The design program at the Theatre and Dance Department of UC San Diego aims to train students in the best professional practices of regional and commercial theatre. The design faculty are award-winning working professionals also committed to teaching. The design training program stresses an interaction with the works of many visual artists from a wide range of disciplines. We teach students traditional methods, but also encourage spontaneity, free of preconceptions. We train students to create designs that "comment" on the play and the text, not merely "illustrate" it. Students' talent and design work are showcased at a number of venues that have directly resulted in many national grants, awards, and other work opportunities for our alumni.


Classes

All students take a core curriculum of first-year Design Studio classes in Scenery, Costume, Lighting, and Sound (taken together with directors), and a Design Seminar where all three years come together in a forum to share production experiences, portfolios, and professional career techniques and skills. This is followed in subsequent years by more specialized Advanced Design classes which combine with production work in the student's own area of concentration. We are also able to offer a double-emphasis study (such as scenery and costume design combined) to appropriate students. Classes in other areas (drafting, text analysis) are also normally offered. In addition, students are encouraged to take advantage of the rich offerings available in the visual arts to supplement their design coursework.


Productions

We offer a generous number of fully executed production opportunities, and generally all UCSD Theatre and Dance productions are designed by students. Designers collaborate with student, faculty, and internationally prominent guest directors. Students are fully supported by the same professional workshop staff as the La Jolla Playhouse, and are not expected to build or run their own productions.

Externship

USCD and the Tony Award winning La Jolla Playhouse share the same three-theatre complex. Student designers participate in a residency program at the Playhouse, and normally work as assistants to visiting professional designers. However, there are also some opportunities for talented students to be hired as principal designers by the Playhouse during their season. In recent years, design students have worked with John Arnone, Anne Bogart, Howell Binkley, Doug Stein, Susan Hilferty, Peter Maradudin, Susan Denison-Geller, Robert Falls, Robert Woodruff, Des McAnuff, James Ingalls, Michael Greif, George Tsypin, Robert Brill, Mark Lamos, Mark Wendland, Allison Reeds, Ken Posner, Dennis Parichy, Alan Moyer, and Peter Sellars.


Research and Other Opportunities

Students may also be offered opportunities to travel with faculty as assistants on professional assignments to major regional theatres, Broadway, England, or Europe. Modest funds are sometimes available for student research and travel to see productions, attend conferences and workshops. Recently students have traveled to London, New York, Paris, the Edinburgh International and Fringe Festivals, and the Prague Quadrennial Festival.


Faculty

Our visiting faculty have included: John Arnone, Ralph Funicello, Susan Hilferty, James Ingalls, Andrei Serban, Robert Woodruff, and Tina Haatainen. To see a list of our current faculty, with photos and bios, please visit our faculty page.


Admissions and Selection Process

Applicants must have or be about to receive a Bachelor's Degree (not necessarily in theatre) prior to applying for graduate admission. A 3.0 or better grade point average in the last two years of undergraduate or post-baccalaureate work is required. The GRE is no longer required for Design applicants. Please note that due to the nature of our program, students may enter only in the fall quarter, and we DO NOT accept transfer credits from other programs. All design applicants are urged to apply early.

DESIGN PORTFOLIO

Design applicants must submit a small representative portfolio of sketches, drawings, photographs, color reproductions, CDs, DATs, CD ROMS, and / or slides (maximum of 24 slides) with your application.

Your design portfolio is the most important part of your application to the Design program. It is a measure of your ability to communicate design ideas through visual and aural material, to work with space, color, sound, and form, and the use of research materials. It should document the growth of your work over time, and should include your own work from the last few years. Please do not include examples of work you assisted on, UNLESS the work shown is actually your own.

We would like to see rough sketches, research, work-in-progress, and finished work. This helps us assess your design process. Scenic designs should include model photos. For fully executed scenic designs please include ground plans and production photos/slides. Costume design sketches should be swatched where possible, and include production photos/slides for fully realized shows. Light Plots, either hand drawn or computer generated, should include paperwork and production photos/slides where available. Sound design system configurations, either hand drawn or computer generated, should include equipment list, sound plots, and clearly marked cue sheets. Sound and music samples can be submitted in CD, DAT, ADAT, score, or computer readable multi-channel audio file formats. Any Rendering or Drawing class example sketches should also be included, as well as photos/slides or examples of any artwork, in any medium, that expresses your individual artistic aesthetic.

INTERVIEWS

Appointments are available in February and March for applicants to see the school and to show their full portfolio in person at an interview at UCSD. Other locations may be offered as situations allow, but cannot be guaranteed. Please contact the UCSD Department of Theatre & Dance for more up-to-date information.

All design students are encouraged to apply early. Once your application materials have been received and reviewed, you will be contacted by email or phone to set up an interview appointment with the appropriate member of the design faculty. If you have any other questions, please contact Lee Montaño, Graduate Advisor at the Department of Theatre & Dance, telephone 858-534-1046 or online at lmontano@ucsd.edu.

 

Now Available!!! You can now apply to our Design program online by clicking this button! Be sure you know what your first and second choices for audition dates are before you continue. If you have questions, you can contact our Graduate Adviser, Lee Montaño.