Graduate Handbook

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Playwriting: Program Requirements and Procedures

The MFA Program in Playwriting requires a minimum of sixty semester hours of coursework in three areas: Playwrights Workshop, Guest Seminar/ Special Topics in Playwriting, MFA core curriculum. The program also requires that the student regularly generate new writing for the stage of a quality that merits its production in such department venues as the New Play Festival and the Gallery Series. In these contexts, as well as in the core curriculum and the Playwrights Workshop, the student is expected to demonstrate ongoing growth as a collaborative theatre artist committed to the making of new work for the theatre.

In 49:269: Playwrights Workshop, MFA students give first hearing to plays-in-process, usually through rehearsed readings; receive intensive feedback from student colleagues and faculty in playwriting and dramaturgy; and develop plays towards possible production in the department. The Workshop provides a venue for the development of new work, as well as a community of playwrights and dramaturgs who support the development of that work; the Guest Seminar and Special Topics courses expose students to diverse approaches to form and process, and provide tools for writing, revision, and generating new material. The department core curriculum is designed to provide a grounding in theatre history, literature, theory, and criticism, as well as to expand the student's vision of how new work can and might be created.

All opportunities for reading and production are designed to develop from and enhance the training and experience of the student in his/her coursework. The areas of coursework, writing, and staged reading/production are interdependent in the student's development; a concern about the student's performance in one of these areas will normally reflect a related concern in one or both of the other areas. Such concerns, when they exist, are discussed in regular reviews of the student's work, and addressed according to the guidelines outlined below.

Plan of Study and Graduate Committee

In the first semester of enrollment, the student completes a Plan of Study in consultation with the program head. The Plan of Study indicates all required and elective courses the student expects to take in completing the MFA.  The Plan of Study should also indicate any graduate transfer credit to be counted towards the degree; whether or not transfer courses may substitute for department or program requirements; and any coursework the student must take in order to fill gaps in his/her previous academic preparation.

The Plan of Study must be approved by the student's Graduate Committee and the DGS. For the MFA candidate in Playwriting, the Graduate Committee consists of the Playwriting Faculty (Profs. Borreca, [Clubb, and Mahone]).  [If appropriate, students may elect to add or substitute a faculty member from outside the Playwriting Program.] Once it has been established, any changes in the make-up of the student's Committee must be approved by the DGS and the program head.

In addition to approving the Plan of Study, the Committee's responsibilities include: approving (in consultation with the DGS) any subsequent changes in the Plan of Study; overseeing the student's academic and creative progress; providing feedback on plays and productions; approving satisfactory completion of the second-year review, including the Comprehensive Exam (see below); advising and approving the thesis play in the third year.

Accelerated Degree Policy for the MFA in Playwriting

See “Accelerated Degree Policy” below. Accelerated degree status may be granted for graduate transfer credit that satisfies particular course requirements AND/OR for professional experience which the faculty accept as equivalent to courses or other program requirements. The following explains how this policy applies specifically to MFA students in Playwriting seeking accelerated degree status on the basis of their professional work as playwrights.

Many students enter the MFA Program in Playwriting with professional experience as playwrights and theatre artists. In such cases, accelerated degree status will be granted only to students with a significant record of theatrical production which signifies, in the view of the faculty, advanced achievement in writing for the stage. Waivers for the Playwrights Workshop or other courses in playwriting will not be granted for professional work in areas other than playwriting, although such work might be applied to the program requirement in collaboration.

Usually no more than nine semester hours of graduate coursework from another institution (one full-time semester) will be applied to the MFA in Playwriting at Iowa, including the waiver of one semester of Playwrights Workshop. Accelerated degree status based on professional experience may include the waiver of up to two semesters of course requirements.

Students who believe they might qualify for accelerated degree status are welcome to seek the advice of the program. Applications for such status will normally be reviewed and approved/denied in the same semester in which they are made.

Course Requirements

All MFA candidates in Playwriting must complete a minimum of 60 hours and all of the following:

Other Program Requirements: Collaboration and Production

In addition to fulfilling the course requirements outlined above, MFA candidates in playwriting are expected to generate dramatic writing on a regular basis, not only in fulfilling course assignments but also in demonstrating continuing growth as a playwright.

Allowing for differences in creative process, students are expected to produce a substantial piece of dramatic writing for the Playwrights Workshop—a draft of a full-length play, a substantial revision of a previous draft, or a series of related shorter works—every semester. Over the course of a year, students are expected to show substantial progress on two-full length works or the equivalent; one of these works should take a finished form by the end of the Spring Semester.

The department produces some two dozen plays annually, many of which are new works, and MFA candidates in playwriting are expected to make regular use of opportunities to have their work presented or staged. Over the course of his/her enrollment, each student should have presented at least three substantial works in a departmental venue outside of Playwrights Workshop. One of these scripts should have received a Festival production. (These requirements do not guarantee that the student's work will be selected for presentation in those venues.)

Students are expected to develop their skills as collaborative theatre artists, whether in the development or production of their own plays or in their work as dramaturgs, directors, etc. on their colleagues' work. Students are also expected to provide stimulating and useful feedback on their colleagues' work in Workshop, and to work at refining their skills as responders to new work. Unless granted an exception, all MFA students in playwriting are expected to submit a script for Festival consideration in each year of enrollment. The failure to submit for Festival might otherwise indicate that substantial progress in writing has not been made in the first semester.

