Musical Theatre Gallery Nov 2023
- 1 - Loserville (c) Alex Brenner
- 2 - Our House cast c) Alex Brenner
- 3 - Amour (c) Alex Brenner
- 4 - Loserville (c) Alex Brenner
- 5 - Amour cast (c) Alex Brenner
- 6 - Amour cast (c) Alex Brenner
Introduction
Book now: Musical Theatre Open Day 21 June 2024 for 2025 entry
The BA (Hons) Musical Theatre Performance programme is designed to enable you to develop the skills, attributes and knowledge necessary for a career as a creative entrepreneur and artist (singer-actor-dancer) in the Musical Theatre industry.
Key Features
- Support and guide your development in preparation for a career in the professional musical theatre industry
- Empower students to operate as creative entrepreneurs
- Foster the development of graduates able to make and perform musical theatre works that reflect, interrogate and/or enrich society
- Enable you to value, have confidence in, articulate and execute your own artistic choices
- Support your development as an independent learner able to recognise and realise your own intellectual, creative and practical potential
- Facilitate your learning from professional musical theatre practitioners
- Enable you to understand the range of creative roles within musical theatre and how these might inform future employability
- Nurture your collaborative and leadership skills.
Course Details
The programme comprises three years of full-time study, made up of:
Skills and techniques classes
The Skills and Techniques modules lie at the heart of the BA (Hons) Musical Theatre Performance programme. The modules have been designed to enable students to develop their musical theatre singing, acting and dancing skills and techniques to meet the demanding needs of the professional musical theatre industry. Students undertake a structured series of classes throughout the year that have been carefully constructed to ensure firm foundations are established. Students are exposed to a wide range of repertoire, styles and genres appropriate to the level and year of study and encouraged to develop self awareness, critical analysis, evaluation and personal management skills.
Classes include:
- Individual singing lessons
- Group singing (repertoire)
- Group singing (musicianship)
- Musical Theatre Voice
- Acting class
- Voice class
- Acting Through Song masterclasses
- Dance (Ballet, Jazz, Contemporary and Tap) classes
Performance projects
Carefully crafted performance opportunities modelled on real‐life performing contexts will allow you to experience a diverse range of musical theatre performance settings, you will apply and adapt your skills to suit a range of repertoire. You will work alongside highly experienced industry professions, enabling you to better understand industry expectations, protocols and practices within audition, rehearsal and performance settings.
The size and scale of performances develops over your three years of training, and you will take part in seven performance projects which might typically include:
/ small‐ and medium‐scale showings of work
/ classic and contemporary repertoire
/ theatre in education in local schools
/ a West End agent showcase
/ a devised musical
You will develop entrepreneurial skills and learn about other creative roles in the theatre industry, such as directing and choreographing. This will allow you to enter the competitive professional world as a well‐rounded graduate.
Creative learning and research modules
Creative Artist (Year 1)
The Creative Artist explores what a creative artist is, what the realities of being a creative artist are, and how and why you should identify yourself as one.
The module examines industry working practices, protocols and expectations and how the creative artist engages with these successfully, in particular, examining the interface between individual creative methodology and industrial practice. In addition, the module enables you to examine your own career and life goals and develop effective strategies for achievement.
Creative Learning (Year 1)
Creative Learning enables students to focus on the conscious development of their learning as a constantly evolving transferable skill, applicable and adaptable to Musical Theatre and a wide variety of contexts. Students will explore learning from “experts” (including practice and text-based models); learning from peers, and learning from their own practice, and experience. Students will consider questions such as “Why is there a teacher in the room?” and “What kind of learner am I”, and will engage in learning activities that develop their understanding of learning as well as expanding their knowledge.
Creative Entrepreneur (Year 2)
The Creative Entrepreneur builds on learning gained in The Creative Artist, enabling students to recognise and maximise their earning potential in the marketplace.
The module examines notions of “selling” the creative artist as potentially both “product” and creator of product, and encourages students to examine how such products are promoted and sold in the marketplace. Students gain insight into the business aspect of the industry, and understanding as to how opportunities can be maximised by the creative entrepreneur.
Creative Pathways (Year 2)
Creative Pathways provides students with opportunities to broaden their awareness and understanding other employment possibilities within the industry, through an exploration of the roles of “Creatives” (i.e. Director, Music Director, Choreographer) and “Writers” (i.e. Librettist, Composer, Lyricist). [NB: It is acknowledged that the term “Creatives” normally includes the Designer, Lighting, Sound, etc; those “technical” elements are beyond the scope of this module, hence the focus is on those roles most closely involved in shaping performance with performers.]
Creative Research (Year 2)
Creative Research builds on knowledge-acquisition and usage skills explored previously in Creative Learning and Creative Artist, developing further the students ability to investigate, interrogate and articulate given topics, using text-based and practice-based research methodologies. The title implies the exploration both of imaginative text-based approaches to knowledge discovery (e.g. informed use of learning networks) and research that has a creative outcome (e.g. critical and contextual analysis of script/song leading to informed performance). As such, this module extends and embeds research skills generally, and specifically in preparation for the Research Project in Year Three
Creative Futures (Year 3)
Creative Futures is designed to consolidate awareness and understanding of the employment possibilities within the industry, both as performer and theatre creator/maker. Utilising the learning from Creative Pathways and Performance Projects. Students will continue to develop their skills knowledge, understanding and experience of how original musical theatre works can be created collaboratively, and to develop their skills in a variety of musical theatre-relevant areas alongside their ability to promote themselves within the Industry Showcase.
