Costume Design
Imagination Materialized.
Carnegie Mellon’s MFA Costume Design program is consistently ranked among the best in the country. Our world-class faculty work in live performance, film, television, print, exhibition curation, and more. Students have opportunities to work with local theater and opera companies, and to take part in international offerings such as the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, World Stage Design, and other festivals and symposiums around the world. Graduates leave with the skills and industry connections to build artistically fulfilling and successful careers.
Costume Design Curriculum
The costume design curriculum offers students intensive, mentored instruction in courses that develop their aesthetic sensibilities, understanding of global history, critical analysis, making skills, and practical application in realized productions. Coursework and production experiences span theater, film, television, opera, musicals, dance, and devised work. Advanced students may be assigned to assist or design professionally with one of Pittsburgh’s many theater companies, and annual trips to New York costume studios and the fabric district familiarize students with these important resources.
A World-Class Costume Studio
Take a special behind-the-scenes look at CMU’s costume studio with NEXTpittsburgh’s Boaz Frankel.
alumni stories
Featured Faculty
The way CMU approaches collaboration is different from other schools and it’s really refreshing. It’s always a more in-depth dramaturgical process when I come across other CMU alumni, and maybe that’s just because we share a language.
Jen Caprio, Class of 2003 | Broadway costume designer for “The Heart of Rock & Roll” and “Spamalot” among others
Are you ready to take the next step toward your dreams? Learn more about our application, audition, and interview process.