What to expect-
Our professional acting training program includes a flexible model and curriculum, allowing for ensemble building, individual attention, and mentorship. Our goal is to build on strengths and broaden approaches to craft by using our classrooms, rehearsal halls, and theaters as places to risk, process and reinvent.
The tuition-free, three-year graduate acting program leads to a terminal professional degree in theatre performance. Graduate actors meet daily in four-hour sessions with our professionally active faculty and guest artists including acting, movement, voice and speech. Students spend three years in residence, in approximately 12 hours of class each semester. MFA actors will also have the opportunity to teach and co-teach classes at the undergraduate level, working closely with theatre faculty on pedagogy, planning, and classroom practices. At the conclusion of each semester, faculty instructors provide comprehensive individual evaluations of each student’s progress.
MFA actors will also have opportunities to audition and form relationships with casting directors, directors, playwrights and theatre leaders from companies across the country. Recent audition guests have included NYC casting directors Rob Decina (CBS) and Pat McCorkle, and representatives from Steppenwolf, The Goodman, Chicago Shakespeare, Chautauqua Theatre Company, Milwaukee Rep, American Players Theatre, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Montana Shakespeare Festival, St. Louis Shakespeare, and others. Guest artists have included playwrights Luis Alfaro, Nancy García Loza, Kristen Joy Bjorge, and José Rivera. Directors have included Chuck Smith, Kimberly Senior, Barbara Pitts McAdams, Myeongsik Jason Jang, and Madeline Sayet. Actors Crystal Dickson, Brandon Dirden, Rainn Wilson, Rutina Wesley, Behzad Dabu, and Lindsay Smiling have also taught our graduate actors.
Admission Requirements
We are currently accepting applications for students interested in starting our three-year MFA Acting program in the Fall of 2026.
The three-year graduate acting program leads to a terminal professional degree in theatre performance. Graduate actors meet daily in four-hour sessions, which include acting, movement (including stage combat), and voice and speech.
Prospective students are strongly urged to apply to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign prior to their audition. Please see the “Learn How To Apply” link here and at the bottom of this page.
Key Dates
- On-Campus Audition Day: Saturday, February 7, 2026, 1:00–4:00 p.m.
- Deadline to Schedule On-Campus Audition: January 15, 2026
Application Deadline: February 14, 2026 (for the 2026–2027 academic year; late applications will not be considered)
U/RTA National Auditions
Illinois Theatre participates in the U/RTA National Auditions in Philadelphia, PA; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Fullerton, CA; and in their Virtual Auditions.
The dates for U/RTA are listed below. To participate and schedule your audition, please follow this link: https://app.getacceptd.com/urta.
U/RTA Locations and Dates:
- Philadelphia, PA: January 9–11, 2026 (In-Person Auditions)
- Atlanta, GA: January 18, 2026 (In-Person Auditions)
- Chicago, IL: January 25–28, 2026 (In-Person Auditions)
- Virtual Auditions: January 31–February 1, 2026 (Live-virtual, meeting in real time but online)
- Fullerton, CA: February 7–8, 2026 (In-Person Auditions)
For those not selecting U/RTA participation, we also offer an on-campus audition option. To arrange an on-campus audition, please contact Prof. Kim McKean (kmckea1@illinois.edu).
On-Campus Audition Day
Our on-campus audition day is designed to help MFA applicants experience Illinois Theatre firsthand. The day includes in-person monologue auditions, a Q&A session, and a workshop with faculty, with the goal of giving you a deeper sense of our faculty and community.
For the on-campus audition day, please prepare two contrasting monologues (one classical and one contemporary), each no longer than two minutes. If you wish, you may also present 16 bars of a song, with your own recorded accompaniment.
Application Process
Applications are submitted through the Graduate College. In addition to the official application, candidates must audition either through U/RTA or during our on-campus audition day.
