Introduction
Our three-year undergraduate programme prepares you for a career in contemporary dance by giving you the opportunity to develop the technical, creative and performance skills needed to become an individual and versatile dance artist. The programme will also help you gain the contextual understanding and the critical, analytical and reflective skills which will inform your artistic practice.
Key Features:
- Alongside daily classes in contemporary dance techniques and ballet for contemporary dancers, creative workshops will help you shape your artistic practice and develop your choreographic voice. You will have numerous opportunities to create your own choreography and perform in your own and others’ dance works.
- Reflecting on a range of creative processes and investigating movement and dance in its historical, social and cultural contexts will allow you to locate your own practice and to explore areas that interest you.
- As you move through the programme, major performance projects enable you to work with leading dance practitioners (members of the Trinity Laban teaching faculty as well as visiting dance artists) to create and perform a wide range of dance works. The performance projects in the first and third years of the programme involve the creation of new dance works whilst second year students participate in the restaging of historically significant repertoire.
- A substantial independent project is an important element in your third year and you can choose to undertake theoretical or practical research, leading to a written dissertation or the performance of a choreographed work.
- A degree show at the end of the final year provides a public showcase for work by graduating students.
Course Details
The BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance programme is designed for students to develop as an independent, autonomous learner and grow into a confident, creative dance practitioner. The three-year programme will facilitate the development of your individual artistic voice, and by the end of the course you will have created and performed a wide range of challenging dance works within various settings and to diverse audiences. Through intensive practice you will have acquired dance skills at the highest level. You will have participated in creative processes directed by professional dance artists, and you will have researched, created, and presented your own choreography.
The programme is undertaken over three consecutive academic years, on a full time basis. Each year is undertaken over three terms and consists of modules which are structured to support progressive development in your training and studies. Advancing through the programme you are increasingly encouraged to develop as an independent learner and dance artist.
For further details see our Programme Specification.
Year One
Year 1 introduces and prepares you for the different strands of the curriculum. It aims to develop fundamental core skills and provides exposure to new ways of working within dance techniques, creative practices, performance, and contextual knowledge. All students follow the same programme at this level. You will gain a robust understanding of frameworks for critical reflection on contemporary dance and arts practice.
Modules
Year 1 (Level 1)
| Modules | Credits (120) |
Technical Practice 1:
|
60 |
Creative Practice 1:
|
30 |
Performance Practice 1:
|
15 |
Investigating Dance Practice 1
|
15 |
Year Two
Year 2 further encourages versatility and risk-taking to enhance your artistic voice and its connectedness to wider current arts practices and communities. You will continue to study the subjects introduced in Year 1, developing, and defining craft and further integrate your skills, knowledge and understanding in those specialist dance areas. In addition, an elective component will enable you to explore an area of individual interest without compromising on the other strands. This will place dance in the context of either film, music collaboration, performance design or community practice.
Modules
Year 2 (Level 2)
| Modules | Credits (120) |
Technical Practice 2:
|
45 |
Creative Practice 2:
|
40 |
Performance Practice 2:
|
15 |
Investigating Dance Practice 2:
*Students are required to select one of the four component options |
20 |
Year Three
Year 3 stresses independent and in-depth research as well as advanced technical, creative, and professional skills development. You will be encouraged to further develop your identity as an individual artist and create a personally relevant portfolio of work. You will undertake an Independent Research Project during which you develop, within a negotiated framework, a substantial piece of self-directed research with a devised, performance or written outcome. You will be able to further focus on your strengths and interests by choosing a distinct direction within one of the following areas: choreography, performance, technical training, and teaching.
Modules
Year 3 (Level 3)
| Modules | Credits (120) |
Technical Practice 3
|
40
|
Performance Practice 3:
|
30
|
Investigating Dance Practice 3
|
40
|
Options
*Students are required to select one of the four component options. |
10
|
Teaching and Learning
Hours
The overall number of student learning hours is approximately 4500, comprising taught, placement and self-directed study hours. The average number of contact hours on the programme is around 2100.
How will I learn?
A wide range of methods is used to meet the diverse learning approaches of the students and to provide a breadth and depth of learning experiences essential for the rigorous training of multi-skilled dance artists in order to maximise their professional opportunities in the highly competitive dance field.
- Studio based practical classes
- Lectures and seminars
- Individual and group tutorials
- Workshops, masterclasses and mock auditions
- Self-directed study
- Individual and group projects
- Educational visits
- Self and peer feedback
- Professional placement and projects
- Student tour to a range of performance contexts
- Hands-on practical task-based activities
Find out more about Dance performance opportunities.
TEACHING STAFFHow will I be assessed?
A wide variety of assessment methods is used to reflect the diverse learning experiences you will encounter on the programme and to give you the opportunity to demonstrate your acquisition of a broad as well as in-depth range of skills, knowledge and understanding necessary for you to become a rounded and versatile dance artist.
