Performance & Directing
Coursework in acting and directing prepares students for careers as performers, directors, and theatre artists.
Theatre at Batten University covers every facet of the craft — on stage, backstage, and in the classroom. Students engage with acting, technical production, directing, and dramaturgy alongside theatre history and dramatic literature, building both practical skill and critical perspective.
The major is built around ten courses spanning foundational performance and production training, theatre history, and upper-level electives that let students deepen their skills in a chosen specialty — acting, directing, design, or arts management. Students interested in teaching can pursue the Teacher Certification in Theatre Arts Education (PreK-12) track, which adds Education Department coursework and pre-service teaching placements.
Study abroad opportunities, both short-term travel courses and full-semester programs, extend the curriculum beyond campus. Theatre graduates go on to careers across a wide range of fields, applying the collaboration, communication, and creative problem-solving skills the major builds.
Requirements
Foundational Course
One of: TH 100 Theatre: A Hands-On Introduction · TH 101 Rehearsal & Performance (2 semester hours, must be taken twice)
4 hrs
TH 210
Acting I
4 hrs
TH 220
Technical Theatre
4 hrs
ENG 288
Poetry and Drama
4 hrs
TH 304
Exploring Theatre History (must be taken twice, with a different topic each time)
8 hrs
Theatre Electives
Two additional theatre courses, one of which must be at the 300/400 level
8 hrs
Advanced Elective
One of: TH 410 Contemporary Voices in Theatre · TH 412 Directing
4 hrs
Capstone
One of: TH 424 Senior Theatre Practicum · TH 485 Theatre Internship · TH 499 Advanced Theatre Research
4 hrs
Total Hours Required
40
Students must also complete the Batten University Professional Education Program to receive a teacher certification in the State of Virginia, including pre-service placement in Elementary, Middle, and Secondary Schools. Pre-service placement and Professional Education coursework are provided through the Education Program.
TH 100
Theatre: A Hands-On Introduction
4 hrs
TH 210
Acting I
4 hrs
TH 220
Technical Theatre
4 hrs
ENG 288
Poetry and Drama
4 hrs
Arts Elective
One additional course in ART, APMU, or MUS
4 hrs
TH 304
Exploring Theatre History (must be taken twice, with a different topic each time)
8 hrs
TH 310
Acting II
4 hrs
TH 412
Directing
4 hrs
TH 424
Senior Theatre Practicum (must be fulfilled with a Directing Project)
4 hrs
Total Hours Required
40
100/200-level Courses
Two Theatre courses at the 100/200 level (only 4 credits of TH 101 can count toward this requirement)
8 hrs
TH 304
Exploring Theatre History
4 hrs
300/400-level Courses
Two Theatre courses at the 300/400 level
8 hrs
Total Hours Required
20
Career Outcomes
Production & Design
The Technical Theatre sequence and production practicum prepare students for careers in stage management, lighting, set, and costume design.
Theatre Education
The Teacher Certification track prepares students to teach theatre arts at the PreK-12 level in Virginia public schools.
Beyond the Stage
Skills in collaboration, communication, and creative problem-solving built through the major translate broadly across business, education, and other fields.
Faculty
Travis Malone
Batten Professor of Theatre,Anne B. Shumadine Dean, Batten Honors College
757-455-3256
204 Clarke Hall
Sally Shedd
Batten Professor of Theatre, Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies,Dean, Susan S. Goode School of Arts and Humanities
757-455-3283
145 Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center
Trey DelPo
Director of the Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center,Instructor of Theatre
757-233-8850
129 Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center
Theatre at Batten University covers every facet of the craft — on stage, backstage, and in the classroom. Students engage with acting, technical production, directing, and dramaturgy alongside theatre history and dramatic literature, building both practical skill and critical perspective.
The major is built around ten courses spanning foundational performance and production training, theatre history, and upper-level electives that let students deepen their skills in a chosen specialty — acting, directing, design, or arts management. Students interested in teaching can pursue the Teacher Certification in Theatre Arts Education (PreK-12) track, which adds Education Department coursework and pre-service teaching placements.
Study abroad opportunities, both short-term travel courses and full-semester programs, extend the curriculum beyond campus. Theatre graduates go on to careers across a wide range of fields, applying the collaboration, communication, and creative problem-solving skills the major builds.
Requirements
Foundational Course
One of: TH 100 Theatre: A Hands-On Introduction · TH 101 Rehearsal & Performance (2 semester hours, must be taken twice)
4 hrs
TH 210
Acting I
4 hrs
TH 220
Technical Theatre
4 hrs
ENG 288
Poetry and Drama
4 hrs
TH 304
Exploring Theatre History (must be taken twice, with a different topic each time)
8 hrs
Theatre Electives
Two additional theatre courses, one of which must be at the 300/400 level
8 hrs
Advanced Elective
One of: TH 410 Contemporary Voices in Theatre · TH 412 Directing
4 hrs
Capstone
One of: TH 424 Senior Theatre Practicum · TH 485 Theatre Internship · TH 499 Advanced Theatre Research
4 hrs
Total Hours Required
40
Students must also complete the Batten University Professional Education Program to receive a teacher certification in the State of Virginia, including pre-service placement in Elementary, Middle, and Secondary Schools. Pre-service placement and Professional Education coursework are provided through the Education Program.
TH 100
Theatre: A Hands-On Introduction
4 hrs
TH 210
Acting I
4 hrs
TH 220
Technical Theatre
4 hrs
ENG 288
Poetry and Drama
4 hrs
Arts Elective
One additional course in ART, APMU, or MUS
4 hrs
TH 304
Exploring Theatre History (must be taken twice, with a different topic each time)
8 hrs
TH 310
Acting II
4 hrs
TH 412
Directing
4 hrs
TH 424
Senior Theatre Practicum (must be fulfilled with a Directing Project)
4 hrs
Total Hours Required
40
100/200-level Courses
Two Theatre courses at the 100/200 level (only 4 credits of TH 101 can count toward this requirement)
8 hrs
TH 304
Exploring Theatre History
4 hrs
300/400-level Courses
Two Theatre courses at the 300/400 level
8 hrs
Total Hours Required
20
Career Outcomes
Performance & Directing
Coursework in acting and directing prepares students for careers as performers, directors, and theatre artists.
Production & Design
The Technical Theatre sequence and production practicum prepare students for careers in stage management, lighting, set, and costume design.
Theatre Education
The Teacher Certification track prepares students to teach theatre arts at the PreK-12 level in Virginia public schools.
Beyond the Stage
Skills in collaboration, communication, and creative problem-solving built through the major translate broadly across business, education, and other fields.
Faculty
Travis Malone
Batten Professor of Theatre,Anne B. Shumadine Dean, Batten Honors College
757-455-3256
204 Clarke Hall
Sally Shedd
Batten Professor of Theatre, Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies,Dean, Susan S. Goode School of Arts and Humanities
757-455-3283
145 Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center
Trey DelPo
Director of the Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center,Instructor of Theatre
757-233-8850
129 Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center