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Curriculum

REQUIREMENTS FOR A MAJOR

Major — 41 credit hours

Courses in Common — 13 credit hours:

  • TD124 Performance, Politics, and Practice
  • TD262 Collaborative Company
  • TD393 Ways of Seeing
    Seminar to be taken either Junior or Senior fall; prerequisite TD 124
  • Humanities Theme Lecture Series 1 credit may be taken at any time as a stand-alone course at any time during a student’s career, but recommended in conjunction with a departmental creative process course related to the theme, such as Collaborative Company or another theme-related faculty-led production. Our departmental productions quite frequently align deliberately with the annual humanities theme.

Area Requirements:

  • Production — 4 credit hours; one of the following courses:
    TD139 Introduction to Stagecraft
    TD245 Stage Management: Leadership Behind the Scenes
    TD264 as Production Stage Manager for Faculty-led production


  • Praxis — 4 credit hours; one of the following courses:
    TD135 Introduction to Design
    TD 242 Acts of Activism
    TD 247 Performing the Museum
    TD 281 Directing
    TD 258 Improvisational Practices
    TD 285 The Choreographic Process


Pathway through the Major — 20 credits:

  • Students design and justify their own pathways through the major in consultation with their major advisor; advisors encourage a breadth of experience with deep engagement with a student’s developing research questions.
  • In a written Pathway Rationale, all majors develop and articulate an understanding of the core values of the department: collaboration, leadership, community reciprocity, and justice. These values are introduced in the courses in common, deepened in the area requirements, and will serve as guiding principles for students in their continued study.
  • Up to 12 credit hours may be taken outside the department, with a written rationale explaining applicability of each course to a student’s focus in the major and approval by faculty vote.
  • No more than 5 credits of 1- and 2-credit physical practice classes (TD115-118 and 215-218 can be counted toward the major, even though students may indeed take more than 5 such credits during their Colby careers.

SENIOR Capstone Requirement:

All students complete a senior capstone which can be any of the following:

  • Senior Scholars
    Full Year; GPA requirement; College Approved in spring of Junior year) 16-19cr; up to 8cr can be applied to major.
  • Senior Honors Thesis
    Full Year; GPA requirement; Dept. Approved in spring of Junior year) 8cr; up to 4cr can be applied to major.
  • Independent Study
    Full-year or half-year, advisor-approved; no GPA requirement) Variable cr; Up to 4cr can be applied to major.
  • Declaration of engagement in a class or production
    This experience, based on the student’s primary area of interest, becomes the capstone project, and could be fall or spring of Senior Year. Credit is granted in the course the student enrolls in to complete this requirement.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A MINOR

MINOR — 25 credit hours

Courses in Common — 9 credit hours:

  • TD124 Performance, Politics, and Practice
  • TD262 Collaborative Company
  • Humanities Theme Lecture Series
    1 credit recommended in conjunction with a creative process course related to the theme, but may be taken at any time.


Pathway ­— 16 credit hours:

  • Students design their own pathways through the major in consultation with their minor advisor; in our department we have a practice of assigning advisors to minors.
  • Students are encouraged, but not required, to take seminar 3XX, Ways of Seeing as a part of their pathway.
  • Advisors encourage a breadth of experience with deep engagement with a student’s developing research questions.
  • Up to 4 credit hours may be taken outside the department, with a written rationale explaining applicability of each course to a student’s focus in the major. No more than 5 credits of 1- and 2-credit physical practice classes (TD115-118 and 215-218) can be counted toward the major, even though students may indeed take more than 5 such credits during their Colby careers.

No requirement for the Minor may be taken Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory.

PDF of Mission Statement and Requirements:

Performance, Theater, and Dance Mission Statement and Requirements