Students may earn a total of 2 hours of credit in their second year for a Gallery or Festival production. These hours are in addition to the 60-hour program minimum.

Enrollment of Non-Playwriting Students in Graduate Playwriting Courses

Enrollment in 049:269: Playwrights Workshop and 049: 272: Special Topics in Playwriting is normally limited to students who have been admitted as candidates for the MFA in Playwriting.

At the discretion of the Playwriting faculty and on review of samples of dramatic writing, students outside the program with relevant experience and ability may be given consent to enroll in Special Topics in Playwriting. Consent to enroll in the Playwrights Workshop is rare.

Internships

A professional internship is not required of MFA candidates in Playwriting. However, in individual cases an internship may be desirable or advisable. Students intending to take an internship must plan for the internship in his/her Plan of Study. If a decision to pursue an internship is reached after approval of the Plan in the first year, the Plan may be revised, with the approval of the student's Committee, to include an internship. Usually internships are taken in the first semester of the third year.

Students are responsible for securing their internships and negotiating all related details (with assistance from the faculty). The student should obtain a letter from the sponsoring institution agreeing to employ him/her and in what capacity. If faculty approve the internship, a copy of the letter will be placed in the student's advising file with his/her Plan of Study.

During the internship semester, the Playwrights Workshop requirement will be waived if the student completes a 3 s.h. Independent Study in playwriting with a member of the playwriting faculty.

See additional departmental policies in “Internships” section below.

Outside Readings and Productions

The playwriting program at Iowa permits outside readings and productions of student work when the reading or production represents an important professional opportunity for the student. Students may request to be away from the department for short periods of time (less than five days) in order to attend rehearsals, readings, and productions. Students must obtain permission from the program head and all course instructors to be away from campus during the specified period of time. If the student must miss one or more classes as a Teaching Assistant, he/she must also secure the permission of his/her faculty supervisor and follow all department and College of Liberal Arts procedures concerning instructor absence from class.

On occasion, department funds are available to help students defer the cost of travel taken for outside professional opportunities. If funds are available, the student may request support (normally up to $300) by writing to the Department Chair in advance of travel. The Chair will review all requests in consultation with the program head. Funds will be disbursed according to availability and the merits of the request. The request should indicate that the student has secured permission for travel from the program head, and should explain how all department responsibilities will be met during the time away.

Reviews

The student's work on writing projects and productions is intensively reviewed at the time of the project's presentation in Workshop or other department venue. Student conferences with playwriting faculty are ongoing throughout the student’s enrollment.

The first year is a probationary period for all MFA students in Theatre Arts. At the end of the first year, the student meets with program faculty for an overall review of his/her progress in the program. For this review, the student must provide an Annotated Checklist of the plays on which he or she has worked since the start of his or her enrollment in the program. Annotations should refer to the work's origins and development, if and where it has been read and/or produced, and plans for future development.

Important Note: In accordance with Graduate College and Department policies, students must maintain a grade point average of 3.0 in their coursework. If the G.P.A. falls below this, the student is automatically placed on probation and must raise the G.P.A. to 3.0 by the end of the following semester. Failure to do so may be grounds for dismissal. Lack of demonstrated growth as a writer or collaborative theatre artist may also lead to academic probation.

As a result of the first-year review, the student may be (1) invited to return to the program for a second year; (2) placed on academic probation for the first semester of the second year; (3) asked to withdraw from the program.

Second-Year Review

The review at the end of the second year of enrollment constitutes the Comprehensive Examination required of the Graduate College and is pivotal to the student's work in the program. The review is conducted by the student’s Graduate Committee.

For this review, the student must provide the following:

The Graduate Committee may make specific recommendations for revision of the student's plan for the third year. On completion and approval of the second-year review, the student may be (1) invited to return to the program for a third year to pursue his/her objectives and thesis as proposed; (2) invited to return for the third year on the condition that he/she will resubmit, at the start of the third year, his/her self-assessment and thesis proposal, revised in response to Graduate Committee recommendations (Note: Even if the student is asked to resubmit his portfolio in the fall, his/her portfolio must be deemed passable at the time of the second-year review); (3) asked to withdraw from the program. In the case of students who have been removed from probation, the Committee reserves the right to request withdrawal because of the student's failure to maintain satisfactorily the conditions of removal.

The Graduate Committee reserves the right to request withdrawal on the basis of insufficient progress or marked regress in any major area of the program – coursework, writing, collaboration - over the course of the second year. In the case of students who have been removed from probation, the Committee reserves the right to request withdrawal because of the student's failure to maintain satisfactorily the conditions of being removed from probation.

MFA Thesis

In the third year, the student must submit a full-length thesis play, along with a short (4-6 pp.) Preface placing the work in the context of his/her work in the program. (This essay may be based on the second year self-assessment.) The thesis must represent substantial creative work undertaken in the third year of enrollment, and may consist of a play newly written in the third year or a major revision of a play that has been read and/or produced in the first two years.

The thesis must be submitted in accordance with Graduate College policies for the formatting and submission of theses. Students are responsible for meeting all Graduate College deadlines for the thesis.

Under normal circumstances, the student will receive feedback on the thesis play from the Graduate Committee as the play is being developed in the Workshop and other department venues. If the thesis play was produced in the first or second year of enrollment, and is not being given a reading or production in the third year, the student is responsible for arranging timely thesis conferences with the members of his/her Committee.

Following approval of the thesis, program faculty will meet with the student for a final review of his/her work in the program and a look to the future.

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