About AMDA

AMDA provides rigorous, performance-based training and an industry-focused education experience; one that inspires excellence and prepares artists with an appreciation for the universal power of transformation through art. AMDA's educational philosophy is based on close collegial interaction between instructors and students — in class, in production and through active mentorship.

AMDA is committed to providing an unsurpassed performing arts education to a diverse community of creative artists. AMDA serves as both school and stage, where students are given the support and opportunity to define their own personal objectives and to develop and refine their own distinctive artistic voices.

AMDA strives to create an environment for students to develop the skills, confidence, imagination, and power to contribute to their community as artists, entrepreneurs, visionaries, lifelong learners, and conscientious citizens of the world. Above all, AMDA wants to teach students that commitment and passion are the hallmarks of a successful and joyous career.

AMDA College and Conservatory of the Performing Arts prepares inspired artists for authentic and long-lasting careers. Our programs include the disciplines that define the industry: Musical Theatre, Acting, Acting for Camera, Dance Theatre, Commercial Music, and Content Creation. AMDA’s New York City campus offers Professional Certificate and Advanced Certificate programs, as well as unique and exciting degree pathways with AMDA Los Angeles and University Partners. At AMDA Los Angeles, students can earn Bachelor of Fine Arts Degrees, Graduate Degrees, and Associate of Occupational Studies Degrees. Every path follows the same student centered and active approach, which puts students on their feet from the first week, working in the studio, in rehearsal, and onstage under faculty who have built the very careers our students are pursuing.

Beyond training, AMDA College and Conservatory of the Performing Arts surrounds each student with the support that turns talent into a livelihood. This includes one-on-one artistic mentorship, a steady stream of performance and production opportunities, and career guidance grounded in how the professional industry actually works. With campuses in the heart of New York City and Los Angeles, our students train in the two capitals of American entertainment, never far from the stages, studios, and screens where the work happens, and they graduate ready to walk into the entertainment world with confidence.

For decades our alumni have gone on to Broadway, film and television, national and international tours, recording studios, and stages around the globe. Just as important, AMDA College and Conservatory of the Performing Arts opens the door to students from every kind of background who might never have imagined a professional arts education was within reach, and it turns their passion into a craft they can build a life on. Every artist we send into the world adds another voice to our culture, and that is the difference this institution was built to make.

AMDA first opened its doors in New York City in 1964 as The American Musical and Dramatic Academy. The first director of AMDA was the renowned theatre director, producer, teacher, and Shakespeare scholar, Philip Burton. The foundation of the AMDA program was based on the belief that the actor, the singer, and the dancer would each greatly benefit from attending an intensive conservatory training program in which all were taught the same integrated, multidisciplinary curriculum. AMDA’s philosophy was that the actor would develop stronger techniques by studying singing and dance alongside traditional acting courses and that the singer and dancer would both greatly benefit from in-depth acting study in addition to dance and vocal training.

Many recognized AMDA as the first institute of higher education devoted to theatre training in which the Broadway musical was not only accepted as a legitimate art form, but also celebrated and included in the curriculum. Faculty at AMDA were theatre professionals working on Broadway — actors, singers, dancers, directors, musical directors, and choreographers. Alumni went on to perform on Broadway, in television and film, and around the world as actors, singers, and dancers. AMDA’s unique program was a success. After Philip Burton retired, David and Jan Martin took the reins as co-presidents, taking AMDA to national prominence as one of the nation’s premier performing arts institutions. Under their leadership, AMDA grew exponentially in both size and scope, developing innovative programs of study.

In 2003, AMDA opened its Los Angeles campus as AMDA College and Conservatory of the Performing Arts. Located in the center of Hollywood, the school was the fulfillment of the Martins’ long-standing vision for the school to be rooted in the two entertainment capitals of the world. The Los Angeles campus offers undergraduate and graduate degrees encompassing professional performing arts training and liberal studies. One of AMDA’s exclusive opportunities is the Artist’s Laboratory, which provides students with the opportunity to create and perform original content for stage, media, and film in a faculty-mentored setting.

For over 60 years, AMDA has remained at the forefront of performing arts higher education and continues to flourish under David and Jan Martin’s singular devotion and passionate leadership. Today, AMDA’s undergraduate and graduate divisions provide students with exclusive opportunities to create and perform original content for stage, media, and film in a faculty-mentored setting. AMDA is a thriving institution and community that includes thousands of prominent alumni in every field of the entertainment industry.

Every educational experience at AMDA has a goal. Learning outcomes explain what students are expected to learn as a result of their AMDA education. Institutional Learning Outcomes describe what every AMDA student should expect to accomplish from any program of study at our institution. Program Learning Outcomes describe what every student should expect to accomplish within their specific program of study.

Institutional Learning Outcomes

• Artistry and Transformation: Graduates will be able to engage in their professional artistic endeavors without fear of experimentation or risk taking, exercising imagination and divergent thinking to create work that expands convention.

• Skills and Technique: Graduates will be prepared to demonstrate mastery of their chosen artistic discipline by creating art that builds upon their accumulated knowledge and study.

• Collaboration and Teamwork: Graduates will be able to effectively work collectively with colleagues in the artistic community and to share ideas in collaborative creativity.

• Social Responsibility: Graduates will demonstrate their understanding of the importance of theatre and other artistic endeavors in their community and to develop and produce creative works that offer, not only entertainment, but enlightenment of and solutions to societal issues.

Program Learning Outcomes

Please consult our Programs for each of our certificate and degree program’s learning outcomes.

AMDA (American Musical and Dramatic Academy) College of the Performing Arts is a private, non-profit, 501(c)(3) entity and is accredited regionally by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), 1080 Marina Village Parkway, Suite 500, Alameda, CA 94501, 510.748.9001.

Prior to November 10, 2023, AMDA was accredited by the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST).

Inquiries regarding accreditation status or approvals should be directed to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.

AMDA's EIN: 13-2501829

For additional accreditation and approval information, click here.