The Carnegie Mellon School of Drama is the first degree-granting drama institution in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1914, it is one of five schools within the Carnegie Mellon College of Fine Arts.
The school's undergraduate BFA programs in acting, musical theatre, directing, design, dramaturgy, and production technology and management majors are considered to be among the top programs in undergraduate conservatory training. Its MFA offerings in directing, design, dramatic writing, and production and technology management are also considered to be top graduate programs. The School of Drama offers 18 events every season on campus, and also presents members of its graduating class in produced showcases in New York City and Los Angeles. Many Carnegie Mellon graduates have also gone on to successful careers in Pittsburgh theatre.
In 2017, The Hollywood Reporter's list of best undergraduate drama schools ranked Carnegie Mellon second. [1] In 2014, The Hollywood Reporter ranked the School of Drama number three in the world among drama schools. [2] In 2015, the same publication ranked the MFA program at the School of Drama number five in the world. [3] According to Playbill , the Carnegie Mellon School of Drama ranks fourth in the number of alumni represented in the 2015–2016 Broadway season. [4]
Since 2000, the Purnell Center for the Arts, specifically designed for the School of Drama, has been the department's home. The space includes:
As well as two movement/dance studios, three rehearsal studios, four design studios, a lighting lab, a sound lab, a costume shop, a scene shop, and various classrooms.
Julia Ann Harris was an American actress. Renowned for her classical and contemporary roles, she earned numerous accolades including five Tony Awards, three Emmy Awards, and a Grammy Award in addition to nominations for an Academy Award, and a BAFTA Award. She was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 1979, received the National Medal of Arts in 1994, the Special Lifetime Achievement Tony Award, and the Kennedy Center Honor in 2005.
James Oliver Cromwell is an American actor and activist. Known for his extensive work as a character actor, he has received a Primetime Emmy Award as well as a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Babe (1995). Other notable roles include in Star Trek: First Contact (1996), L.A. Confidential (1997), Deep Impact (1998), The Green Mile (1999), Space Cowboys (2000), The Longest Yard (2005) The Queen (2006), W. (2008), Secretariat (2010), The Artist (2011), Still Mine (2013), Marshall (2017), and Emperor (2020). He has also voiced roles in Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002), and Big Hero 6 (2014).
Renée Elise Goldsberry is an American actress and singer known for originating the role of Angelica Schuyler in the Broadway musical Hamilton, for which she won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Her other Broadway credits include Nettie Harris in the original Broadway cast of The Color Purple, and Mimi Marquez in Rent. She has portrayed many roles on television, including Geneva Pine on The Good Wife, and Evangeline Williamson on One Life to Live, for which she received two Daytime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. Since 2021, she has starred in the Netflix musical comedy Girls5eva. Also that year, she received a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her performance in the Disney+ live stage recording of Hamilton, which was released in 2020.
Nancy Lou Marchand was an American actress. She began her career in theater in 1951. She was most famous for her television portrayals of Margaret Pynchon on Lou Grant and Livia Soprano on The Sopranos.
Deborah Kaye Allen is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, singer, director, producer, and a former member of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. She has been nominated 20 times for an Emmy Award, and two Tony Awards. She has won a Golden Globe Award, and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1991.
Patrick Joseph Wilson is an American actor. He began his career in 1995, starring in Broadway musicals. He received nominations for two Tony Awards for his roles in The Full Monty (2000–2001) and Oklahoma! (2002). He co-starred in the acclaimed HBO miniseries Angels in America (2003), for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.
Cherry Jones is an American actress. She started her career in theater as a founding member of the American Repertory Theater in 1980 before transitioning into film and television. Celebrated for her dynamic roles on stage and screen, she has received various accolades, including three Primetime Emmy Awards and two Tony Awards, as well as nominations for an Olivier Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Mark Frost is an American novelist, screenwriter, film and television producer and director. He is the co-creator of the mystery television series Twin Peaks and was a writer and executive story editor of Hill Street Blues (1982–1985).
Shirley Knight Hopkins was an American actress who appeared in more than 50 feature films, television films, television series, and Broadway and Off-Broadway productions in her career, playing leading and character roles. She was a member of the Actors Studio.
Mason Gross School of the Arts is the arts conservatory at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Mason Gross offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in art, design, dance, filmmaking, music, and theater. Mason Gross is highly selective in terms of admissions, with a low admission rate. It is named for Mason W. Gross, the sixteenth president of Rutgers.
Scotch'n'Soda is a student-run theatre organization that resides on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University. Its initial dedication was the creation and production of original musicals, but has now taken to performing both professionally published and student-written materials. Students are welcome to write, compose, design, direct, perform in, and otherwise become involved with every aspect of each production. The organization is open to all Carnegie Mellon students from all backgrounds who are interested, and all performances are public with varying ticket prices.
Sada Carolyn Thompson was an American stage, film, and television actress. Though best known to television audiences as Kate Lawrence in Family (1976–1980), for which she won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in 1978, Thompson originally won acclaim as a theater actress on Broadway winning a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for Twigs in 1972.
French Woods Festival of the Performing Arts, is a private, co-educational performing and visual arts camp for youth aged 7 to 17 located in Hancock, New York. Established in 1970, French Woods is among the most prestigious summer arts programs in the United States.
Casey Childs is an American theater director and the founder of Primary Stages, a non-profit off-Broadway theater company in New York City. Since 1984, the company has produced new plays, many directed by Childs.
Corey Michael Cott is an American actor and singer. He is best known for playing Jack Kelly in the Broadway musical Newsies, replacing Jeremy Jordan, and for originating the role of Donny Novitski in the Broadway musical Bandstand.
Leslie Lloyd Odom Jr. is an American actor, singer and songwriter. He made his acting debut on Broadway in 1998 and first gained recognition for his portrayal of Aaron Burr in the musical Hamilton, which earned him a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album in the same year. His performance was captured in the Disney+ live stage recording of Hamilton which earned him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role in a Limited Series or Movie nomination.
Casey Morton Cott is an American actor, known for his role as Kevin Keller on The CW series Riverdale.