BFA in Interarts Performance

The BFA in Interarts Performance is the perfect program for students who have interests in both the visual arts and theater as well as a desire to create original performance pieces. Interarts Performance introduces students to a diverse range of art forms and creative practices from new media to traditional acting skills, with the aim of generating work that blurs boundaries between the visual arts and performance.

Use the form below to sign up for more information: we’ll be in touch with additional details on our Interarts program, admissions, and upcoming events. 

Curriculum

The BFA in Interarts Performance includes a balanced combination of studio and academic courses from the Stamps School of Art & Design (Stamps) and the School of Music, Theatre and Dance (SMTD), and academic requirements and electives from across the University. Students are immersed in the cultures of both schools and have the advantage of the academic resources of a major research University.

In this program, you will forge an entirely customized, individual path under the mentorship of the Interarts Performance mentors and advisors. As exciting as a tailor-made path is, Interarts Performance students are required to bring both schools together. It’s a big responsibility and requires proactive, engaged stewardship on your part. While your cohort of Interarts peers will serve as a tight-knit creative network, your individual interests, passions, and talents will inform your curricular path through the program.

Interarts Performance students need 130 credits to graduate, 66 studio credits and 64 academic credits. Students who plan to graduate in four years are expected to complete an average of 16 to 17 credits per term.

Courses	Credits
Required Studio Courses	18
Elective Studio Courses	45
Required Academic Courses	31
Elective Academic Courses	36
Sophomore Review
International Experience

Total Credits: 130

Advising

Holly Hughes is the director of the Interarts program. Interarts students are citizens of both the Stamps School of Art & Design and the School of Music, Theatre and Dance, so they must work closely with academic advisors in both units to develop their curriculum. The Interarts academic advisor for the Stamps School is Romy Hill-Cronin, and the faculty advisor at the School of Music, Theatre and Dance is Tzveta Kassabova.

Most classes in SMTD are open to Interarts students, including many in Design and Production, Theatre Studies, Movement, Devising, Playwriting, Dance, Vocal Performance, Acting for Non Majors, Performing Arts Management, Design Practicums and Performing Arts Technology, but may have smaller enrollment caps than those in Stamps or enforced prerequisites requiring advance planning with your SMTD advisor. 

Please note that a few majors in STMD, such as the BFAs in Performance (Acting) and Musical Theatre, are only open to students who have specifically auditioned and been accepted into those programs with no exceptions, but students interested in acting will have many opportunities to study performance in other classes. 

Studio Courses

Interarts Performance majors complete 24 credits of introductory courses, split evenly between Stamps School courses and Theatre & Drama courses. Twelve of the credits are in required courses: ArtDes 125, ArtDes 220, ThtreMus 101, and ThtreMus 240, 250, or 256. More advanced coursework may be substituted on a case-by-case basis when deemed appropriate by the Interarts faculty. Interarts Performance majors complete 33 credits of advanced studio coursework, split between Stamps School courses and Theatre & Drama courses, and 9 credits of the Integrative Project (IP), the capstone year-long course taken during the fall and winter terms of the BFA student’s final year.

Advanced Studio Electives

Following the completion of introductory courses, students work closely with faculty to develop an individual program of elective courses that addresses their educational goals. Students choose 18 credits of Stamps (ARTDES), at least one at a 400-level, and 15 credits of T&D (THTREMUS) current elective studio offerings, as well as classes in Dance and Performing Arts Technology.

Elective Studio courses vary each semester — please visit the following links to view this semester’s offerings:

• Music, Theatre, and Dance Course Guide
• Stamps Course Guide
  

Academic Courses

Academic courses in Stamps and SMTD are designed to engage students in the history of art, design and performance.

Penny Stamps Lecture Series

The Penny Stamps Speaker Series brings respect­ed lead­ers and inno­va­tors from a broad spec­trum of cre­ative fields to Ann Arbor to con­duct week­ly pub­lic lec­tures and engagements. Students must enroll in the 1‑credit/​semester Lecture Series and attend the weekly lecture for 7 of 8 semesters during the program.

Interarts Academic Courses

Interarts Performance majors must take INTPERF 150: Live Art Survey, and must enroll in INTPERF 160: Interarts Forum each Fall semester. Students cannot engage in classes, extracurriculars, or other activities including but not limited to band, sports, theatre, glee club that conflict with participation in Forum or Survey.

Courses are listed under ​“INTPERF” in course guide — see current offerings here.

Course Title	Course #	Credits
Interarts Performance Forum	160	12
Live Art Survey	150	3

Art and Design Academic Courses

One 3 credit Stamps academic course is required. Students have the option of taking ARTDES 150 (Art and Design in Context) or ARTDES 151 (Art and Design History).

Theatre & Drama Academic Courses

Two 3‑credit academic cours­es in T&D are required (THTREMUS) — for more infor­ma­tion, con­sult your T&D advisor.

University Academic Courses

Students in the Interarts Performance program participate in the rich intellectual and academic life of a top tier university by taking University Academic courses. Liberal Arts Requirements are designed to develop basic familiarity with the three traditional components of liberal arts — humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. The goal is to enhance analytical reasoning, to encourage empathy with other cultures, and to understand contemporary environmental issues. Interarts students fulfill seven specific liberal arts requirements and choose additional elective courses to equal 36 credits. Students must earn at least three credits in each specific area of the liberal arts, but may use one course to meet two or even three requirements.

Requirement	Course Info	Credits
First Year Writing	LSA Course Guide: ​“FYWR”	3 – 4
Social Science	LSA Course Guide: ​“SS”	3
Natural Science	LSA Course Guide: ​“NS”	3
Analytical Reasoning	LSA Course Guide: ​“MSA”, ​“QR/1”, ​“QR/2”, or any course in logic.	3
Environmental Studies	Any course in the LSA Course Guide with the subject code ENVIRON. This includes courses cross-listed as ENVIRON. Other courses that meet the requirement are ARCH 357; BIOLOGY 101, 102, 109, and 171; EARTH 109, 114, 148, 154, 156, 277 and 331; ENGLISH 320 and 328; as well as URP 423.	3
Cultural Diversity	LSA Course Guide: ​“RE”	6
Humanities	LSA Course Guide: ​“HU”	3
Academic Electives	Choose additional courses to equal 36 credits.

Integrative Project

In the 9‑credit Integrative Project, seniors use the techniques, concepts and skills they’ve learned to plan, conceptualize, and build a single project of their choosing over the course of their final year. With the help of faculty advisors, they manage their own creative process and working schedules, and work in their own dedicated studio space. The project culminates in a final presentation where the student engages the public through exhibition, publication or performance, and is documented in a written thesis, website, and digital portfolio.

Course Title	Course #	Credits
Integrative Project	498/499	9

Reviews

Students must complete a Sophomore Review and a mid-year IP Critique during their senior year.

In the Sophomore Review, students conduct a presentation of their work to date in the program to an ad-hoc faculty committee drawn mostly from the Stamps School of Art and Design. Students working in performance media are expected to have appropriate and high quality documentation (video, photo, audio) and to be able to articulate their work using the language of visual arts. 

A successful Sophomore Review is required for continuation in the program. Students who perform unsatisfactorily on their Sophomore Reviews are required to re-review at a designated date; some may be asked to take time off or improve deficiencies prior to advancing; and a small minority may be directed to leave the program. These reviews are a significant assessment component of the program.

The IP Critique is an opportunity for students to receive faculty advice and feedback midway through the year-long Integrative Project. Details regarding preparation for the IP Critiques are discussed in the individual IP classes.