Theater Arts Course Offerings and Enrollment

ENROLLMENT BASICS & RESOURCES

Year-specific Theater Arts Course Offerings Sheets

ALL 2024-2025 THEA COURSES:View most current list .
​THEA Dance courses in 2024-2025: View most current list here

Posted annually in the spring and updated as needed throughout the year, the Theater Arts Course Offerings sheets are essential for planning:

• The Course Offerings sheets indicate which upper-division courses will fulfill upper-division requirements for the Theater Arts major or minor and the Dance minor in the current year (e.g., which courses offered this year fulfill the Upper Division Studio or History/Theory/Critical Studies requirements, etc.) – see the KEY at the bottom of the sheets.
• Courses and instructor assignments on the course offerings sheets are SUBJECT TO CHANGE – check at least once a quarter for updates.

Related course and program information

Summer Session courses in Theater Arts on the Dept. of Performance, Play & Design page – scroll down for THEA courses (Summer courses appear on the Summer Session website in early December, then in the Schedule of Classes on March 15, and enrollment opens May 1).

Schedule of Classes/Class Search – The Class Search lists finalized information and schedules for the currently enrolling or in-session quarter(s).

THEA Course Descriptions – lists descriptions for all THEA courses in the UCSC General Catalog (be sure to see the see the Course Offerings sheet above for courses offered this year, and the Schedule of Classes for currently enrolling or in-session quarter/s).

Degree Information and Policies (including major qualification and declaration information).

Degree Requirements for the Theater Arts major and minor and the Dance minor.

See the Theater Arts Courses That Fulfill University General Education (GE) Requirements chart below.

For estimated schedule information about classes in future quarters, please consult with the Theater Arts advisor: 
theater-ugradadv@ucsc.edu.

Audition information for production classes is on the Auditions page. 

ENROLLMENT IN PRODUCTIONS

Students will be given an enrollment permission number to enroll through MyUCSC if they are cast in productions after auditioning or have been selected to participate as designers, stage managers or dramaturgs.

• IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE STUDENT TO ENROLL BY THE QUARTER’S ADD/DROP/SWAP DEADLINE (date posted in the current Academic and Administrative Calendar).
  • Enrollment permission numbers are typically distributed by the stage manager or director of the production.
  • Always enroll in a “backup” class any quarter you plan to audition or try for a position on a production or any other class requiring a permission number (unless you are able to obtain a permission number early from the instructor, which is sometimes possible, for instance, when a number is required for enrollment but the instructor will not hold auditions). Choose a backup class that is open and allows enrollment during your regular enrollment period – choose a class you would actually take if you do not end up taking the by-permission class or production.
  • How to use enrollment permission numbers: 
    • Video instructions and Written/PDF instructions
    • Or email the Registrar’s office for help: registrar@ucsc.edu
    • You may need to use the Swap enrollment function if you have enrolled in a backup class.

• Attention Barnstorm Theater Company students:
  • Be sure you are enrolling in the correct class – THEA 55A for 5 units (satisfies the Production Requirement and/or the Lower Division Elective for the for the major), or THEA 55B for 2 units (doesn’t satisfy a course requirement). Students enrolled in the 5-unit version of the class will be expected to complete approximately three times more work than students enrolled in 2-units.

• PRODUCTION AUDITIONS FOR PERFORMERS
  • Students are cast in (selected for) productions after auditioning. See our production Auditions page for upcoming opportunities.

• DESIGN WORK & STAGE MANAGEMENT FOR PRODUCTIONS
  • Please see the Design Work & Stage Management for Productions section of the Theater Arts Undergraduate Handbook, including a link to the “Tech Interest Form.”

• DRAMATURGY FOR PRODUCTIONS
  • Please see the Dramaturgical Work For Productions section of the Theater Arts Undergraduate Handbook.

ENROLLMENT IN BY-AUDITION OR INSTRUCTOR PERMISSION STUDIO COURSES

• Production auditions are different from auditions required for admittance into acting, dance or directing studio courses that list “audition” or “by-instructor permission” in the course description.
  • Please see the By-Audition or Instructor Permission Studio Courses of the THEA Undergraduate Handbook for more information.

• IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE STUDENT TO ENROLL BY THE QUARTER’S ADD/DROP/SWAP DEADLINE (date posted in the current Academic and Administrative Calendar).
  • Enrollment permission numbers for studio courses that require them are distributed by the instructor.
  • Always enroll in a “backup” class any quarter you plan to audition or try for a position on a production or any other class requiring a permission number (unless you are able to obtain a permission number early from the instructor, which is sometimes possible, for instance, when a number is required for enrollment but the instructor will not hold auditions). Choose a backup class that is open and allows enrollment during your regular enrollment period – choose a class you would actually take if you do not end up taking the by-permission class or production.
  • How to use enrollment permission numbers: 
    • Video instructions and Written/PDF instructions
    • Or email the Registrar’s office for help: registrar@ucsc.edu
    • You may need to use the Swap enrollment function if you have enrolled in a backup class.

