-
We are the
ONLY
university in South Carolina that offers undergraduate degrees in
both dance education and theatre education (the degree you would
need to become a K-12 drama or dance teacher in the public schools).
Now is a great time to be a K-12 teacher.
-
What is the
practical use of a major in dance or theatre? Researchers
have established that arts training creates achievement in a
number of ways. First, students who pursue arts training
show greater overall knowledge retention than those who do not.
Second, students who pursue arts training ultimately attain
higher levels of employment than those who do not.
Third, arts training promotes strategic planning and
self-management skills. For more information, see the work
of James Catterall, author of the
National Educational Longitudinal Survey.
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/nels88/.
-
What can dance and
theatre majors contribute to the world?
In a 2009 editorial, the nationally syndicated columnist, Thomas
L. Friedman, noted that "Those with the imagination to . . .
invent smarter ways to do old jobs, energy-saving ways to
provide new services, new ways to attract old customers or new
ways to combine existing technologies--will thrive." He
makes that statement after citing
various scholars
and commissions and business leaders who have observed that the global economy will
depend more and more on a workforce that can bring
problem-solving skills and innovative, imaginative
thinking to growth industries like nanotechnology,
renewable
energy, agribusiness,
finance,
alternative fuels, and information management. Those who
major in the arts are uniquely trained and qualified to succeed
in this twenty-first century world. See more
information at:
www.21stcenturyskills.org.
-
Our liberal
arts-based curriculum requires majors to study ALL the dance
and theatre crafts, so that our graduates are fully prepared to
work successfully in the performing arts. This breadth of
knowledge is important, because arts/entertainment is a major
industry with many opportunities. A 2007 economic impact
study indicated that South Carolina artists generated over $25
million in earnings per year. The motion picture industry
paid over $32 million annually in wages and salaries in the
state. The state's cultural industry overall generates
$2.4 billion in economic output every year. Click
here for more information from the South Carolina Department
of Education. See For more information
about career prospects for theatre and dance majors (prepared by the
University of Texas Fine Arts Career Services Center), click
here for theatre and here for
dance.
-
Our faculty includes a full-time accompanist, so
ALL our
required dance
technique classes for the dance majors have a live accompanist
to enrich the students' experience in the studio.
-
You'll have plenty of performance and production opportunities here. Our season includes up to four student-directed full-length plays,
two student-directed one-act festivals and two showcases of
student choreography, in addition to our mainstage season of
faculty-directed dance and theatre productions. Our
students regularly design costumes, lighting and scenery for our
faculty-directed productions and for the Music Department's
opera productions.
-
In 2005 we installed
new floors in our two dance studios, making them some of
the finest spaces in the region.
Both studios feature
sprung floors by
L'Air with StageStep floor covering.
Additional new dance
studios came on line in 2007 when the Lois Rhame
West
Health,
Physical Education and Wellness Center
opened next door to Johnson Hall. These are some of the
finest dance studios in the region.
-
Our department has an internship program with Actor's Theatre of Charlotte,
the only Equity theatre in the metro area. Our students
work as actors and production crews alongside professional
artists in a theatre that is committed to presenting the most
important new works of the contemporary theatre in America.
Click here to learn more.
Our students also have completed internships in recent years
with the Children's Theatre of Charlotte, the Charlotte Dance
Festival, Theatre Charlotte, and Flat Rock Playhouse.
(Julie Hammond, Class of 2009 Theatre Performance major from Summerville, SC, and Amanda Roberts,
Class of 2009 Theatre Education major from Lexington, SC, in the 2008 production of
Shiloh Rules)
-
We have scholarships for new and continuing students in our
program. To learn about our
scholarship auditions, click
here. Visit the
Admissions
Office web page to learn about academic scholarships.
-
The liberal arts-based educational experience at Winthrop has
proven its excellent quality in many measurable ways.
Since 2004 Winthrop has participated in the National Survey of
Student Engagement (NSSE), and the results indicate that "Winthrop first-year students
and seniors self-reported higher than their peers
[nationally] on level of academic
challenge, active and collaborative learning, student-faculty
interactions, and enriching educational experiences. Winthrop
students also showed substantial
increases in most of these areas from 2004 to 2007."
Read more about Winthrop's NSSE results at:
http://www.winthrop.edu/effectiveness/nsse/results.htm.
Winthrop has been recognized as a top-quality liberal arts
university by numerous professional surveys, rankings and higher
education organizations. Click
here to learn more.
(Dance majors performs as
the Rockhettes at the City of Rock Hill 2007 Christmasville
festival.)
-
We're thirty minutes
away from
Charlotte, NC, the region's arts and cultural center that
includes professional theatre,
professional ballet, professional opera,
modern dance, visual arts, children's theatre, music festivals, touring productions,
dance festivals, film production, talent agencies, etc. Many of our students and graduates work with these area
arts organizations and at nearby Carowinds Amusement Park.
-
The Winthrop campus is located in the heart of Rock Hill, close
to many recreational, shopping and cultural destinations.
Click
here to learn more.
|
WANT TO SEE ONE OF OUR SHOWS?
Be our guest at our next production. Contact us for
complimentary tickets for you and your family.
Call us at
803-323-2287
or email us at
theaterdance@winthrop.edu |
