The B.A. degree in Theater & Performance Studies (TAPS) requires the critical and historical study of theater as well as the study and experience of performance. A total of 60 units are needed to obtain a B.A. degree in TAPS. The major provides aesthetic and critical opportunities for students to develop vital intellectual and creative skills. Students are encouraged to declare a major in their sophomore year.
To schedule an appointment with our student services officer, Justin Higinbotham, please email [email protected].
For a full list of degree requirements, CLICK HERE.
Required Courses
60 units total for the major
A course may be listed in more than one area; however, each course can only satisfy one major requirement. There is no double credit for a course. Additionally, you can petition to the department Undergraduate Advisor to have additional courses offered by the department count towards requirements in areas 2, 3, and 4. All introductory courses are required with no exceptions.
1. Introductory Core Courses—12 units (all required):
TAPS 30. How Theater is Designed (4 units)
TAPS 1. Introduction to Theater & Performance Studies (4 units)
TAPS 101P. How Practice Practices (4 units)
2. Theatrical Literature/History—14 units
Any courses between TAPS 150-169
3. Theatrical Performance Courses: Acting, Directing, Design, and Playwriting—13 units
Any course with the subject code DANCE
Acting courses between TAPS 20-29, 120-129, 210
TAPS 110. Identity, Diversity, and Aesthetics: The Institute for Diversity in the Arts (IDA)
Playwriting and Dramaturgy courses between TAPS 70-79
Directing, Playwriting and Dramaturgy courses between TAPS 170-179
4. Theatrical Production—9 units
TAPS 34. Stage Management Techniques (4 units)
TAPS 134. Stage Management Project (4 units)
TAPS 39. Theater Crew (3 units)
5. Electives—10 units
Any course in TAPS or Dance.
6. Senior Project—2 units
TAPS 200. Senior Project
All TAPS Majors must complete a Senior Project. The project must be a significant work in any area of theatre / performance. It can be creating a performance through devising an original piece or through writing, directing and/or performing a major role. It can also be another creative enterprise that requires any original contribution. Work for this project normally begins in Spring Quarter of the junior year and is completed by the end of the senior year. Students receive credit for senior projects through TAPS 200, 2 units minimum are required, but additional units are available for large projects. Students pursuing senior projects must submit a two-page proposal to a faculty adviser of their choice area early in the junior year; details available from the Undergraduate Advisor. Students considering projects that include practical production should consult with the Director of Production. Practical projects are typically approved by department faculty at the end of Spring Quarter of the junior year.
For more specific information on the B.A. degree, visit the TAPS section of the current Stanford Bulletin.
For a limited number of students, the department confers the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Departmental Honors in TAPS. To be considered for departmental honors, students must meet the following requirements in addition to the other requirements of the TAPS major:
1. Application involves a written submission (including transcript) establishing the student's work to date in the department and outlining the area of research that the student wishes to pursue. No students are admitted to the honors program with a overall university GPA below 3.3 and below 3.5 in courses counting towards the TAPS major.
2. Student must have a Stanford cumulative grade point average above a 'B-' to be admitted into the Honors Program. For transfer students, at the time of transfer the same GPA requirement applies.
3. Students must complete the TAPS core requirements by the end of their junior year, earlier if possible. Only in exceptional circumstances can this requirement be waived. Transfer from another university, extended overseas study, or temporary withdrawal from the major due to illness might constitute extenuating circumstances.
4. Students must have completed half of the courses in their specialization by the end of their junior year.
5. Students must complete 4 units in the honors colloquia (described below), beginning Spring Quarter of their junior year and continuing the following three regular quarters. Each quarter's colloquium is offered for 1 unit, S/NC. In extenuating circumstances (overseas study, for example), an honors program student may substitute other equivalent work for one quarter of the colloquium, with the approval of the honors adviser.
6. By the end of the sixth week of the quarter in which they plan to graduate, students in the honors program must submit an honors thesis (described below), to be read and evaluated by their thesis committee.
7. On the basis of a student's work in the TAPS core, in the area of specialization, on the senior project, in the honors colloquia, and on the honors thesis, the faculty determines and confers honors on graduating students who have successfully completed the honors program.
8. Failure to meet any of these requirements, or to make satisfactory progress on the honors thesis, leads to dismissal from the honors program.
9. Entry into the Honors program does not guarantee an Honors degree. The final decision to confer an Honors degree will be made by the student's thesis committee, upon evaluating the quality of the Senior Project and the thesis.
Honors Colloquia and Thesis— The honors colloquia aim to engage honors program students in important issues in the field focusing on the students' areas of specialization and research. The honors program adviser convenes the colloquia three times per quarter and sets the agenda for meetings and discussion. Students discuss their work in the department and present and discuss their research for their honors thesis. Students must enroll in TAPS 202, Honors Thesis.
The honors thesis typically consists of a long essay (40-60 pages) presenting the student's research on an important issue or subject, determined by the student. The honors program adviser, the senior project adviser, and another faculty member constitute the student's honors thesis committee. They read and evaluate the thesis, and make recommendations to the faculty at large regarding its strengths and weaknesses. Additionally, students have the option of using their own senior project as a case study. In these situations, the honors thesis will critically analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the creative work. Generally, these essays tend to be shorter (about 20-25 pages) because the creative work constitutes one-half of the honors project.
Application Information/Fine Arts Submissions
Part of the undergraduate application includes an optional Arts Supplement submission. Students with extraordinary talent in the fine or performing arts who intend to participate and/or study in one of the arts areas even if not majoring in the arts may submit supplementary materials for review. Such applicants are expected to have previously received significant recognition for their talent, usually at the regional, state, national or international level. Please note that an Arts submission is only a supplement to the application process. Its submission neither guarantees nor commits a student to participation in the arts at Stanford if admitted, nor does non-submission preclude such participation.
The Department of Theater & Performance Studies does not admit students directly to its program; all undergraduate applications are handled centrally by the university. Students interested in applying for undergraduate admission should visit the Undergraduate Admissions webpage at www.admissions.stanford.edu for more information. In order to have your Arts Supplement considered in the review of your application, you must submit the Common Application, the Stanford Supplement to the Common Application, the Common Application Arts Supplement and all supplementary arts materials (Instructor Letter of Recommendation, Arts Resume, and the Arts submission) by the Arts Supplement deadline (October 15 for Restrictive Early Action, December 1 for Regular Decision, and March 15 for Transfer). If you are requesting a live audition, be sure to indicate “Live Audition” on the Common Application Arts Supplement form and contact our department to schedule the live audition. Please review detailed instructions and deadlines for the Arts Supplement here.
TAPS offers live auditions/interviews at the department. (Though we encourage personal visits, we realize this is not always possible for students. If students cannot audition on campus, a DVD may substitute for a live audition.)
Audition dates TBA soon.
For more information, please email our student services officer. If these dates are not possible for you, please send in a DVD in place of a live audition.
- All students should bring a resume of their theater experience.
- Designers should bring examples of their work in a portfolio and be prepared to discuss them.
- Students interested in directing should be prepared to discuss their approach to a particular play and ideas for production.
- Actors should prepare two selections, each under two minutes long.
- One should be from a contemporary play with a character close in age to you;
- The other should be classical, such as a Shakespearean monologue.
- In addition, students may prepare a song, although there will be no accompanist provided; you may bring a tape or CD along, or sing a cappella.
Please note that an Arts Supplement is only a supplement to the application process. A submission can never hurt your chances of acceptance to the university but does not guarantee admission. Stanford is interested in admitting interesting, well-rounded people of all kinds, so if Admissions is weighing two very similar applications, an Arts submission adds extra weight in your favor.