School of Drama at The New School is a multidisciplinary training program for

theater arts Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, located at 151 Bank Street, and 55 West 13th Street

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, It is a part of

The New School The New School is a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for progressive thinkers. ...

's College of Performing Arts.

History

The

graduate program Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and struc ...

was established in 2005 and grants

Masters of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admini ...

degree in

acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor or actress who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad r ...

, directing and playwriting. Its early predecessor was the

Dramatic Workshop Dramatic Workshop was the name of a drama and acting school associated with the New School for Social Research in New York City. It was launched in 1940 by German expatriate stage director Erwin Piscator. Among the faculty were Lee Strasberg and Ste ...

(1940–49). The undergraduate program was established in 2013 and offers students a multidisciplinary, studio-driven program that combines courses in

, directing and

playwriting A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

. The four-year program grants a BFA in the Dramatic Arts.

Programs

Masters Program

The New School's theatrical MFA program was founded in 1994 in association with

the Actors Studio The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights at 432 44th Street (Manhattan), West 44th Street between Ninth Avenue (Manhattan), Ninth and Tenth Avenue (Manhattan), Tenth avenues in the ...

. The program existed as the Actors Studio Drama School until 2005, when the contract with the Studio came to end. Following the split, New School

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Bob Kerrey Joseph Robert Kerrey (born August 27, 1943) is an American politician who served as the 35th Governor of Nebraska from 1983 to 1987 and as a United States Senator from Nebraska from 1989 to 2001. Before entering politics, he served in the Vietna ...

announced that the program would continue without the Studio as the New School for Drama, with

Robert LuPone Robert Francis LuPone (July 29, 1946 – August 27, 2022) was an American actor and artistic director. He worked on stage, in film, and in television. He was the brother of actress Patti LuPone. Early life and training LuPone was born in Brookl ...

Director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

. As a consequence, the classes of 2006 and 2007 enrolled in the Actors Studio Drama School, and graduated from the New School for Drama. 4 The program is a three-year intensive, offering Masters of Fine Arts in Acting, Directing or Playwriting. The curriculum is highly collaborative, with students from all three majors working closely together. ;Faculty Current faculty for the MFA program includes

Ron Leibman Ron Leibman (; October 11, 1937 – December 6, 2019) was an American actor. He won both the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play in 1993 for his performance as Roy Cohn in ''Angels in Amer ...

Christopher Shinn Christopher Shinn (born 1975) is an American playwright. His play ''Dying City'' (2006) was a finalist for the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and ''Where Do We Live'' (2004) won the 2005 Obie Award, Playwriting. Early life Shinn was born in Hartf ...

Jon Robin Baitz Jon Robin Baitz (born November 4, 1961) is an American playwright, screenwriter and television producer. He is a two time Pulitzer Prize finalist, as well as a Guggenheim Museum, Guggenheim, American Academy of Arts and Letters, and NEA fellowshi ...

, Daniel Aukin, Peter J. Fernandez and

Michael Weller Michael Weller (born September 26, 1942) is a Brooklyn-based playwright and screen writer. His plays include ''Moonchildren'', ''Loose Ends'', ''Spoils of War'' and ''Fifty Words''. His screenplays include ''Ragtime'', for which he was nominate ...

. ;Artist-in-Residence For the 2014–15 school year

Mark Ruffalo Mark Alan Ruffalo (; born November 22, 1967) is an American actor and producer best known for playing Bruce Banner / Hulk since 2012 in the superhero franchise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and in the television series '' She-Hulk: Attorne ...

was School of Drama's

artist in residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

. Previous artists in residence have included

David Hare David Hare may refer to: *David Hare (philanthropist) (1775–1842), Scottish philanthropist *David Hare (artist) (1917–1992), American sculptor and photographer *David Hare (playwright) (born 1947), English playwright and theatre and film direc ...

(2013-2014),

Kathleen Chalfant Kathleen Ann Chalfant (née Bishop; born January 14, 1945) is an American actress. She has appeared in many stage plays, both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, as well as making guest appearances on television series, including the ''Law & Order'' fr ...

, playwrights

(2009–10) and John Patrick Shanley (2006–07), director

Doug Hughes Douglas Hughes is an American theatre director. Early life Hughes is the son of acting couple Barnard Hughes (1915–2006) and Helen Stenborg. He attended Harvard University, starting as a biology major and graduating with a degree in English. C ...

(2007–08), and actor John Turturro (2008–09).

Undergraduate Program

School of Drama's undergraduate program welcomed its inaugural class in August 2013. The inaugural class of 2017 comprises fifty young artists studying the disciplines of

, directing,

, and the Creative Technologies. ;Curriculum The BFA in Dramatic Arts is a multidisciplinary, studio driven program that combines courses in acting, writing, directing, aesthetic inquiry, and creative technologies. Through artistic training and project-based learning in various media, the students learn the skills of collaboration and artistic choice-making. They are then offered an array of electives in these different disciplines. The students may choose a focus, and utilize these electives to concentrate their study on a specific discipline. Students may also choose electives to take a variety of different classes for a variety of theatrical disciplines. Professional Training The professional training provided by the program includes foundational courses, theater electives, general electives, research methods studios, reflective learning opportunities, performance and production opportunities, and a collaborative capstone experience. Global Perspectives BFA students make connections between concept and practice, and gain an increased familiarity with the works and intentions of playwrights, directors, and performers in both the Western and non-Western worlds. Part of The New School BFA students at School of Drama can take classes at Parsons and Eugene Lang College. Students can also choose a minor at Lang.

Productions

*''The Hot L Baltimore'' by Lanford Wilson, directed by Shelly Wyant (Fall 2013) *''New Works Play Festival'' (Spring 2013) *''An Enemy of the People'' by Henrik Ibsen, translated by Arthur Miller (Spring 2014)

References

External links

* {{authority control

Drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

Drama schools in the United States Performing arts education in New York City Universities and colleges in Manhattan Universities and colleges in New York City 2005 establishments in New York City Educational institutions established in 2005