Top Performing Arts Schools in Washington, DC

Washington, DC has a number of thriving performing arts institutions with esteemed alumni working on Broadway, touring theatre, local theatre, TV and film! Below, BroadwayWorld rounds up the top performing arts schools in Washington, DC. Check out the list below!

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American University

American University's Theatre and Musical Theatre Programs will provide you with the necessary education to perform in, design, manage, or direct a production and succeed in a variety of professions outside the theatre. Both programs are grounded in a strong liberal arts tradition.

The Theatre major features a specialized track in Performance. Theatre majors may also opt to honor the liberal arts tradition by choosing the broadly focused and interdisciplinary Theatre Arts track.

The Musical Theatre major builds upon the same liberal arts foundation of the theatre major by combining it with serious training in acting, voice, and dance. Regardless of major or track, all students are encouraged to develop their critical thinking skills and intellectual curiosity.

The theatre and music theatre faculty offer students the benefit of their academic training as well as their expertise as seasoned scholars, performers, writers, directors, designers, and choreographers. They are dedicated and committed to their profession and as professionals are able to bring some of the "real world" into the classroom.

In the past, theatre students have had the opportunity to work closely with and observe internationally recognized artists in core classes, electives, productions, and extra-curricular seminars and workshops. Some of our distinguished guests and teaching artists include: Broadway composer Dick Scanlon, LA Writer/Producer and Emmy winner Gary Dontzig, Broadway Director Scott Ellis, Signature Theatre's Michael Baron, Fords' Theatre's Mark Ramont, Synetic Theatre's Paata Tsikurishvili, Broadway designer James Kronzer, and Hollywood actor Herb Edelman.

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National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts

The National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts provides a structured, full time, immersive program that encourages collaboration, imagination, and innovation. With our team of working professional actors and directors, we also emphasize individual attention and small class size - typically no more than ten students per class. Plus, our school is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC), meaning that our standards are continually reviewed by a third party.

Instructors at NCDA help foster and sustain a creative working environment that is respectful and nurturing of each person's creativity and individuality. The atmosphere can be intense, but it is always supportive. ​Geared toward training the next generation of professional actors, the NCDA's curriculum includes a strong focus on the business of acting. In addition to the techniques that students will apply to their work on stage, they will gain the skills they will need to succeed in other aspects of the industry, including audition and callback techniques, marketing and branding, business planning, and budgeting.

With this well-rounded approach, students will graduate NCDA with an understanding of what it takes to enter into the professional creative industry.

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George Washington University

The program emphasizes the collaborative nature of theatrical art. Students are introduced to the arts and crafts of theatre: acting, design, technical production, dramaturgical analysis, directing, the historical antecedents of contemporary theatre and the important place of the audience in live theatre. As one of the arts and humanities disciplines in the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, theatre at GW is vibrantly interdisciplinary, regularly interacting with programs in music, English, fine arts, anthropology and women's studies.

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Catholic University

Catholic University's B.F.A. in Acting for Theatre, Film, and Television is a degree for the 21st century. It operates with the understanding that actors, to make their living, need to be working in film and television as well as theatre. Our graduating actors will be comfortable in all the media of their craft and gain the skills to start working immediately upon graduation.

The Department of Drama is dedicated to fostering excellence in Theatre Arts within a liberal arts curriculum. The B.F.A. for Theatre, Film, and Television provides the specificity and studio experience of conservatory training, enriched with the broad knowledge gleaned from a celebrated liberal arts program. Each semester, B.F.A. candidates will take progressive classes in acting, movement, and voice, while experiencing the richness of the humanities. Our objective is to provide prospective actors with a deep understanding of their art and train the future working artists and theatre visionaries of America.

Within the Nation's Capital, with its many opportunities for actors in television, film, and theatre, the B.F.A. actor will have the opportunity to intern at area theatres and studios, experience the dynamic theatre scene, and be mentored by professionals from the area as well as our prestigious graduates.

The culmination of study in this B.F.A. degree will be a Theatrical Industry showcase that presents student work to major theatre, film, and television casting directors and a short film produced with Media Studies and Art Department students, which can become part of an industry reel. These projects will celebrate the students' work, instill a sense of confidence about who they have become, and provide a bridge to the professional world of which they will take part.

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University of Washington

he University of Washington School of Drama develops innovative and courageous artists and scholars poised to be the creative leaders of tomorrow.

We offer MFA degrees in acting, design, and directing, a four-year undergraduate liberal arts education in Drama, and a PhD in theatre history and criticism. Our location in Seattle, one of the great theatre cities of the world, and in a region noted for creative entrepreneurship, makes our school a unique place to learn, work, and perform.

Our dynamic, award-winning faculty is dedicated to enabling each artist and scholar to reach their full potential. With decades of professional expertise, our collaborative team of faculty and guest artists provide our students with a mastery of the fundamentals, passion for innovation, and preparation for successful careers in multiple media.

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Howard University

You have made a life altering choice by majoring in Theatre Arts at Howard University. The Theatre Arts Department is known for its illustrious alumni, historical relevance, and for providing students the opportunity to engage up and coming and established renowned guest artists. Once involved with our dedicated faculty and modern-day, culturally relevant programming, our success in producing skilled, grounded performers, triple threats, theatre administrators, and technical theatre practitioners will be apparent. With a history of over a century, and distinction as the first HBCU to offer a BFA degree, Howard's Department of Theatre Arts will continue to lead as an artist incubator and producer of cutting-edge artists who are not afraid to step out of the box. From Felicia Rashad, Chuck Davis, and Debbie Allen, to Chadwick Bozeman, Anthony Anderson, and many others in-between and beyond, Howard's footprint in the Acting, Dance, and the Musical Theatre world is significant.

With academic year 2020-2021 being marked by the historical events of the Black Lives Matter Movement, the Covid-19 Pandemic, and all online instruction for a virtually hands-on discipline, students will be challenged to rise to the occasion. They will have to embrace the understanding that some changes made as a result of these historic events will be with us for years to come - and some may never leave. However, while navigating the Theatre Arts program students will quickly come to the realization that these realities are nonfactors with regard to their growth and ultimate achievement of excellence.

Remember, the most important event to occur this academic year is that you have decided to join a list of luminaries by choosing Howard

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