Institute of Contemporary Art at the Maine College of Art
Attending a performing arts college is a big decision—you lot're committing to focusing exclusively on your art for iv years. Once y'all've made this selection, you demand to detect a schoolhouse that'll allow you to attain your career goals. In society to assistance you detect the right school for yous, I've compiled a list of the best performing arts colleges in the U.s.. Keep reading to come across what these are! This list includes schools that exclusively offer drama and trip the light fantastic degrees. Since music schools tend to differ dramatically (I'm so punny) from drama and dance schools, I've left them out of this article; if you want to read more about the all-time music schools in the Us, here is the place to detect that information. Furthermore, I've focused on schools where drama and/or dance is a priority. These schools simply offer performing arts degrees or have specialized performing arts schools at the larger university. Going to a performing arts college has many advantages for students. You lot will exist surrounded by agreeing artists who will inspire you, help you with your creative pursuits, and too likely be your colleagues when you graduate. Additionally, you lot'll be at a school that doesn't view your art as a mere extracurricular activity. Although it'due south possible to get a performing arts degr ee f rom other colleges, this list of all-time performing arts colleges is designed for students who know 100% they exclusively want to study interim or dance and are looking for an environment that fully supports them in their ambitions. Don't ever take rankings of the peak performing arts colleges as absolute fact—non even those from Backstage or The Hollywood Reporter. Instead, you should use these manufactures as a starting indicate for your own research. Whenever you look at a list of the best performing arts colleges, endeavor to meet how the rankings were adamant. Hither, I'll explain how I came up with this unscientific list of schools. I started by limiting my search to schools that prioritize dance and drama by only offering performing arts degrees or past having a specialized programme inside the larger academy. I then took the following three criteria into consideration: I split this list into tiers instead of rankings since rankings are usually not that meaningful. Tier one schools are the cream-of-the-crop performing arts colleges; they provide students with the most extracurricular opportunities and accept the longest lists of notable alumni. Tier two schools are nonetheless excellent but don't have the aforementioned opportunities or as many notable alumni every bit the Tier 1 schools do. Note that not all of these schools are excellent for both dance and drama. Actually, some of these schools simply offering a dance or a drama program. Within each school description, I've noted whether it's a tiptop school for dance, drama, or both. At Tier 1 schools, y'all tin perform in beginning-rate productions. We'll start our list with the Tier 1 schools, or the best performing arts colleges in the state. Always listed near the top of both drama and dance rankings, Juilliard boasts an unbelievably long list of notable alumni who have won more than 105 Grammy Awards, 62 Tony Awards, 47 Emmy Awards, 26 Bessie Awards, 24 Academy Awards, xvi Pulitzer Prizes, and 12 National Medals for the Arts. That's quite a full-blooded! The school is extremely exclusive, selecting just viii to 10 students for the BFA Acting Program, eight to 10 students for the MFA Acting Program, and about 24 students for the BFA Dance Program. Outside the classroom, the trip the light fantastic program holds fifteen public performances each yr, and the drama program puts on many plays and senior showcases in both New York and Los Angeles for industry professionals such as casting directors, agents, and managers. If you're looking for a programme that tin put you lot on the fast rails to an amazing career, Julliard is an excellent choice. Like Juilliard, NYU Tisch is besides always near the superlative of the rankings for both drama and dance. And for good reason: the schoolhouse has a long list of notable alumni, many of whom have performed on Broadway, at Radio City Music Hall, and in movies and on Television receiver. While the list of notable alums is long, some names yous may recognize include Lady Gaga, Elizabeth Olsen, James Franco, Fasten Lee, and Kristen Bong. Tisch offers many dissimilar degrees in dissimilar artistic fields, including drama, performance studies, film & boob tube, dramatic writing, and cinema studies. The school is also branching into dissimilar performance media, including music production and video game production/design. The school also takes reward of its NYC environment past partnering drama students with professional acting studios where they tin perform in a wide array of productions led by globe-famous theatre artists and kinesthesia. Carnegie Mellon has a long history of