Musical Theater (PAMT)

The course will introduce students to the fundamental skills and theories of acting with an emphasis on the Meisner Technique. This introduction to the art of acting will focus on both self- and partner- based exploratory exercises and developing and cultivating the emotional life of actors in order to live truthfully under imaginary circumstances. The course will consist of exercises designed to relax and ready actors, enabling them to explore the full range of their emotions. Exercises will be designed to engage students in concepts as they relate to imaginary circumstances with the major emphasis on actor development and growth through crafting, improvisation, emotional freedom and Meisner based activities. The arts of listening/responding, creating truthful behavior, and living moment-to-moment are the goals of the class.

Building and expanding on the techniques taught in PAMT 111, adding on the skills of emotional preparation, creating objectives, and crafting relationships.

Designed for those who have had no previous musical training. A study of music notation and music theory; scales, keys, intervals, harmonization, transposition, triads and functional harmony. Students will receive ear training, fundamental keyboard, and sight-singing skills with an emphasis on their practical uses in the musical theatre industry. Course Campus: NYC

A further and more in-dept study of music notation and music theory; chromatic harmony, complex meters and rhythms, and popular song forms. Students will continue developing their ear training, fundamental keyboard, and sight-singing skills as well as gain skills to make musically informed audition cuts.

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry.

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry. Course Campus:NY:Spring.

In this course, students are taught vocal anatomy through class work that focuses on physical alignment, breath control, vocal purity, resonance, vocal dynamics, and articulation, culminating in a poem or monologue presentation. Time permitting, student will also be introduced to the International Phonetics Alphabet (IPA) working on a general American accent, providing a foundation for accent work in the future.

This course introduces students to the components of voice and speech (respiration, phonation, resonation, and articulation) through class work that focuses on physical alignment, breath support, vocal clarity, resonance, range, and articulation. The course also introduces students to the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) and dialects/accents. The work culminates in an exploration of dialect/accent work integrated into scenes and songs in the musical theater cannon.

This course introduces first-year Musical Theater students to foundational practices and professional expectations of the industry. Through performance, self-assessment, and guided discussion, students will identify their current strengths and areas for growth while beginning to develop the skills necessary for success at Pace and in their future careers. The course will culminate in a student-led performance.

This course will focus on script analysis and character development using texts from contemporary American and British plays. Building on the techniques from PAMT 211/212, the student actor will learn how to translate those skills into action when presented with a script using objectives, actions, and the playwright’s language. Students will also be introduced to the techniques of Michael Chekhov to aid in character development. This completely process-based class is designed to give the student multiple tools to deepen their exploration of character and action.

This course expands on the skills introduced in PAMT 211 and takes the student back in time, starting with plays set in the early 1900s. The focus here is on style, period, and behavior – breathing life into characters and language that is decidedly not contemporary. The course ends in heightened American poetic language (Tennessee Williams/August Wilson) to prepare the student for verse/Shakespeare the following year.

Musical Theatre History & Repertoire I is both a history class and a performance class. Students will follow the story of musical theatre’s development from its roots in late 19th century operetta through the Golden Age of the 1950s, learning about the composers and lyricists who shaped the art form. Each week, students are assigned songs from the shows being discussed in class, giving them the chance to bring that history to life in performance and to experience the style of each era firsthand. The course also shines a light on artists whose voices were pushed to the margins because of race or gender, exploring their stories and the barriers they faced. By the end, students will know the history of musical theatre and have sung material from dozens of shows, building both their knowledge and their repertoire

This class is a continuation of Musical Theatre History & Repertoire I, focusing on the mid-20th century through the present day. Like its prerequisite, Musical Theatre History & Repertoire II combines history and performance. Students will learn about the composers and lyricists who shaped the art form and be assigned songs from the shows being discussed in class, giving them the chance to bring that history to life in performance and to experience the style of each era firsthand. The course also shines a light on artists whose voices were pushed to the margins because of race or gender, exploring their stories and the barriers they faced. By the end, students will know the history of musical theatre and have sung material from dozens of shows, building both their knowledge and their repertoire.

Musical Theatre Performance Technique is a process-based performance class that will teach the synthesis of emotional life, singing and movement skills as the foundation for a truthful and authentic musical theatre performance technique. In this class students will explore assigned musical theatre selections and work on them in a dramatic context. Each student will work on their song in front of the class multiple times. Students will learn to develop a character within the context of their song and be able to identify the obstacle, objective, tactics and stakes. Vocally, students will work on applying their singing technique in relationship to the character and acting. Physically, students will explore the brain to body connection, learning to sing from a neutral, unaffected physical place. The primary focus however, is to learn to integrate these three skills. Course Campus:NY;Spring.

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry.

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry. Course Campus:NY;Spring.

