The Great Liberal Arts

Hannah Glaser attends the University of Birmingham’s (England) master’s program in acting

A lot was at stake at Hannah Glaser’s first important audition: a spot in a graduate acting program. Fortunately, her audition went well and Glaser ’10 is attending the University of Birmingham (England)’s master’s degree program this fall.

“[The liberal arts] opens up broader thinking about your career options.”

Quite a change for a young woman who enrolled in Macalester expecting to major in pre-med. That’s the great thing about a liberal arts education, says Glaser, “it opens up broader thinking about your career options.” After she’d been at Mac a few semesters, she asked herself what she really liked. “I wanted to do for a career whatever would make me happiest, and I realized theater was it.”

Although Glaser had dabbled in community theatricals, she got serious at Macalester, with big roles in productions of Tartuffe and Marat/Sade. The theater classes provided her with a good grounding in the theory and literature. When it came time for Glaser to show her stuff, visiting instructor Cheryl Brinkley helped her hone the three-minute audition piece she performed in front of faculty from numerous universities.

The one-year University of Birmingham program will focus on acting technique, with students taking part in many workshops and productions. “I really need this additional technical training to gain more confidence,” she says. “I want more guidance before I start my acting career.”