- Practical tasks
- Assessed classes
- Performance/Choreographic presentations
- Rehearsal and performance (both in commissioned work, your own work and that of your peers)
- Live group and individual oral presentations
- Filmed and web-based presentations
- Lecture demonstrations
- Viva voces
- Research based academic writing
- On-line blogs and websites
- Reflective writing
- Report writing
- Notebook/sketchbook
Alumni Destinations
Graduates from this programme have gone on to perform with leading dance companies and/or establish themselves as acclaimed choreographers. Other graduates enjoy successful careers as teachers, community dance artists, arts managers and dance writers.
Below is just a small selection of our recent BA graduates that have gone on to perform, and the company they are working/have worked with:
Jack William Parry (2018) – New Adventures
Marine Tournet (2017) – National Dance Company Wales
Olivia Edginton (2016) – Candoco Dance Company
Jasmine Orr (2016) – Jasmin Vardimon Company
Sebastian Abarbanell (2015) – Sidra Bell Dance New York
Saara Hurme (2015) – Protein
Eeva Juutinen (2014) – Tilted Productions
Matthew Sandiford (2012) – BalletBoyz
Adam Russell (2012) – BalletLorent
Elly Braund (2011) – Richard Alston Dance Company
James Pett (2011) – Company Wayne McGregor
Luka Owen (2010) – Motionhouse
Petros Treklis (2010) – Sydney Dance Company
Lisa Rowley (2010) – Tavaziva
Ian Gardside (2008) – DV8
TJ Lowe (2008) – Akram Khan Company
Vince Virr (2008) – Barrowland Ballet
Dylan Crossman (2006) – Merce Cunningham Dance Company
Mandeep Raikhy (2005) – Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company
To view more of the impressive organisations that our alumni have worked with, visit Alumni Destinations.
For more information on the successes of Trinity Laban’s BA (Hons) dance graduates and what they have to say about the course, visit Alumni Profiles.
Entry Requirements
- Practical experience of at least one dance form
- 5 GCSEs 9-4 (or A*-C)
- Two A Levels at Grade E or above
- For overseas candidates: International Baccalaureate, Abitur and Gymnasium are recognised. Alternatives may be considered.
English language requirements (if applicable):
IELTS (General or Academic Training) minimum 5.5 in all four areas; or B2 First (Cambridge English) minimum 160 in all four areas; or Trinity College London – Integrated Skills in English level II or above.
If you require a Student visa to study in the UK you may require a Secure English Language Test (SELT). More information can be found at gov.uk.
Entry is by audition, where you will need to demonstrate the commitment and potential to study dance at a professional level. You will normally have dance experience, be curious and willing to be challenged, and have enthusiasm for the physical demands of intensive dance training. Auditions usually consist of:
- Contemporary Technique Class
- Classical Ballet Class
- Hip Hop Class
- Creative Class
- An individual interview
- Overseas applicants who cannot attend auditions in person may submit recordings of themselves in technique class and in performances. The recordings are auditioned in the same way as live auditions and are considered by relevant tutors. These applications are submitted using Embark. For more information see Dance Applications.
For audition dates, visit the Dance Auditions page.
Fees and Finance
UNDERGRADUATE FEESFees are reviewed annually. Home student tuition fees are aligned with the maximum tuition fee cap set by the UK Government. International tuition fees are subject to annual inflationary increases based on RPI-X.
Accommodation and Living Costs
This information can be found on our Costs of Living page.
Financial Support
Read about financial awards and external funding opportunities in the Fees and Finance section.
Key Facts
| UCAS | 200F |
|---|---|
| Location | Laban Building |
| Duration | 3 years (Full-time) |
| Start Date | September |
| Another fact | Some details here |
Explore
Dance at Trinity Laban
Example Course Gallery
Major performance projects enable you to work with leading dance practitioners to create and perform specially commissioned works, and restage historically significant repertoire.
- 1 - BA2 Historical Project
- 2 - 'Highland Fling' by Matthew Bourne, BA2 Historical Project
- 3 - BA3 Graduate Show
- 4 - 'In The Land of Invented Languages' by Jessica Wright (from Studio Wayne McGregor), BA3 Commissioned Works
- 5 - Rising Talents: BA1 Performance Project
What our students say
Tommy Cattin / BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance
-
Congratulations to second year Jake Allen for winning the Daryl Runswick Competition 2019. Find out more about this year's prize, which was adjudicated by award-winning composer @freyawaleycohen: https://t.co/9NBmhB2VJH @DominicMurcott pic.twitter.com/C7hfO5s1RC
— Trinity Laban (@TrinityLaban) April 2, 2019
Flux Tour 2018
BA3 students on tour in the UK
Final year students perform works by leading choreographers Gary Lambert, Struan Leslie, Zoi Dimitriou and Tony Thatcher.
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