Undergraduate Dance Open Days
Find out more about the Faculty of Dance and the undergraduate programmes available at our dance open days.
Book Your PlaceIntroduction
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, Hip Hop and ballet, 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 to encourage you to develop as an independent, autonomous learner and grow into a confident, creative dance practitioner. In the first year you will focus on the development of skills, imagination and new ways of seeing. The second year will encourage your versatility, individuality and risk taking, while the third, final year, stresses independent and indepth research as well as technical, creative and professional skills development.
The programme consists of three parts (Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3) which are undertaken over three consecutive academic years on a full time basis. Each Part 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.
Year One (Part 1)
Part 1 focuses on dance technique, creative development and approaches to learning in dance which will enhance your understanding of movement and enable you to develop your potential as a dance artist, leading to a performance project at the end of the year. Alongside this you will develop choreographic skills and an understanding of frameworks for reflection on contemporary dance and arts practice.
Modules
Year 1 (Level 1)
| Modules | Credits (130) |
Technical Practice 1:
|
60 |
Creative Practice 1:
|
30 |
Performance Practice 1:
|
20 |
Investigating Dance Practice 1
|
20
|
Year Two (Part 2)
Technical training continues alongside the development of choreographic and performance skills, culminating in a repertory performance project. Analytical and theoretical frameworks for the understanding of dance in its various contexts are further developed. You will be able to choose a specialised area of related study, and an independent assignment during the year will bring you into contact with the professional dance world.
Modules
Year 2 (Level 2)
| Modules | Credits (150) |
Technical Practice 2:
|
60 |
Creative Practice 2:
|
40 |
Performance Practice 2:
|
20 |
Investigating Dance Practice 2:
*Students are required to select one of the three component options |
30
|
Year Three (Part 3)
Alongside your advanced technical training you will undertake an Independent 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 also work with faculty members and visiting artists who will lead you in intensive performance projects to prepare you for the pace and focus of the professional working process. There are three options in Part 3 (from which you can select two) that allow you to develop further skills according to your strengths and interests. These have distinct focuses: choreographic, performance, technical, teaching.
All final year students will participate in degree shows at the end of the year which will present a diverse range of selected student work and new pieces devised by in-house and visiting choreographers.
Modules
Year 3 (Level 3)
| Modules | Credits (170) |
Technical Practice 3
|
50 |
Performance Practice 3:
|
40 |
Investigating Dance Practice 3
*Students are required to select one of the four component options |
20 |
Creative Practice 3:
|
60
|
For more details, see our Programme Specification.
Teaching and Learning
How will I learn?
Informed by dance science, the curriculum design is based on principles of integration and periodisation. It supports the students’ physical and mental health and wellbeing and aims to optimise performance. 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.
How 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
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 2250.
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 Tier 4 (General) 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:
- Release Technique Class
- Creative Class
- One other technique class (such as Hip Hop or Ballet)
- An individual interview
- 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
It is not possible to confirm fees for future academic years, as fee changes are linked to inflation and changes in government policy. Please note that tuition fees may increase by up to 5% each year.
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 2023 |
Explore
Dance at Trinity Laban
Study with us in London
Find out what makes London such an exceptional place to be a student.
find out more
Major Dance Performance Projects 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 - 'Highland Fling' by Matthew Bourne, BA2 Historical Project
- 2 - BA3 Graduate Show
- 3 - 'In The Land of Invented Languages' by Jessica Wright (from Studio Wayne McGregor), BA3 Commissioned Works
- 4 - Rising Talents: BA1 Performance Project
- 5 - BA2 Repertory Dance Project 2022
What our students say
Tommy Cattin / BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance
-
News
Trinity Laban recognised as a world-leading specialist provider
We are delighted to have been recognised once again as a "world-leading" specialist provider by the Office for Students.Mon 12 December 2022 -
News
A Better Place: CoLab 2023
Trinity Laban’s annual celebration of cross-disciplinary collaboration and creativity, CoLab, returns from Monday 13 February. Over two weeks, 900 students from our Faculties of Dance and Music come together with staff and visiting artists from around the world to create works rooted in imagination and experimentation.Tue 14 February 2023