Enrollment Prep Week  

After your first quarter’s enrollment, Enrollment Prep Week (formerly “Advising Week”) is the week before enrollment opens every quarter. This is the best time to get ready for enrollment the following week! See upcoming Enrollment Prep Week dates on the current UCSC Academic and Administrative Calendar.

Beginning the first day of Enrollment Prep Week:

• Classes are viewable in the UCSC Schedule of Classes Class Search. 
• You can put classes in your shopping cart.
• You can find your two specific enrollment appointment dates and the number of units you may enroll in during each of your dates: MyUCSC > Enrollment > Enrollment Dates (or see How To Find Your Enrollment Dates).
  • During the first date, most Frosh, Sophomores and Juniors are able to enroll in up to 14 units. Seniors and students with Priority Enrollment status have one start date and are able to enroll in up to 19 units during that first date.
  • During the second date, Frosh, Sophomores and Juniors are able to enroll in additional units, up to 19, and all students are able to waitlist in up to 14 units of classes that are full.
    • NOTE ABOUT WAITLISTING: No students are able to waitlist until the second round of dates (more about waitlists below). 
• Meet with your advisors! Enrollment Prep Week is an ideal time to update your academic plan, discuss enrollment options, etc.:
  • Make a Theater Arts advising appointment through Navigate Slug Success to update or make an academic plan for the Theater Arts major or minor or Dance minor, and/or to go over class offerings/selection.
  • Your college advisors are also great resources, as well as any other and major/minor advisors you may be working with, to answer questions about enrollment or choosing classes for GEs or other degrees.

Related General Enrollment Information

Waitlists / Waitlisting for Classes

IF YOU DON’T GET INTO A CLASS YOU WANT, WAITLIST YOURSELF!

NOTE: No students are able to add to waiting lists until the second round of enrollment appointment dates. Check your MyUCSC enrollment dates – all student are assigned two each quarter. You will have an option to waitlist during your second.

• To see your waitlist date: MyUCSC > Enrollment > Enrollment Dates.
• Students on waiting lists are given priority over those who simply show up on the first day of class hoping to get in.
• Always enroll in backup course(s) before you waitlist for your desired courses to ensure you are enrolled full time (12 units or more) and so that you have spots secured in alternate course(s) in case your waitlisted courses do not work out.
• Waitlist info video.
• More about waitlists: FAQs for Students: Waitlist.

General Enrollment Help

• Student Enrollment FAQs.
• Enrolling in More Than 19 Credits
  • All full-time undergraduates may enroll for up to 19 units per term.  Undergraduates with a cumulative UCSC GPA greater than or equal to 2.5 may enroll in up to 22 credits beginning the first day of instruction.
• Enrollment Appointment Tutorial (video)
• FAQs for Students: Enrollment Appointments
• Enrollment permission numbers:
  • How to Use Permission Codes/Numbers video instructions 
  • Written/PDF instructions
• For technical help enrolling, swapping classes or editing sections:
  • Email registrar@ucsc.edu or 
  • call the Registrar’s Enrollment Help Line: (831) 459-4412 – Press 9 for a person. Phone and Front Counter hours are listed here.

• About the first day of a class, and before:
  Before the first day of classes, take the time to locate your classrooms. If you arrive late to the first class, in-person or online, you may lose your space in the class—DO NOT MISS THE FIRST DAY OF ANY COURSE OR YOU MAY BE DROPPED! The first day of classes (and many other important dates and deadlines) is listed on the UCSC Academic and Administrative Calendar.

The C General Education Requirement / Writing 2

WHEN TO TAKE WRITING 2 FOR THE COMPOSITION (C) REQUIREMENT & THEA 160:

• The prerequisite for THEA 160 Dramatic Theories and THEA 185 Senior Seminar – which are both required for the Theater Arts major (and THEA 160 is an option for the Theater Arts minor) – is satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. If you pass Writing 2, you will have satisfied these prerequisites.
• Because THEA 160 is only offered in spring quarter, Theater Arts majors who enter as Frosh usually take THEA 160 the spring of their second year, and Theater Arts majors who enter as Transfers need to take it in the spring quarter of their first year.
• Transfer students who need to take Writing 2 at UCSC should do so as soon as possible, in their first or second quarter if they are Theater Arts majors (see previous notes).
• Because Writing 2 is an impacted class, the university advises all first year Frosh not take it until their first spring quarter at the earliest.
• The university deadline to complete Writing 2 is the start of 7th quarter (first quarter for Transfer students).

