Program Recognition
•Housed in the Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance, a nationally accredited program within Wayne State's College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts
•Department named for arts patron Maggie Allesee, whose 2000 gift to the dance program preceded the combined Theatre and Dance department
Training
•BFA concentration in Acting combining acting and musical theatre performance coursework
•Conservatory-style training delivered alongside the department's professional production season
Performance & Productions
•Department mounts a full season of mainstage productions and dance concerts each year for hands-on stage experience
•Performances staged in the Hilberry Gateway Performing Arts Complex and the historic Bonstelle Theatre
Notable Alumni
•S. Epatha Merkerson — Wayne State BFA; Emmy and Golden Globe winner, Lt. Anita Van Buren on Law & Order •Ernie Hudson — Wayne State alum; Winston Zeddmore in Ghostbusters •Tom Skerritt — studied at Wayne State; Top Gun, Alien, Emmy winner for Picket Fences •Lily Tomlin — Wayne State theatre student and namesake of the department's Lily Tomlin Endowed Scholarship; 9 to 5, Grace and Frankie Facilities
•Hilberry Gateway Performing Arts Complex: a 513-seat proscenium theatre and a flexible 143-seat studio theatre with modern stage technology
•Studios at Old Main and the historic Bonstelle Theatre
Location
•Set in Midtown Detroit, within the city's professional theatre and arts district