pinnacle-notch drama education: in fact, it was the first degree-granting drama establishment in the Usa. More importantly, Carnegie Mellon is a drama powerhouse with a faculty of working theater professionals and well-known alumni, including Holly Hunter, Billy Porter, Judith Light, Ted Danson, and Zachary Quinto. This school offers separate acting and musical theatre degrees equally well, giving students the option to specialize in different types of performances. The drama department offers a unique, hands-on education that gives students plenty of on-phase opportunities. The section puts on xx shows per year, allowing for many performance opportunities. Additionally, the school cancels classes for a calendar week each yr to allow students engage in performances of whatsoever kind (such equally original works or adaptations of movies). Seniors go to perform in showcases in New York, Los Angeles, and Pittsburgh in forepart of manufacture professionals. Additionally, Carnegie Mellon offers students a hazard to appoint in interdisciplinary studies through The Studio for Creative Inquiry and The Eye for Arts in Order. If y'all're interested in seeing how drama can affect the world both on phase and beyond, then Carnegie Mellon would be a great fit for y'all. One of the height dance programs in the US, the Boston Conservatory boasts a faculty of world-class artists who have worked with notable choreographers such as Antony Tudor, Robert Joffrey, José Limón, Martha Graham, Alvin Ailey, and Agnes de Mille, and with dance companies such equally Boston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet of New York, and Limón Dance Company. There are many performance opportunities throughout the twelvemonth, the nearly prestigious being the ability to perform equally a member of the Boston Conservatory Trip the light fantastic toe Theater. Alumni perform with dance companies effectually the globe as well equally on Broadway. Continue in mind, even so, that the Boston Conservatory specializes in gimmicky trip the light fantastic toe...so if yous're looking for classical training, y'all should consider a different program. No best performing arts colleges list would exist complete without the Yale School of Drama. This school is world renowned for its MFA Acting program; withal, I'd advise confronting doing the more than full general BA program, which doesn't give you lot access to the same faculty or performance opportunities. The MFA program offers programs in every aspect of performance, from on-phase acting all the way to technical design and stage management. The School of Drama also boasts a long list of famous alumni, including Meryl Streep, Angela Bassett, Sigourney Weaver, Paul Giamatti, and Lupita Nyong'o. The school also invests heavily in students' networking opportunities; students in their final year act in showcases in both New York and Los Angeles in front of manufacture professionals. In the past ten years, 100% of graduates accept landed agents or managers within the first month out of school. So if y'all're serious most having a career in the performing arts, you should definitely consider Yale'south MFA program. Northwestern is ane of the few drama schools that doesn't require an audition for access. Withal, getting accepted is tough because drama students are held to high bookish standards, and the current university acceptance rate is around 8%. It'south non surprising that many of the program's alumni get on to have illustrious careers. Some of the school's nigh notable alums include David Schwimmer, Stephen Colbert, Anna Gunn, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Zach Braff. Undergraduate students at Northwestern have many opportunities to perform in both school-sponsored and student-run shows. As many as twoscore shows a year are staged at the Wirtz Center for the Performing arts, and another xl student-led shows happen across campus. Additionally, seniors are invited to participate in showcases in New York and Chicago in front of industry professionals. In this section, we take a look at other great performing arts colleges that we've classified as Tier 2. These schools are still excellent, merely they aren't quite as prestigious as those listed in Tier 1. Having said that: you're nonetheless setting yourself upwards for a great career if y'all earn a degree from any of these universities! UNCSA is home to exceptional drama and dance programs. Alumni of the trip the light fantastic program have gone on to perform with the American Ballet Theatre, the New York Urban center Ballet, the Pacific Northwest Ballet, the Joffrey Ballet, the Paul Taylor Trip the light fantastic toe Company, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and the Martha Graham Ensemble. Others take danced with performers such equally Lady Gaga, Janet Jackson, and Beyoncé. UNCSA's notable alumni include include Mary-Louise Parker, Lucas Hedges, Anthony Mackie, and Dane DeHaan. Drama and dance students at UNCSA have many operation opportunities including a senior