As part of the application, you will be asked to provide:
- A statement of purpose (800–1000 words)
- Three letters of recommendation
- A headshot and performance resume
International Applicants
Video auditions will be accepted from international applicants only. In addition, international applicants must meet the full status admissions requirements for the TOEFL. Additional requirements may apply depending on the country of origin. Please consult the Graduate College guidelines: grad.illinois.edu/admissions/countries.
What We Look For
We are especially interested in applicants who demonstrate strong performance ability, creative and intellectual curiosity, and a commitment to discovery and growth.
Assistantship Information
The Department of Theatre sets aside Graduate Assistantships for MFA Acting students each year. Specifics regarding tuition waivers, assistantships, and related topics will be updated soon.
MFA Curriculum and Performances
During their time here, MFA acting students will work with texts from the full scope of dramatic literature, with an emphasis on re-centering the canon. In addition to language-rich and contemporary works, actors will also be exposed to solo performance, devised theatre, contact improvisation, clowning, and stage combat. Research and study accompany performance in order to stimulate fresh interpretations and a thorough understanding of each play, period, and style. Electives may be taken in theatre history, dramatic literature, playwriting, and directing. Performance opportunities occur in productions of the Department of Theatre on the stages of the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts and the Armory Theatre, our student produced black box space. Graduate actors will also have the option to appear in a showcase for industry professionals at the end of their 3rd year.
MFA Acting classes meet Monday through Friday afternoons. Each semester includes physical and vocal preparation, acting scene work, skill development in voice, speech, and movement. Students immerse themselves in work on heightened language texts, contemporary plays, and stylistic challenges. Emotional connection and effective communication are central to the development of voice and speech skills. Movement training includes a layered approach exploring mask work, clowning, stage combat, and the development of effective practice for dynamic performance.
Acting Courses
MFA Acting classes meet Monday through Friday afternoons. Each semester includes physical and vocal preparation, acting scene work, skill development in voice, speech, and movement. Students immerse themselves in work on heightened language texts, contemporary plays, and stylistic challenges. Emotional connection and effective communication are central to the development of voice and speech skills. Movement training includes a layered approach exploring mask work, clowning, stage combat, and the development of effective practice for dynamic performance.
Acting students receive credit for performances in the productions of the Department of Theatre and are encouraged to seek summer acting work beyond the campus to support their classroom learning. MFA actors have been hired to work at The Alliance Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, St. Louis Shakespeare, American Players Theatre, Utah Shakespearean Theatre, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Montana Shakespeare Festival, Arkansas Shakespeare Festival, Theatre at Monmouth, and Chautauqua Theatre Company.
Foundations
Exercises and scene work focus on identifying and strengthening aspects of acting practice including the building of a creative ensemble.
Solo Performance
Actors write and perform an original solo performance piece.
Acting in Realism
Actors work on approaches to characterization drawn from realistic plays of the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.
Acting In Heightened Language and Shakespeare
Students explore the texts of Shakespeare and contemporaries from the global majority with attention to language and verse, character and action, passion and size.
Acting for the Camera
Techniques of acting in commercials, TV Film and modern media.
Voice and Speech
Based in the Linklater Voice method, classes focus on relaxation, breathing, resonance, range and articulation as well the integration of the voice and the imagination with the text. Students also explore phonetics, heightened texts, dialects and voice-over techniques for audiobooks and animation.
Movement
Students engage in intensive work every week to deepen their physical awareness, embodiment, and articulation. The actor’s facility is expanded, enabling inspiration and affectability. Skills and systems include the Alexander Technique, Viewpoints, and mask-work, as well as extensive training in Stage Combat leading to the certification test with the Society of American Fight Directors.
History
MFA Acting students select at least one class in Theatre History and/or Dramatic Literature. Courses vary from semester to semester and include subjects in World Theatre, Musical Theatre and Opera, Classical Drama, Shakespeare, African-American Theatre, Latinx Dramatists, and Asian-American Theatre.
Elective Courses
The Department of Theatre offers courses in Playwriting, Directing, Dramaturgy and Arts Management. Many other courses are offered from departments beyond the Department of Theatre.
For more information please contact Kim McKean at kmckea1@illinois.edu