A study of script preparation and rehearsal techniques needed by the stage manager in professional and educational theater. Emphasis on methods, working conditions, union regulations and developing a production script.

The course is an exploration of the fundamental tools of Verse and Heightened Language acting—the text—from the actor’s point of view. What clues for the actor are in the words themselves? How are we meant to use devices such as the verse rhythm, the verse rhythm, the sounds of the language, and the word choices to bring the character to life, to discover the most dynamic performance of the scene, to excite thought and feeling in an audience.

This course continues the study of heightened language and circumstance through the works of Chekhov, Ibsen, and Strindberg in both classic and contemporary adaptations. The challenge is to bring the modern actor closer to works set in different times and different lands while maintaining their sense of truth and action.

A continuation of the learning objectives of PAMT 223. Students will continue explore the dramatic context of musical theatre material as the work to synthesize their acting, voice, and physical life. Students will work on both self-selected and instructor selected material in the class.

In this performance-based course, students will explore a series of Musical Theatre scenes, focusing on integrating the script (book) with the score. The course will emphasize the development of essential skills for analyzing, rehearsing, and performing scenes from various musicals. Students will be assigned different scenes, each representing a distinct style, ranging from the 1920s to the present day.

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry. Course Campus:NY:Spring.

This course offers students the opportunity to use their work on a production as a lab experience to apply the skills, techniques, and knowledge acquired in class.

This course offers students the opportunity to use their work on a production as a lab experience to apply the skills, techniques, and knowledge acquired in class.

This course introduces students to the components of voice and speech (respiration, phonation, resonation, and articulation) through class work that focuses on physical alignment, breath support, vocal clarity, resonance, range, and articulation. The work culminates in an exploration of heightened text for performance. The course also introduces students to the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), incorporating General American speech, and utilizing this foundation to explore at least two dialects/accents

The course will introduce students to the fundamental skills necessary to work with commercial copy, sides and cue cards in front of a camera as when in a commercial shoot. The course aims to help students come from themselves as actors and make memorable choices during this process as well as when filming self-tapes for on-camera auditions. Students will learn commercial copy and cold reading techniques including how to do copy within given time frames. All crucial work will be examined and reviewed on camera.

The course is a continuation of the learning objectives from PAMT 411. Students will move into the more advanced skills necessary to work with commercial copy, sides and cue cards in front of a camera as when in a commercial shoot. The course aims to help students come from themselves as actors and make memorable choices during this process as well as when filming self-tapes for on-camera auditions. Students will learn commercial copy and cold reading techniques including how to do copy within given time frames. All crucial work will be examined and reviewed on camera. Course Campus:NY:Spring.

This acting course is offered to second semester seniors focusing on the foundational elements and techniques associated with the craft of acting. Using the teachings/writings of Uta Hagen and Sanford Meisner, the class will explore the original acting exercises designated to invoke in the actor an essence of simplicity, honesty, and the skills of listening.

This is a performance-based class with an emphasis on preparation for professional auditions. In this class, students will work towards building their audition book while gaining an understanding of how to select material for auditions throughout their career. Students will explore how to navigate the professional landscape by participating in mock auditions, learning how to track auditions, understanding the role of community, discussing how to navigate their relationship with representation, and by crafting a post-graduation career plan.

This course provides senior musical theatre students with a practical introduction to the business side of the performing arts. Topics covered include contracts, finances, unions, networking, self-marketing, and the various roles within theatre, film, and television production. Emphasis is placed on professional practices, personal branding, relationship-building with industry professionals, and preparing for real-world career challenges in the arts.

This performance-based course invites students to explore the intersection of casting, identity, and storytelling in musical theatre. In workshop format—integrating script (book) and score—, students will rehearse and present substantial sections from musicals (including solos, duets, and ensemble numbers) to examine how intentional, identity-conscious casting can reshape or deepen a narrative. Through guided discussions and critical reflection, students will consider how thoughtful casting choices can expand a story’s relevance, reach, and resonance. But what happens when reinterpretation challenges the writers’ original intent? This course embraces the creative risk involved in such choices, encouraging students to engage in a process that may not always “work”—and to learn just as much from those outcomes, as falling short can offer valuable insight into the piece itself and the range of possibilities it holds. (MT Workshop is open to all Sands Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors.)

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry.

Voice lessons focusing on singing technique as it applies to the musical theater industry. Students will explore various vocal techniques, apply their technique to repertoire, and work towards sustainability and consistency in their singing. Students will also explore various musical and vocal genres to gain the flexibility needed for the musical theater industry. Course Campus:NY:Spring.

In this class, students will work towards selecting material that is reflective of their skills and marketability to present to agents, managers, casting directors, and other industry professionals in their senior showcase. The class will also be a continuation of PAMT 421, helping students continue to refine their audition material and skills, as well as craft their post-graduation career plan.