Master of Fine Arts in Dramaturgy
About the Dramaturgy Program
The MFA in Dramaturgy is central to the mission of training theatre artists who will create the theatre of the future by building on theatrical traditions of the past. While providing the training needed to work as dramaturgs on works of all periods and types, the MFA in Dramaturgy at Iowa focuses on the training of new play dramaturgs with special skills in the development of new work.
At Iowa, the tradition of new play dramaturgy extends back to the founding of the department in the 1930s. Along with such figures as Columbia's Brander Matthews and Yale's George Pierce Baker, Iowa's first Chair of Theatre Arts, E.C. Mabie, pioneered the development of drama as an independent discipline in which scholars and artists could train to create and lead the theatre of the future. Under the leadership of Oscar Brownstein in the 1970s, the MFA Program in Playwriting offered one of the country’s first courses in Dramaturgy, through which MFA candidates in Playwriting served as dramaturgs on department productions of classic plays. In the 1990s, the department developed a pilot program in Dramaturgy in close association with the Playwrights Workshop. The program was formally approved by the Graduate College in 1999.
The Department of Theatre Arts sponsors semester-long residencies and short-term workshops by leading playwrights, dramaturgs, and other theatre artists. Many of their courses and workshops are open to MFA Dramaturgs.
Plan of Study
The MFA Program in Dramaturgy requires a minimum of sixty-four semester-hours of coursework in dramaturgy, theatre history, and dramatic literature/theory/criticism. Although students must fulfill particular course requirements, each student’s plan of study is individualized in consultation with the program head. In addition to developing expertise in traditions of Western theatre, students are encouraged to situate their work as scholar/dramaturgs in the context of nontraditional and non-Western forms. In the final year of enrollment, students are required to complete a thesis that represents their dramaturgical philosophy and its application to theatre practice.
While coursework in history, literature, and theory is essential to the program, so is the development of applied skills in dramaturgical research, analysis, and collaboration, through which students draw on their knowledge and skills in helping facilitate the creation of works for the stage. Students are required to serve as dramaturgs in the Playwrights Workshop, the principal course of the MFA Program in Playwriting, and on the annual Festival of New Plays, a weeklong series of productions and readings developed by MFA playwrights in collaboration with students across department programs.
Students are also expected to serve as production dramaturgs on the department’s Mainstage and Gallery productions. For interested students, there are production opportunities in the Iowa Summer Repertory Theatre and our department’s companion units in the Division of Performing Arts - the Department of Dance and the School of Music.
The Graduate Handbook contains detailed information regarding course and production requirements, annual reviews, and the M.F.A. Thesis.
Dramaturgy Plan of Study
Admission for the Dramaturgy MFA is highly selective. The program currently enrolls three students for the degree and expects to maintain enrollment at this level. The program seeks mature students with a strong background in theatre history, theory, literature and/or related fields, well-developed analytical and writing skills, a demonstrated ability in collaborating with artists, and a vision of how he/she might ultimately serve the American theatre as a dramaturg in the future.
Applicants must submit an Application for Admission to the Graduate College. As of September 2008, we no longer require students to take the GRE examination.
In addition to an Application for Graduate Admission, applicants for the MFA In Theatre Arts-Dramaturgy must submit the following directly to Dramaturgy Admissions at the Department of Theatre Arts:
- A personal statement (2-3 pages) detailing the applicant's personal, academic, and theatrical background, including his/her reasons for pursuing graduate study in dramaturgy and his/her professional goals;
- A resume of previous theatrical work, including experience as a dramaturg, director, playwright, and/or translator;
- Three letters of recommendation by individuals familiar with the applicant's academic and theatrical experience and potential; and
- Two samples of critical writing on drama or performance, or one example of critical writing and one portfolio of documentation of work as a production dramaturg.
- an official transcript from each college or university you have attended.
The writing samples should be long enough to demonstrate the candidate's capacity for sustained, cogent analysis of theatrical works.
The Admissions Committee also welcomes (but does not require) samples of dramatic writing which the candidate deems relevant to his/her interest in a dramaturgy programs focused on the creation of new works.
The admission process includes a telephone interview. On-campus interviews are encouraged but not required.
