Stage Management

The Central Academy of Drama was the first theatre higher educational institution of the People's Republic of China. It is affiliated to China's Ministry of Education and is ranked as one of the best top-level drama and stage arts institutions in China. In recent years, the Academy has continuously made efforts to place undergraduate talent training and teaching at its pedagogic center, takes teaching quality improvement as a basic orientation, and strives to promote educational and teaching reform comprehensively. The Academy has strengthened exchange and communication, and consolidated its academic position in theatre education world.

The Academy is composed of Department of Acting, Department of Directing, Department of Stage Design, Department of Dramatic Literature, Department of Musical Theatre, Department of Peking Opera, Department of Western Opera, Department of Dance Theatre, Department of Theatre Pedagogy, Department of Theatre Management, Department of Film and TV Arts. Majors offered at the undergraduate level include: Acting, Directing, Art Design for Drama, Film & TV, Literature on Drama & Film & TV, Theater Studies, and Broadcast & Anchoring. 

To ensure continuous improvement of undergraduate educational and teaching quality and enable students to enjoy quality teaching resources, the Academy recruits only 600 undergraduates each year and keeps the number of current students in the Academy to 3000 at a long time. The Academy now has about 2100 students.

While promoting the Chinese theatre to follow the world trends and concepts, the Academy, a world top art college, has actively made efforts to cultivate undergraduate talents with international insight and competitiveness. The Academy has cooperated with St. Petersburg State Theatre Arts Academy, Russia and Guildhall School of Music & Drama, UK on an exchange project of 2+2 double-degree on four-year acting. In the future, the Academy will further increase more teaching cooperation programs with international renowned universities and colleges to explore new channels for innovative art talent trainings.

In 1981, approved by the Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council of P. R. China (ADCSC), The Central Academy of Drama, China is among the first batch of higher education institutions that have received the right to grant master degree. In July 1986, with the approval of ADCSC, The Academy gets the right to award doctoral degree. In January 2002, “Drama and Chinese Traditional Opera” is acknowledged as one of the National Key Disciplines by the Ministry of Education.

The academy has first-class discipline master’s degree and doctor’s degree authorization centers in Studies of Drama (Film & TV), and Theory Studies of Art. The main research directions are Esthetics of Drama, Theatre Studies, History of Chinese Opera, History of Foreign Theatre, History of Chinese Drama, History of Stage Design, Filmology, Studies on Drama (Film and TV) Acting, Studies on Theatre Directing, Studies on Theatre Stage Design, Studies on Drama (Film and TV) Literature, Studies on Theatre Management, Studies on Film Art, Theories and Practice of Musical Theatre Acting, Broadcasting and Hosting Art, etc.

The Central Academy of Drama, China has 111 master and doctor tutors. The Academy now has 354 graduate students, among whom 266 master students and 68 doctoral students.