For best results, print using Chrome.
 Jump to Transfer Major Map
 Jump to recommended courses
Major map compass icon
2025-2026

Theatre, Bachelor of Arts (NEXT STEP Pathway)

VCU

Community college:
Associate of Fine Arts: Theatre (Brightpoint Community College)
Brightpoint Community College
Associate degree

Associate of Fine Arts: Theatre

Completing the associate degree will waive VCU's general education requirements.

Program description

The department offers two degree options: a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts. The B.A. is designed for students who want a program with a strong emphasis in theatre combined with a strong liberal arts component and a minor (or other course of directed study). The B.F.A. is designed to educate and train students as theatre professionals in performance, musical theatre performance, costume design/technical production, lighting design/technical, production, scenic design/technical production, or stage management. 


All first-year and transfer students with an interest in the B.F.A. track are initially classified as Theatre Foundation students in one of six concentrations. After completing core theatre courses in an area of emphasis, students go through an assessment process. Upon completing a successful assessment, students will be admitted into the BFA program, typically after the second year of study.

Career opportunities

Theatre VCU prepares students for careers in professional and academic theatre. With 25 faculty and staff and a combined graduate and undergraduate student population averaging 280, Theatre VCU is one of the largest theatre training programs in the southeastern United States. Hundreds of alumni scattered across the United States and Canada now successfully practice what they began as students at VCU. Alumni are acting and working in impressive positions on Broadway, in major films and television, and at top regional theatres.


The faculty of Theatre VCU are first and foremost educators who provide first-rate mentoring and instruction. They also serve as role models, practicing their craft as artists locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally. They work on the stage, TV and in films, author books in their disciplines, and hold elected offices in some of the nation’s most prestigious organizations. Collectively, the faculty and staff pride themselves on their ability to help bridge the gap between life as a student and life as a professional beyond VCU.


VCUarts celebrates the accomplishments of theatre alumni online and welcomes your viewership.

Bachelor-level job titles
  • Actor
  • Art Director
  • Costume Designer
  • Director
  • Flight Director
  • Producer
  • Stage Manager
  • Vocal Coach
  • Voice Over Artist
  • Wardrobe Supervisor
Graduate and professional level job titles
  • Professional Designer
  • Scene/Costume Shop Manager
  • Theatre Administrator
  • High School/College Teacher
Contact information

 

VCU Transfer Center

Telephone: (804) 827-1349

Email: transferinfo@vcu.edu

Transfer Advising Request

VCCS Transfer Planning Checklist


Office of Admissions

Telephone: (804) 828-1222 or (800) 841-3638

Email: ugrad@vcu.edu
Apply Here.

Guaranteed transfer admission requirements

Completion of associate degree
Minimum GPA of 2.5
All courses must be completed with a grade of "C" or better

Successful outcome on audition with VCU theatre faculty

Degree requirements in Bulletin
Plan of study in Bulletin
Requirements
Highest level of math required
  • Quantitative Foundations requirement only
Science required
  • Natural Sciences requirement only
Foreign language requirements
  • No
Additional tuition/fees
  • Yes
GPA requirements (to progress/graduate in the major)
VCU Major Maps

View VCU Major Map for Theatre with concentration in Costume Design/Technical Production, Lighting Design/Technical Production, Performance, Performance/Musical Theatre, Scene Design/Technical Production, Stage Management/Technical Production

Transfer major map
Visit majormaps.vcu.edu for the online version with links.
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Major map compass icon
2025-2026

Theatre, Bachelor of Arts (NEXT STEP Pathway)

Brightpoint Community College (Associate of Fine Arts: Theatre)

MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
Explore Year 1
  • Register for SDV course.
  • Schedule an advising appointment with your Brightpoint advisor.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges in your classes and use tutoring to get ahead.
  • Cultivate relationships with your professors.
  • Explore financial aid resources and submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Attend cultural events at community college and VCU to celebrate diversity.
  • Attend VCU’s annual Intercultural Festival or another community intercultural event.
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills (such as money management, self-care, time management, and personal responsibility).
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.
Experience Year 2
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or department-related events.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Become familiar with OMSA at VCU.
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.

Explore
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
  • Register for SDV course.
  • Schedule an advising appointment with your Brightpoint advisor.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges in your classes and use tutoring to get ahead.
  • Cultivate relationships with your professors.
  • Explore financial aid resources and submit the FAFSA on time.
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Attend cultural events at community college and VCU to celebrate diversity.
  • Attend VCU’s annual Intercultural Festival or another community intercultural event.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills (such as money management, self-care, time management, and personal responsibility).
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.

Experience
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or department-related events.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Become familiar with OMSA at VCU.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
Recommended courses
Major map compass icon
2025-2026

Theatre, Bachelor of Arts (NEXT STEP Pathway)

Brightpoint Community College (Associate of Fine Arts: Theatre)

Brightpoint Community College courses
Course Title Equivalent course Credits Requirements
SDV 100 College Success Skills UNIV 101 1 Elective
ENG 111 College Composition I UNIV 111 3 General education
MTH 154 Quantitative Reasoning (or MTH 161 or MTH 263) MATH 131 3 General education
CST 131 Acting I THEA 213 3 Major
CST 111 Voice and Diction I THEA 201 3 Major
CST 145 Stagecraft THEA 112 3 Major
ENG 112 College Composition II UNIV 200 3 General education
CST 132 Acting II THEA 214 3 Major
CST 136 Theatre/Musical Theatre Workshop (1 credit) - can be repeated three times for a total of 3 credits THEA 291 3 Major
CST 210 Theatre Aesthetics THEA 211 3 Major
CST 237 Movement I THEA 203 3 Major
Science Laboratory science (select 1): BIO 101, BIO 106, CHM 101, ENV 121, PHY 100 VCU equivalent 4 General education
CST 160 Improvisation THEA 110 3 Major
CST 211 Acting III THEA 2XX 3 Elective
Literature 200-level ENG literature course (select 1): ENG 225, 245, 246, 255, 258, 275 ENGL 3 General education
CST 147 Costume Construction THEA 104 3 Major
CST 112 Voice and Diction II THEA 202 3 Major
CST 238 Movement II THEA 204 3 Major
Social science Select 1: HIS 111, HIS 112, HIS 121, HIS 122, PSY 200, SOC 200 VCU equivalent 3 General education
CST 149 Introduction to Theatrical Makeup THEA 227 3 Major
CST 276 Portfolio and Career Preparation THEA 1XX 1 Elective
Brightpoint credits transferred to VCU 60 to 62
VCU courses
Course Title Credits Requirements
Foreign language through the 102 level or electives (This requirement can be fulfilled by means of completion of the 102-level of a language or waived if the student completed up through the third level of a foreign language in high school. Additionally, language waiver and placement testing options are available for native or heritage speakers of a non-english language.) 6 General education
THEA 100 Technical Production 1 Major
THEA 102 Introduction to Technical Theatre 3 Major
THEA 111 Fundamentals of Performance 3 Major
THEA 351 Rehearsal and Performance 3 Major
THEA 307 History of the Theatre 3 Major
THEA 308 History of the Theatre 3 Major
THEA 385 Diverse Voices 3 Major
THEA 495 Senior Project Portfolio Review 1 Major
THEA Upper-level Theatre electives (300-400 level) 6 Major
Upper-level electives (200- or 400-level): consider a minor or second major Note: Students must complete a minimum of 45 upper-level credits to graduate from VCU. 26 to 28 Elective
Credits completed at VCU 58 to 60
Bachelor's degree total 120