PhD in Theatre Historiography

Please note that the Department of Theatre Arts & Dance offers only a PhD in Theatre Historiography. We do not admit students to a terminal master's degree; however, students in the PhD program may earn a Master of Arts degree on the way to their doctorate.

Our department offers a unique graduate program drawing from the varied research expertise of its core faculty: Cindy Garcia, Michal Kobialka, Sonja Kuftinec, Diyah Larasati, Sonali Pahwa, and Margaret Werry. Graduate students also draw on the specializations of faculty in the Dance Program such as Ananya Chatterjea, and over 30 affiliate faculty across the University of Minnesota, in disciplines as diverse as English, Anthropology, Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature, Asian Languages and Literature, Art, Art History, Music, and Geography.

Core curriculum consists of courses in historiography and pedagogy, and a series of field seminars and signature seminars. Students will choose a minimum of four seminars that suit their respective research interests. Field seminars focus on topics in the historiography of theatre and performance, helping students to both develop a solid grounding in our discipline and engage in cutting-edge debates with a global and theoretically sophisticated perspective. Signature seminars explore specific research methodologies in depth, from performance ethnography, to theatre for social change or performance studies.

The program is designed to be completed in four or five years. The first three years are spent in coursework: two structured years and a third year tailored to allow students to pursue their individual areas of interest in more depth. The final year or two of study is devoted to the research and writing of the doctoral dissertation.

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