Theater Arts Courses That Fulfill GEs
(University General Education Requirements)

Some Theater Arts courses satisfy university General Education (GE) requirements. See chart below.

• “Best Bets” – check this quarterly summary of GE recommendations if you need to find a GE class outside of the program. Most classes on the list have no prerequisites or enrollment restrictions.
• See all UCSC GE Requirements here: https://registrar.ucsc.edu/enrollment/gened.html

UNIVERSITY GE REQUIREMENT CATEGORIES:		Theater Arts courses that fulfill university GE requirements:
• Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)		THEA 22 Indonesian Dance and Drama, THEA 80Z Indian Dance, THEA 31A Dance–Asian or Asian Diasporic, THEA 122 Indian Performance: Rama, Siva, Krishna, THEA 167 Africanist Aesthetics, THEA 161B Black Women and Diasporic Theatrical Expression, THEA 161D Asian Theater
• Ethnicity and Race (ER)		THEA 31B Dance Studio II: Ballet, THEA 31L Dance Studio I: Introduction to Latin American Social Dances, THEA 80A Intro to African AmerIcan Theater, THEA 80R Bollywood, THEA 80U Everybody Dance Now!, THEA 131A Asian or Asian Diasporic, THEA 131B Dance Studio II: Ballet, THEA 131L Advanced Latin American Social Dances, THEA 151A AATAT, THEA 161P Theater in the Chicano Power Movement
• Interpreting Arts and Media (IM) — ALL THEA MAJORS WILL EARN THIS GE WITH THE REQUIRED THEA 10 or THEA 20 (unless, both of those requirements are fulfilled with transferred classes that do not cover the IM GE).		THEA 10 or THEA 20 (both are major reqs; minors may take one of these for the LD intro req), THEA 40 Intro to Directing, THEA 80L Muppets, THEA 80N Disney, THEA 80P Pixar, THEA 116A History of Clothing & Costume, THEA 117 Costume Design, THEA 117A Advanced Costume Construction, THEA 126M Meisner, THEA 165 Dance Modernism
• Math and Formal Reasoning (MF)		– NO THEA CLASSES
• Scientific Inquiry (SI)		– NO THEA CLASSES
• Statistical Reasoning (SR)		– NO THEA CLASSES
• Textual Analysis (TA) — ALL THEA MAJORS & MINORS WILL EARN THIS GE WITH THEA 61 A, B, OR C.		THEA 61A, B or C – all are required for the Major; Minors must take any one.
• Perspectives (PE– ): Environmental Awareness (PE-E), or Human Behavior (PE-H), or Technology and Society (PE-T)		THEA 80C Monsters, THEA 143 Ecofutures, THEA 80T Flashmob
• Practice (PR– –): Collaborative Endeavor (PR-E), or Creative Process (PR-C), or Service Learning (PR-S)		THEA 8 Iranian Theater (2 unit), THEA 14 Drawing, THEA 17 Costume Construction, THEA 30 Intro to Dance Theory and Technique, THEA 31C Dance Studio I, THEA 36 Intro to Dance Composition, THEA 37 African Dance, THEA 114 Sound Design, THEA 115A Scenic Design, THEA 119 Lighting, THEA 136 Choreography, THEA 139 RWAP, THEA 128 (2 units – choreographers take w RWAP)
• Composition (C1 and C2) See the C General Education Requirement section above and the Writing Requirements FAQs page.		– NO THEA CLASSES

Graduate & Undergraduate Independent Studies 

Independent Study Enrollment Instructions for Students:

• After consulting with a faculty sponsor/instructor, fill out the project title, evidence of preparation, and work to be submitted fields on the Docusign form:

• After you submit the form, the faculty sponsor will receive an email notification with a link to review and sign the form. Please be sure they are expecting the email from Docusign (you may need to email them a reminder).
• Once faculty sponsor has signed, the PPD Programs Coordinator will receive the completed form and will email you a class number to officially enroll in MyUCSC.
• Once you have the class number:
  • Go to MyUCSC select Main Menu – Student Center – Enroll.
  • Enter the class number that was emailed to you by the Programs Coordinator (this is different from an enrollment permission number, or “add code,” and goes in a different field – the class number field).
  • Click “enroll“.
• To see if your enrollment was successful, click “My Class Schedule” in the tab above and check carefully that you have enrolled in the correct course with the correct faculty member.
• If the information for your course is not correct, please check that you have correctly entered the class number that was emailed to you. If so, then please email the programs coordinator and academic advisor for assistance. 
• Independent study enrollment questions should be addressed to the department Programs Coordinator, Lissa McCullough (lbmccull@ucsc.edu):