Welcome to Professional Theatre Training
We prepare students intending to transfer, upon graduation, to Liberal Arts B.A. or B.S. Theatre degree programs; & possess articulation transfer agreements with select B.F.A. programs.
We produce a fully-staged work of Theatre each semester, providing students the ability to work as artists in a professional setting.
Explore Our Theatre Productions
Queensborough is the only college in New York State to offer a National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST) accredited A.S. degree in Theatre.
Our Mission
The student artist of the 21st century needs to be provided with exceptional, professional, & comprehensive training comprised of both theoretical & practical education that aims to inspire a fierce curiosity about the world & empowers the artist to engage in a productive & creative dialogue with society. We believe that access to excellence is a fundamental right for all, regardless of socio-economic status, & that a diverse eco-system of individuals across a broad spectrum of culture, ethnicity, experience & ability creates the ideal learning community.
At QCC, we seek to foster & advance the development of the theatre through the initiation of new audiences & the training of its developing artists, both of whose intellect, vision, & imagination will shape it. Ours is a theatre which seeks to entertain & educate; that embraces its ancient origins, celebrates its historical evolution, & seeks to perfect contemporary practice; a theatre that sits at the center of its society, contributes to the health of the community, & serves both artist & audience.
Our Vision
The theatre program at QCC is meant to be a beginning of a lifetime of engagement with the theatre in that it serves as the foundation for a more advanced degree within the theatre; a career in the theatre; the study of varying disciplines such as law, education, & the sciences; & a more informed & appreciative audience for the theatre.
In the study of theatre, we advance student skills in critical analysis, expression in written, oral, & physical communication, perception, research, & quantitative reasoning in stagecraft through the use of current pedagogy including: cornerstone courses, learning communities, WI courses, project based learning & service learning. Students who elect Theatre as a concentration engage in holistic learning that empowers students to integrate knowledge & training as may only be achieved in a liberal arts environment through interdisciplinary study.
Our Program Outcomes
Upon completion of our degree program, graduates will be prepared to:
I. Engage in the creation & execution of works of Theatre.
II. Analyze plays perceptively.
III. Identify a broad selection of Theatre repertory.
IV. Develop & defend informed responses to Theatre.
Concentrations: Acting or Technical Theatre
Students choose a concentration, but all students are offered training & experience onstage, backstage, & front-of-house.
Acting Concentration Outcomes
Upon completion of the concentration, graduates will be prepared to:
Act (i.e., to project one’s self believably in word & action into imaginary circumstances, evoked through improvisation or text).
Employ the body & voice as an instrument for communication.
Practice a technique for analyzing the tasks required in the performance of dramatic material.
Technical Theatre Concentration Outcomes
Upon completion of the concentration, graduates will be prepared to:
Employ stagecraft knowledge, skills, & tools.
Articulate the basic elements & interrelated processes of Theatrical production.
Demonstrate knowledge of best practices & industry standards as they relate to Theatrical production.
State-of-the-Art Theaters & Facilities
Humanities Theater: 797 seat, newly renovated, grand proscenium theater.
Shadowbox Theater: 99 seat, intimate studio theater with flexible seating.
Digital Media Design Center: a digital audio-visual design lab provides computers & 3-dimensional modeling software to enhance theatrical scenic design & lighting plots. Video recording & editing for projections are available on both Mac & PC platforms.
Costume Shop
Scene Shop
Cutting Edge Technology & Software
Intelligent Lighting System
Intelligent Moving Lights you’ll learn to set up & program. We have 6 of these, look up when you are at a Broadway show, they use these too.
LED Lighting
You’ll have access to work with 48 of these.
Digital Sound Board
The Behringer X32 Digital Mixer.
Q-Lab Playback Software
The Industry Standard.
Vectorworks Drafting Software
Learn to draft plans on the computer for scenic & lighting design.
Shopbot Robot Scenery Builder
Be among the first in the business to train on this technology.
Who You Study with Matters
Our faculty & staff are working professionals possessing union affiliation & relationships with professional theatre organizations.
