curriculum | handbook (pdf) | graduation exam

TheaterCNU READING LIST and GRADUATION EXAM
Each student must pass the theater cnu graduation examination prior to graduation. The reading list, representative of dramatic literature with additional titles designated for each track, serves as the basic curriculum for the pass/fail exit exam. The written Graduation Exam (100 questions-multiple choice, true/false, and short answer) is offered each spring on the first Saturday of the semester. Students may sit for this exam in their sophomore year, re-taking the exam each year until successfully scoring 85% or better. Degrees will not be conferred without successfully passing the graduation exam.

Successful completion of the theater arts program requires each student to pass practical and written examinations prior to graduation.  The theater arts reading list includes important dramatic literature that provide necessary background for the aspiring artist or educator.  This list in addition to the reading required for specific concentrations, serves as he basic curriculum for the written portion of the exam. 

See this page for detailed descriptions and specific requirements for each concentration.

CORE CURRICULUM READING LIST (All Majors/All Tracks)
Additional Reading List (pdf)
Full Reading List (pdf)

• David Ball, Backwards and Forwards
• Aeschylus, Agamemnon
• Sophokles, Antigone
• Euripides, Medea
• Hrosvitha, Dulcities
•  Shakespeare, Richard III, Hamlet, The Tempest, Twelfth Night
• A. Behn, The Rover
• Sheridan, The Rivals
• Corneille, The Cid
• Moliere, Tartuffe
• Henrik Ibsen, A Doll House
• Bertolt Brecht, Galileo
• Anton Chekov, The Seagull
• Pirandello, Six Characters in Search of an Author
• Tennessee Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire
• Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman
• Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot
• David Mamet, Oleanna
• Parks, Topdog/Underdog
• August Wilson, Fences
• Fugard, Master Harold and the Boys
• Tony Kushner, Angels in America (Parts I & II)
• Bernstein, Sondheim, Robbins, West Side Story
• Rodgers & Hammerstein, Oklahoma!
• Kander & Ebb, Cabaret

ACTING READING LIST

• Shurtleff, Audition
• Bendetti, The Actor at Work
• Konstantin Stanislavski, An Actor Prepares
• David Ball, An Actor's Checklist
• Uta Hagan, Respect for Acting

MUSICAL THEATER/DANCE READING LIST

• Konstantin Stanislavski, An Actor Prepares
• Foster Hirsch, Harold Prince and the American Musical Theater

DESIGN / TECHNICAL THEATER READING LIST

• J.M. Gillette, Theatrical Design & Construction
  

DIRECTING / DRAMATIC LITERATURE READING LIST

• David Ball, Backwards and Forwards: A Technical Manual
• William Ball, Sense of Direction

ARTS ADMINISTRATION READING LIST

• Conners, The Nonprofit Handbook
• Langley, S. Theatre Management and Production in America

Additional Reading List (pdf)
Full Reading List (pdf)

curriculum | handbook (pdf) | exit exam