showcase for industry professionals in New York. Drama students besides perform their showcase in Los Angeles. CalArts is considered the best dance school on the West Coast and one of the top drama schools in the country. The School of Dance boasts distinguished faculty and brings in guest artists to give students industry and expert perspective. Some recent visiting artists include Gerard & Kelly (mixed media performers) and Benjamin Millepied (former principal dancer with the New York Metropolis ballet and Natalie Portman's hubby). The schoolhouse besides offers several functioning opportunities, such as in American College Dance Festivals; it also has an International Exchange program with the London Contemporary Trip the light fantastic toe Centre which allows students to gain international trip the light fantastic toe experience. CalArts also boasts a elevation-notch drama programme every bit well. The drama school is a great choice for actors who know they want to pursue film or television acting since, during the final year, students enroll in Acting Studio for the Photographic camera. This form specifically trains students for acting and auditioning for film and Goggle box. Additionally, at the end of the terminal semester, students get to perform in an industry showcase in Los Angeles. The drama schoolhouse has a bunch of famous alumni including Don Cheadle, Ed Harris, and Alison Brie. Accept the leap and apply to a performing arts school! Rutgers' Stonemason Gross Schoolhouse of the Arts has world-class drama and dance programs. Thanks to its proximity to New York City, the dance program offers students opportunities for main classes and workshops in world dance forms with international artists. It also has two tremendous programs abroad, DanceJerusalem in Israel and the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London. Rutgers' drama program is unique and well rounded. Classes run the gamut from Shakespeare to modern TV. Students spend their third twelvemonth at the Rutgers Conservatory at Shakespeare'southward Globe in London, which culminates with a operation on the Earth stage. The final semester is focused on an effective transition into the professional acting world with classes in On-Camera Technique, Auditioning, and Introduction to the Life of a Working Actor. The drama plan has some famous alumni, including Kristen Davis and Calista Flockhart. Fordham is located in the Bronx, which means students will be steeped in trip the light fantastic culture and history from the moment they step on campus. Known primarily for its partnership with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Fordham offers students a liberal arts education and collaboration with a world-famous modern dance company. Additionally, the programme and visitor call Lincoln Middle habitation, which is pretty amazing! Many alumni keep to perform with the Alvin Ailey American Trip the light fantastic Theater after graduation, while others have gone on to trip the light fantastic toe for prestigious companies and on Broadway. Some of Fordham's incredible dance alumni include Ephraim Sykes (who performed in Hamilton on Broadway), Anne Souder (Martha Graham), and Victoria Guajardo (Momix). Syracuse offers split degrees in acting or musical theatre, assuasive students to specialize in a particular field. Students besides have the opportunity to written report "abroad" in New York, Los Angeles, and London, which are some of the best cities for the dramatic arts in the world. The plan has developed a number of famous talents, including Taye Diggs, Jerry Stiller, and Vera Farmiga. Students can also perform with the Syracuse Phase, an outstanding Equity theater company, and gain Equity points while still in school. Equity points are one fashion performers can earn membership into the Actors' Equity Association, which is the union for professional stage actors and managers. In other words, graduating with a degree in drama from Syracuse gives you a leg up in the theatre globe. The Academy of Southern California is known for its flick program, but information technology has a fantastic drama program as well. It'south probably non a huge surprise given that the school is located in Los Angeles, the middle of the film industry. Because of that, the schoolhouse invites many visiting artists to work with students to develop their craft. Former visiting artists include Lisa Kudrow, Bryan Cranston, and Tony Shalhoub. The program prides itself on tailoring programs to fit each student'due south individual needs and goals. While all students get a solid foundation in the dramatic arts, they also get to accept highly specialized classes like Stand Upwards Comedy and Medical Clowning. That allows students to focus their studies to fit their futurity careers. Famous alumni from the USC School of Dramatic Arts include Wood Whitaker, Troian Bellisario, Deborah Ann Woll, and Beck Bennett. Oklahoma City Academy is well-known every bit an arts school, just its trip the light fantastic program