Set the Scene for a Career in Theatre
Picture this: you master the art of the backstage and land your dream job in the entertainment industry at a leading company, like Disney or Electronic Theatre Controls. At Michigan Tech, you can make this vision a reality with a Bachelor of Science in Theatre and Entertainment Technology (SFET). With the integration of studies in art and design with engineering technology or business, you will become a well-educated professional who blends solid technical expertise with innovation, artistry, and creativity.
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Striking Set: West Side Story
Stage set up timelapse by Rozsa Center for Performing Arts staff and Michigan Technological University students. The performance, West Side Story, changed the very nature of American Musical Theatre. With music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by a young Stephen Sondheim, the play was grounded in a distinctively modern sound with a passionately poetic statement: A place where everyone can grow beyond the confines of hate and poverty, a safe and beautiful place, a place for us. Presented by The Michigan Tech Theatre Company in spring 2017.
If you have ever imagined yourself behind the scenes of a theater or entertainment production—perfecting scenery, lighting, costumes, makeup, sound, and management—the Department of Visual and Performing Arts is the place for you.
- At Michigan Tech, you will start working on real-world projects and performances from day one. Even your first semester as a freshman, you will get involved: join a mainstage production, work on an audio play, or a media project.
- Your education will focus not only on traditional theatre, but also on event staging, museum displays, and themed retail and entertainment and retail.
- The department’s computer lab is equipped with the latest entertainment-dedicated programs.
- Limited enrollment allows for more time with professors, advisors, and equipment.
- You will develop your skills through high-tech training at performance venues such as the traditional proscenium theatre, the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts and the beautiful and flexible black box space, the McArdle Theatre.
Quincy Haunted Mine 2020--Sam Bulthuis
Students in the Theatre and Entertainment Technology program have opportunities to work in varied media, often with opportunities outside traditional theatre. Have you ever seen museum or theme park dioramas? Sam Bulthuis (B.S. '20) had the opportunity to design and install a display deep in the Quincy Mine in Hancock, Michigan.
What Will I Do After Graduation?
As a graduate of the theatre and entertainment technology program, you will be qualified to fill entry-level backstage positions in the entertainment industry. Start your career as an assistant designer or a crew member of a theatre house, theatrical touring company, a Las Vegas-style show, or a theme-park or cruise-ship production. You may work in theatrical productions or at multimedia concerts, theme parks, elaborate corporate events, half-time extravaganzas at sporting events, and more. You may spend a year in a post-graduate professional internship.