Programme Content
Year 1: Focusing and Experimenting
This year offers you a blend of key disciplines, combining imaginative interpretation with specific technical knowledge. You are introduced to a wide range of practical skills, including costume making, prop making, model making, as well as scenic construction, scene painting, technical drawing and CAD.
You work on our public performances throughout the year in a variety of creative roles, including stints in the scenic workshop and the wardrobe department, linked directly to your subject study.
Regular production meetings and seminars introduce you to the finer detail of the production process and, integration with the Theatre and Performance Technology degree, means you acquire technical knowledge to support your design work. You examine current trends in theatre and entertainment practice through The Context and work with a professional director on a hypothetical design project.
Year 2: Focusing and Experimenting
You are given more responsible and creative roles on performance projects this year, working as assistant designers to third years or as designers in your own right.
Vocational Skills projects give you the opportunity to experiment and deepen your knowledge in subjects such as Costume Props, Costume Construction, Puppetry, Live Art, Stage Effects, Lighting or AV Design.
You work on another design project with an external director and the year culminates with a placement that gives an opportunity to test career options and explore new working environments out in the professional world.
Year 3: Initiating and Leading
This year should act as a springboard for your career and gives you an opportunity to further develop a broad range of skills or to specialise in a certain area of work.
Two major practical roles give you the material for your professional portfolio and hone your leadership and creative skills. These can also offer the opportunity to develop your own work or collaborate with external organisations and spaces. Employment and enterprise sessions show you how to apply for jobs and forge a successful path as a freelance artist. You demonstrate the maturity of your communication and analysis skills in a final research project, exploring an area of your choice in depth.
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Teaching and Assessment
We start with lectures, seminars and practical workshops to teach a range of basic design skills in the first year and increase your visual vocabulary. Learning is also integrated practically with crew work on the major performances. You take on more responsibilities as your time here progresses, starting up your own projects where you wish to try new techniques or taking up more senior creative roles on the main shows. Most of your work involves developing sets, costumes and props for performance and writing evaluations of your own practical work. Throughout the programme, your practical contribution is continually appraised on both the working process and presentation of your realised design.