stands out from the crowd because of its focus on American trip the light fantastic toe forms. The school teaches tap, jazz, and musical theater trip the light fantastic toe at the highest levels. Students tin also major in arts management, a unique degree that teaches students how to be professional managers that assist direct performers' careers. Famous grads performing on Broadway include Sara Edwards (trip the light fantastic toe helm, Foilles) and Marie Danvers (Christine in Phantom of the Opera). If you specialize in American trip the light fantastic, Oklahoma City university would be a keen fit for you. So many schools, merely where should You lot apply? Only because Juilliard is an incredible schoolhouse doesn't mean you should desire to go there. It's a tiny schoolhouse with a very intense program which might not be the best fit for all students. Here are some questions to enquire yourself when trying to choice i of these best performing arts colleges. If you're interested in dance, do you desire to practice ballet or gimmicky? If you're interested in acting, exercise you desire to perform in plays, musicals, television, or film? Wait into the programs and encounter what courses are offered. Try to avert picking a school specializing in ballet if yous desire to do contemporary dance. Similarly, avoid picking a musical theatre plan if you desire to act in Tv (and vice versa). Hip-hop is crawly. I touched on this above, but exist sure to go to a performing arts school where the opportunities align with your interests. For instance, if you lot want to do Shakespeare, then Rutgers—which offers a twelvemonth away in London working at the Globe Theatre—might be a better fit for y'all than CalArts or Northwestern would be. Extracurriculars are where y'all get your experience, and then make sure you'll be getting experience in your chosen specialty. Is it a big school or a small-scale school? Is information technology a conservatory or is it at a larger university? If you hate large schools, just don't cull 1. You don't want to dread being surrounded by tons of students or existence forced into cheering for the basketball team. If y'all get overwhelmed by intensity, a conservatory (such equally Juilliard or the Boston Conservatory) might not be a bang-up choice for you since they're both small programs where competition is tearing. On the other manus, at a school like Syracuse, you could accept breaks from your theatre community by hanging out with other students who are majoring in journalism, applied science, pre-med, etc. In short, pick a school where you will be nigh comfortable and so that you can thrive. Are yous interested in pursuing a performing arts degree in a specific region? Cheque out our lists of performing arts colleges in New York and performing arts colleges in California. Most of the schools above require Human activity or Saturday scores with your application. Get help studying for these tests with our ultimate SAT/Human action report guides. Taking the ACT or SAT really soon? And so take a look at our guide to cramming for the Saturday or our guide to cramming for the Deed. Want to build the best possible college application? We tin can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-form admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. We know what kinds of students colleges desire to acknowledge. Nosotros want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more near PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in.
How Is "Performing Arts College" Defined for This List?
How Did I Decide on These Top Performing Arts Colleges?
All-time Performing Arts Colleges: Tier 1
The Juilliard School—Drama and Trip the light fantastic toe
NYU Tisch School of the Arts—Drama and Trip the light fantastic toe
Carnegie Mellon University—Drama
Theatre school has fun costumes! Boston Solarium—Dance
Yale University—Drama (MFA)
Northwestern University—Drama
Express yourself. Best Performing Arts Colleges: Tier 2
UNC School of the Arts—Drama and Dance
California Institute of the Arts (CalArts)—Drama and Dance
Rutgers University—Drama and Dance
Fordham University—Trip the light fantastic toe
Syracuse Academy—Drama
University of Southern California—Drama
Oklahoma City University—Trip the light fantastic toe
Which of the Top Performing Arts Colleges Is Best for You?
What Do You lot Want to Specialize In?
What Opportunities Are There Exterior the Classroom?
What'due south the Schoolhouse Like?
What'southward Adjacent?
Most the Writer
As an Saturday/ACT tutor, Dora has guided many students to exam prep success. She loves watching students succeed and is committed to helping you lot get there. Dora received a total-tuition merit based scholarship to University of Southern California. She graduated magna cum laude and scored in the 99th percentile on the Human action. She is also passionate most acting, writing, and photography.
Source: https://blog.prepscholar.com/best-performing-arts-colleges
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