The Central College theatre program is designed to make available a broad and comprehensive exposure to the theatre arts. Intellectual and artistic developments are carefully balanced within a production-oriented atmosphere. A variety of courses are offered including acting, directing, history, literature, Arts Management, stagecraft, design and technical production. Independent study is encouraged and students have the opportunity to earn credits while working on their craft under close mentorship by faculty and staff.
The Fringe Festival brought together students in the performing arts to showcase their talents all over campus for a week. The result was zombie plays, lip sync acts and boat races on the Pond.
In February, a cast of 13 Central singers performed two showings of “Dido and Aeneas,” an opera based loosely on Virgil’s “Aeneid.”
Allison Miller Schwanebeck ’06, director of exhibits at the Science Center of Iowa, draws on her experience as a theatre and art major as she builds dinosaurs, brings in mummies and explains the human exploration of Mars.
While playing the divided members of the Miller family in “Ah, Wilderness!,” the students of Theatre Central became a close family backstage.
A music major reflects on the rehearsals for “Dido and Æneas,” the first opera performed at Central College in 16 years.
Learn more about internships at Central.
Freshman year
Sophomore year
Junior year
Senior year
Get more details from the course catalog! (Note: this is a PDF file)
The Kruidenier Center houses two flexible space theatres with up-to-date computer-controlled lighting and sound systems. The main stage theatre seats approximately 200 audience members and has a full rigging system. The Mr. B studio theatre seats 50 and is a fully capable experimental stage utilized for both productions and acting classes. Large, well-equipped costume and scene shops, dressing rooms, a green room and a makeup alley complete the support facilities.
The flexible facilities permit a wide variety of staging opportunities and creates a wonderful teaching space, preparing both actors and technicians for the many ways they may encounter theatre later in their careers.
The main classroom is media-savvy, with a projection system and computers for research and computer-assisted drafting for design classes. A smaller seminar room provides a cozy space for discussion classes.
Central’s theatre department maintains its own website with even more information about majoring in theatre.
No matter what your interests are, Central has a student group or organization that you’ll want to join including:
Students are encouraged to study abroad with one of Central’s eight international programs to enhance their development as global citizens, or with Central’s Chicago program and the Washington, D.C., program. Learn more about Central’s study abroad programs.
Central offers theatre scholarships of up to $2,000 for all students (majors and non-majors) planning to continue involvement in theatre at the college level. Click here for more information!
Oct. 3-6, 2012 7:30 PM
Dead Man’s Curve by Robert Leonard
Adapted for the stage by Ann Wilkinson
Adapted from “Yellow Cab”, Robert Leonard’s poetic account of his after-dark journeys as a cab driver. The vignettes in Dead Man’s Curve offer a portrait of the city, the people and the dreams he encountered as he drove the streets of Albuquerque at night. Explicit language and adult topics.
Kruidenier Theatre Bldg.
Tickets: $5 General Admission; $3 Students and Senior Citizens; FREE with a Central ID
Theatre Central's production of Dead Man's Curve can also be seen at the Des Moines Social Club, Oct. 12-13. Ticket prices are $10 general admission or $7 for students and senior citizens. Free with Central ID will not be honored in Des Moines.
Nov. 14-17 7:30 PM
Servant of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni
Mistaken identities, reunited lovers, and general hilarity! When a man thought dead shows up at the house of his former fiancée, all sorts of madcap mayhem breaks loose! Filled with disguises, plot twists and Marx brothers-style slapstick, Servant of Two Masters is a laugh-out-loud comedy for all ages starring the beloved characters of commedia dell’arte.
Pella Opera House
Tickets: be $8 General Admission, $5 Students and Senior Citizens, FREE with a Central ID
Feb. 27-Mar. 2 7:30 PM
Ah, Wilderness! By Eugene O’Neill
Return to an idyllic age of Americana in Eugene O’Neill’s unabashedly romantic and sweetly funny story of family life in a simpler time. As the Miller clan plans their traditional Fourth of July festivities, their dreamy-eyed middle child Richard is coming of age and wrestling with cultural conventions, political uncertainty, the power of literature, and the exquisite pain of young love.
Kruidenier Theatre Bldg.
Tickets: $5 General Admission; $3 Students and Senior Citizens; FREE with a Central ID
Wilderness!, his only comedy, shows us the family he wished he’d had.
April 24-28
The Fringe Festival
Connecting adventurous artists with adventurous audiences in a four-day arts extravaganza, The Fringe Festival is a showcase for all of the performing and visual arts.
Multiple locations on the Central College Campus.
Tickets:TBA. Stay tuned for updates!
