BA in Musical Theatre

Why pursue a musical theatre degree at North Central College?

Unlike most musical theatre colleges in Chicago, here you'll train to become a "triple threat"- a talented actor, dancer, and singer. North Central encourages close connections among all of the performing arts, including theatre, dance, and music. Our program allows you to gain hands-on experience in theater arts working with various teachers dedicated to refining your mastery of this fine art discipline. Whether you aim to star in Broadway musicals or continue learning with a theater conservatory, our musical theater program will provide you with the training you need to develop your techniques, range, and style. As a result, you won’t need to focus exclusively on voice, acting, or any other single type of dramatic art performance. You can pursue all your interests within the fine arts, hone your craft through at least eight mainstage productions and graduate as a sought-after professional or graduate school candidate.

You can also:

• Tap into our faculty’s professional network, which extends throughout Chicago’s vibrant musical theatre and dramatic arts community.
• Audition for well-known agents and casting directors (including Paskal Rudnicke Casting, Claire Simon Casting, and Stewart Talent) as part of the Senior Showcase.
• Direct a show of your choice in our state-of-the-art venues as part of our Student Directed Series.
• Work with a faculty advisor during your senior year to select a show, coordinate production responsibilities, and produce and present a fully mounted production in one of our state-of-the-art venues.

Since 1861, North Central has been a place where new ideas lead to unlimited possibilities. We’re an independent college dedicated to the power of the liberal arts and sciences to transform students into leaders both in their careers and communities. Our nearly 3,000 students study across more than 65 undergraduate and graduate programs, with their education, made richer by supportive faculty and staff, world-class facilities, and countless opportunities to learn beyond the classroom.

A College on the move

Building on the foundation of more than 150 years of excellence, North Central continues to grow with numerous new facilities, programs, and initiatives in the works.

The College opened with 40 students in a single two-story building in Plainfield, Illinois. Since then we’ve changed names twice (to North-Western, then North Central), moved once (from Plainfield to Naperville), and grown steadily (to about 3,000 students).

Over the years, thousands of dedicated students, alumni, faculty, staff, and friends have helped us thrive through the toughest challenges – wars, economic crises, social upheavals, and more – and build a future brilliant with hope and promise.

We’ve met the changing needs of students from Civil War veterans to millennial entrepreneurs. And we’ve always stayed true to our heritage of moral courage and forward-thinking.

Today we’re a top-ranked private comprehensive college of the liberal arts and sciences. U.S. News & World Report counts us among “America’s Best Colleges,” one of the top six schools in the Midwest for a “strong commitment to undergraduate teaching.” Students choose from more than 55 undergraduate majors and five graduate program areas.

Although the College originally discouraged organized athletics as a distraction from weightier matters, our 26 intercollegiate sports in NCAA Division III make our athletic department the largest in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW). North Central is proud of its 32 team national championships and 123 individual national champions.

Though affiliated with the United Methodist Church, we welcome and encourage students and staff of all faiths. We are thoughtfully expanding our academic programs to respond to the needs of our ever-changing world, recently adding Middle Eastern and North African Studies, along with Arabic. And we’re transforming our facilities – most dramatically with a new interdisciplinary Science Center located at the corner of Brainard Street and Van Buren Avenue.

It’s been an amazing 150+ years. But it’s clear that the best is yet to come!