Actors Equity Association (AEA)
Stage Directors & Choreographers Society (SDC)
Dramatist Guild (DG)
New Dramatists
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local One Stagehands (IATSE)
The Public Theatre
INTAR
Queens Theatre
CultureHub
La MaMa
Your Theatre Faculty Mentor
Every theatre major receives mentorship, from their first semester to their last, by a theatre faculty member dedicated to assist with:
An appropriate academic plan
Progressive artistic development
Timely graduation
Successful transfer
Your First Year
To support correct placement & timely graduation, for the first two semesters (30 credits), theatre majors are assigned a schedule of courses with a cohort of their peers. The schedule is designed to introduce students to the study of Theatre in higher education & includes foundational courses required for the Liberal Arts General Education component of the A.S. Degree.
Your 1st Semester, 15 credits:
Acting I
Stagecraft I
Speech Communication
English Composition I
Mathematics in Contemporary Society
Your 2nd Semester, 15 credits:
Acting II or Stagecraft II
Voice & Speech for the Actor
Introduction to Theatre
English Composition II
Health Behavior & Society
Yoga
Concentrations (Acting or Technical Theatre): After the first semester, students choose a concentration in either Acting or Technical Theatre & complete TH-221 Acting II or TH-231 Stagecraft II. Students choose a concentration, but all students are offered training & experience onstage, backstage, & front-of-house.
In Your Second Year: students, in consultation with their theatre faculty mentor, select remaining appropriate Liberal Arts General Education courses & additional elective credits in the major to complement their concentration.
Course Offerings
Where You Study Matters
Intimate class sizes offering personable, individualized attention. Courses taught by professors, not teaching assistants. Professors who prioritize excellence in teaching & mentorship. Free access to support services:
Academic Computing Center
Career Services
Center for Tutoring & Academic Support (CTAS)
Counseling Center
Fitness & Recreation Center
Kurt R. Schmeller Library
Mathematics Learning Center
Modern Languages & Cultures Lab
Transfer Resource Center
Queensborough has more than 375 full-time faculty members with 70% having earned a doctoral or terminal degree, 3x the national average.
Community
Opportunities & Experiences
Free tickets to Broadway & Off-Broadway productions * Professional development workshops with guest artists * Departmental Scholarships & Awards * Annual Student Meet & Greet * Annual End of the Year Student Soiree * 50+ Student Clubs
“I felt safe in the Department and discovered talent I never thought I had."
Jessica Kreisler, Almuna
Transfer: Adelphi University, B.F.A., Acting
Current Adjunct Faculty Member
Affordable Arts Education
For a fraction of the cost, you can complete the first 2 years (60 credits) of a traditional 4-year (120 credits) college program.
90% of students graduate without Federal student loan debt.
66% of full-time students attend Queensborough tuition free.
30%+ savings on tuition costs compared to 4-year instate private & public colleges.
Nassau County residents may be eligible for NYC tuition rates. You don’t have to live in New York City to get the NYC tuition rate.
“The money I saved going to Queensborough allowed me to pursue my dreams after I graduated from my four-year college. Many of my colleagues had so much student debt they couldn’t take advantage of the opportunities needed to advance in the profession.”
Khari Constantine, Alumnus, Professional Producer
Transfer: SUNY Oswego Tranfer, B.A., Theatre, Acting, and Directing Track
Transfer & Life After Queensborough
Students graduating with an Associate’s degree are extremely attractive to 4-year colleges. Colleges that may have been out-of-reach financially or academically after high school, now seek to fill vacated seats in the junior year, with many offering substantial scholarships. Before you transfer, graduate. Completing your Associate Degree first, ensures your courses & credits have lifetime value. If you transfer before you graduate, your community college credits will be evaluated course by course reducing the chances that your courses & credits will transfer.
Articulation Agreements: We have agreements that allow graduates of Queensborough to complete a bachelor’s degree in an efficient manner after transfer, with the following:
Adelphi University
A.S. Theatre (Concentration: Acting) to B.F.A. Theatre Arts (Acting)
The City College of New York (CUNY)
A.S. Theatre to B.A. Theatre
Lehman College (CUNY)
A.S. Theatre to B.A. Theatre
A.S. Theatre to B.F.A. Multimedia Performing Arts
Our graduating students have transfered to:
CUNY (Hunter, City College, Queens College, Lehman College, Brooklyn College, York College)
SUNY (Binghamton, New Paltz, Oneonta, Oswego, Purchase)
Private (Adelphi, Marymount Manhattan)
Out-of-State (Howard University, Montclair State University)
Students work with their faculty mentor, college adviser, & the Transfer Resource Center to chart an appropriate transfer plan.
