Interview: Director of Performing Arts at LIU Brooklyn Elin Eggertsdottir Talks New BFA Program and Partnership with The New Group

Recently two powerful New York institutions, Long Island University (LIU) Brooklyn and the renowned theater company The New Group, announced a new partnership to help train the next generation of great actors. In the fall of 2018 the University will begin a new BFA program founded on the studio model, where students will study under the supervision and guidance of faculty in collaboration with The New Group. Students will have the opportunity to bolster their traditional studies with masterclasses, internships and more alongside professional artists.

LIU's Director of Performing Arts Elin Eggertsdottir took a moment to speak with BroadwayWorld about this exciting new venture in arts education. See what she had to say below!

What is the process for creating a new BFA program?

First, the degree needs to be written, and we had a team of our top faculty members from the theater and media arts divisions, Dr. John Sannuto, Dr. Barbara Parisi, Professor Larry Banks and Professor Electa Brown, working together in writing the program. Robert Regan, Director of the School of Arts and Communication, and I had regular meetings with them throughout the process where we gave input, talked about the core values and goals of the degree, and how we could best prepare students for the competitive world of acting.

After the degree is written, the approval process starts, which includes the academic department, the faculty of LIU Brooklyn's School of Arts and Communication, the curriculum committee, and the university's board of directors. Finally, the degree is submitted to the New York State Education Department, and once approved, we can start advertising and recruiting students. It is a lengthy process that takes about 5 months from start to finish, but the checks and balances are all there to ensure the quality of the program.

Why The New Group?

The New Group is the perfect partner for us, as they are an award-winning, artist driven company with a commitment to developing and producing powerful, contemporary theater, which I think is the perfect learning environment for a young acting student. You look at the incredible talent that The New Group attracts for their shows- actors like F. Murray Abraham, Jesse Eisenberg, Ed Harris, Ethan Hawke, Chloë Sevigny, the list goes on and on, and you can't help but think what an incredible experience we could create for students with this partnership. The leadership of Artistic Director Scott Elliott and Executive Director Adam Bernstein is truly remarkable and the company continues to grow and surpass its previous successes, year after year. The company's educational programs, led by Juan Carlos Salinas- whom I have known since we attended Yale School of Drama, are well known in the New York Theater community for their quality. The New Group also has an excellent network of faculty and instructors, so they could not be better prepared to take on a university partnership.

What are the logistics of the partnership? What will a student's day-to-day schedule look like?

The training at The New Group focuses on stage acting, so we envision students going to their studio three days a week to take courses in acting, movement, and voice and speech. The partnership also gives our students the opportunity to see The New Group's performances, pursue internships, and attend masterclasses and talkbacks with the incredible actors that work with the company.

The theatrical productions within the acting program will be produced by LIU Brooklyn and performed in the amazing venues we have on our campus like the Kumble Theater, but having a close partnership with a dynamic theater company will inspire dialogue on the works we create. We will always be looking to work with up-and coming directors and playwrights for our student shows, and having The New Group partnership gives us great proximity to new talent.

What are the most critical skills you want students to come away with?

We want our students to have a solid foundation in terms of technique, and to be able to move fluidly between acting for stage and screen, but we also believe it is important for them to understand the industry they are going into. Therefore, we start the conversation early about how to get an agent, how to market yourself as an actor, how to audition, etc. as so much of the actor's time is spent on getting work. However, the most critical skill we want them to take away from the program is to be the makers of their own destiny, and learn how to produce their own work. Our students spend their final year producing and performing a capstone project, which they should be able to take to a fringe festival, or pitch to a producer or artistic director after they finish their degree. While our program, like most other programs, finishes with a showcase for agents, casting directors and managers, we do not want our students' career opportunities to be limited to solely attending auditions.

Why do you think a theatre education is so important right now?

With the recent boom of online streaming services, such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, there truly has never been a better time to study theatre and acting. There has never been a higher demand for creative people- whether it be actors, storytellers, or creative producers, and with video-sharing websites like YouTube, everyone has the opportunity for their work to be seen. Even for those who may eventually go to graduate school in a different field or transition into another career, a theatre education gives you so many transferable skills, such as collaboration, public speaking, project management, problem solving, etc. The self-discipline you gain from a theatre education also prepares you well for success in any field, so I believe the opportunities for our students are limitless.

For more information on LIU Brooklyn's exciting new venture, visit www.liu.edu/acting. To learn more about The New Group, visit TheNewGroup.org.

LIU Brooklyn campus photo courtesy of Long Island University)
New Group production photo: Jesse Eisenberg and Kunal Nayyar in THE SPOILS; photo credit Monique Carboni