Undergraduate Program
Theater Arts

We offer a unique, hands-on experience you won't find anywhere else in the region:

• Top-Tier Accreditation: We are the only public university in Oregon accredited by the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST).
• The Portland Advantage: Located in the heart of downtown, offering affordable city living and direct connections to the Pacific Northwest’s vibrant cultural hub.
• Working Professional Faculty: Our instructors are active industry professionals who bring real-world connections, mentorship, and career support directly into the classroom.

What You Will Learn

Our 68-credit Theater Arts major (B.A./B.S.) teaches you both the "how" and the "why" of theater, allowing you to master practical tools while thinking critically. You will build a professional foundation through a 38-credit core curriculum covering stagecraft, acting, script analysis, design, and directing.

Any student can earn credit working on our three mainstage productions each year, taking on roles onstage, backstage, or front-of-house. Beyond the core, you customize your degree with 20 elective credits and 8 specialized study credits in areas like:

• Performance & Directing: Master acting and onstage leadership.
• Design & Production: Gain hands-on experience in stagecraft, lighting, and costume construction.
• Theater History & Society: Explore the evolution of dramatic art and diverse perspectives.
• Professional Workshops: Earn credit through practical management, publicity, or technical production.

Specialized Focus Areas

• Acting: Taught by working professionals, our acting courses pair a liberal arts foundation with intensive training in techniques like Stanislavsky, Meisner, and Fitzmaurice voicework. You can explore classes in movement, devising, and acting for the camera, or audition for our year-long Advanced Acting sequence for professional-level classical and contemporary training.
• Design and Production: Dive deep into the collaborative art of technical production. You will gain hands-on experience unleashing your imagination to see how scenery, costumes, sound, and stage lighting design shape the mood and visual storytelling of a live production.
• Impro Ensemble: Sharpening your rapid-fire thinking and building a strong collaborative community, the PSU Impro Ensemble performs regularly at events and festivals in the Portland area. Any student with improv experience may audition.

A Welcoming, Hands-On Community

If you want to redefine how stories are told, PSU is your creative home. We proudly support a highly diverse student body—from traditional students to returning artists building a toolkit for their own theater companies. No matter your background, you will find a safe space to boldly express yourself.

You won't just sit in a classroom; you will be part of the action. We regularly host major industry events on campus, giving you access to top-tier networking:

• Expert-Led Workshops: Specialized training in high-demand skills like Fight Choreography, Stage Makeup, Puppetry, and Intimacy Direction.
• Festivals & Events: We proudly host the Global Improvisation Initiative, the Fertile Ground Festival of New Works, and the Theatre 33 New Play Festival.