandan play Forgotten World by Deborah Asiimwe directed by Los Angeles Drama Critics Award winner Shirley Jo Finney.

Spring Quarter 2011:

Second-year MFA actors and MFA screenwriters collaborated on six short films supervised by Academy Award winning screenwriter Robert Moresco.

Third-year MFA actors performed their Actors Showcase (incorporating both theater and film sequences) for agents and industry professionals at the Geffen Playhouse.

Fall Quarter 2011:

Second-year and Third-year MFA actors performed Elmer Rice’s The Adding Machine directed by J. Ed Araiza, distinguished member of New York’s Obie winning Siti Company, and The Clean House by Sarah Ruhl directed by Shirley Jo Finney.

Winter Quarter 2012:

Second-year and Third-year MFA actors performed Antwone Fisher: A Play written and directed by Writers Guild of America nominee Antwone Fisher and William Wycherley’s The Country Wife directed by Paul Wagar, Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Ark Theatre, and internationally recognized teacher of Alexander Technique, Jean-Louis Rodrigue, in the new UCLA Theater Laboratory and at the Clark Library.

Spring Quarter 2012:

Second-year MFA actors and MFA screenwriters collaborated on five short films supervised by Academy Award winning screenwriter Robert Moresco.

Third-year MFA actors performed their Actors Showcase (incorporating both theater and film sequences) for agents and industry professionals at the Geffen Playhouse.

Required Courses

• 205ABC  Background of Theatrical Art

• 420ABC  Advanced Acting I

• 421ABC  Advanced Acting II

• 422  Advanced Acting for Theater, Film and Television

• 424ABC  Advanced Voice and Speech I

• 424DEF  Advanced Voice and Speech II

• 425ABC  Advanced Movement I

• 425DEF  Advanced Movement II

• C472  Production and Performance Laboratory

Students are required to enroll in a minimum of twelve units per quarter. Required courses will be scheduled to permit completion of the program within a three-year period. In addition to the successful completion of a minimum of 94 units or 23.5 courses, candidates for the degree must pass a comprehensive examination, including critical evaluation of production projects which culminate in a manner to show professional competence in the field.

A minimum of 82 units or 20.5 courses at the graduate level are required. A maximum of 12 undergraduate units may be counted toward the degree. A maximum of 12 units of 596 courses may be counted toward the degree.

The Master of Fine Arts degree is awarded on the basis of successful completion of the required courses and critical evaluation of student work. The Department expects consistent progress as well as attainment of professional skills. These and other factors will also influence the Department's allocation of production resources including the number, scale, and scheduling of projects and productions.

The Master of Fine Arts in Acting is a three year program taught by nationally recognized teachers of acting, voice, speech, movement, and dance, as well as professional directors in theater, film and television. The training combines classroom study with intensive studio training and is eclectic and not rooted in any one methodology or dogma. The goal of the training is to help each actor find the methods of working best suited to his or her individual talents and to give actors the opportunity to acquire the skills and techniques needed for working in all kinds of theater, all styles and genres of plays, and in front of the camera in television and film. Practical production experience is an integral part of the training during the entire three years; in the final year, students present an actor's showcase for the entertainment community in Los Angeles.