Creative Research Project (Year 3)
The Creative Research Project provides students with the opportunity to extend and apply your research skills, both practice-based and text-based (“practice” here meaning in-body, experience-based knowledge acquisition; “text” here meaning any and all external sources of knowledge). Students will research and explore an aspect of Musical Theatre practice, communicating their findings in a manner and medium appropriate to the subject of enquiry. Students must focus on some aspect of PRACTICE in order to create the potential for research that directly impacts on their own practice as a creative individual in the Musical Theatre industry.
The programme enables you to develop and consolidate relevant skills and attributes progressively over time through a structured series of developmental explorations, tasks and challenges. Your personal, creative and professional development is informed by reflecting on and learning from your successes and failures in a positive, highly supportive learning environment that encourages creative risk taking, adventure, discovery and the pursuit of excellence.
We know that everyone is different, and so we will recognise and develop your unique talents. You will develop excellent performance skills, musical versatility and adaptability, and acquire a detailed knowledge and understanding of musical theatre repertoire. We are proud of our links to new musical theatre, and we encourage all our students to develop their creativity: as composers, choreographers, lyricists or directors as well as performing artists.
Module Maps
Year 1
| Modules | Credits |
| Skills and Techniques 1 | 75 |
| Performance Projects 1 | 15 |
| Creative Research | 10 |
| The Creative Artist | 20
|
Year 2
| Modules | Credits |
| Skills and Techniques 2 | 40 |
| Performance Projects 2 | 40 |
| Creative Research Pathways | 20 |
| Creative Artist | 20 |
|
|
Year 3
| Modules | Credits |
| The Professional Performer 1 | 35 |
| The Professional Performer 2 | 35 |
| Creative Futures | 20 |
| Creative Research Project | 30
|
For more details, see our Programme Specification.
Teaching and Learning
Hours
The programme works broadly along industry lines in terms of the working week being in the region of 35 hours during weekdays, with performances in the evenings and some Saturdays, including matinees, assuming an indicative 1200 student learning hours per year.
How will I learn?
The teaching, learning and assessment strategies used on the BA (Hons) Musical Theatre Performance are based on the notion that Musical Theatre performance students learn most effectively by doing, by thinking about what and why they are doing, by applying and adapting learning in relevant creative contexts, and by reflecting on, interrogating and evaluating that learning with a view to determining the success of their efforts and developing as a creative artist as a consequence.
- Learning takes place through a blend of tuition, experiential learning and personal study, using an integrated learning model within a variety of formal, informal and student-determined settings.
- Group and individual practical skills-development sessions form the core training in Musical Theatre singing, acting and dancing.
- Group lectures and seminars enable a more interrogatory approach to learning in which you will be able to apply and adapt your knowledge, analytical and reflective skills.
- Workshops enable a flexibility of response that facilitates your integration of practical and intellectual approaches to learning, reflecting on and improving practical outcomes as they are achieved within a creative setting.
- Working with professional practitioners and directors in rehearsal settings and masterclasses exposes you to different views and approaches current within the industry.
Teaching
Our teachers are leading industry professionals, who will coach and support you to prepare you for success in a highly competitive field. Taught sessions are underpinned by the expectation that the tutor explicitly models good practice in his/her preparation and delivery of stimulating learning experiences. Creative practitioners are likewise encouraged to articulate and explain their creative process in order that you gain insight into non-performer roles.
How will I be assessed?
The assessment methods deployed on the programme mirror the industry where possible. All assessments are designed to measure achievement relative to explicit criteria, appropriate to the intended learning outcomes. You will frequently get informal “in the moment” feedback on achievement within class, and broader informal feedback as to progress more generally in tutorials.
Assessment modes include:
- in-performance (including audition and rehearsal)
- oral presentations
- lecture demonstrations
- written articles, programme notes, proposals
- peer and self-reflection
- viva voce
Entry Requirements
- Two A level passes (Performing Arts subject preferred)
- Equivalent Qualifications/Experience Equivalent qualifications (including BTEC/NVQ etc.) and/or relevant prior experience may be considered
- English Language competency requirements also apply.
- International applicants should meet the minimum entry level for entry to UK under Student Visa (a minimum of IELTS Level 5.5 in all 4 elements) and should have the appropriate visa.
Fees and Finance
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.
Students 2023/24
Alumni Destinations
Graduate Destinations:
Trinity Laban Musical Theatre graduate success demonstrates the real breadth of employment pathways available, with many graduates gaining successful employment as performers, creatives, educators and leaders within the musical theatre industry.
The musical theatre department are proud of the achievements and successes of their Alumni.
Alumni Success includes:
The Crucible (National Theatre) Innocence (Royal Opera House) Tina (Australia) Book of Mormon (West End) Billionaire Boy (West End & UK Tour) The Play That Goes Wrong (West End) We Will Rock You (West End, The Play That Goes Wrong (West End) Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (West End & UK Tour) Six Musical (West End & UK Tour) Choir of Man (West End, International Tour & Cruise) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (UK Tour) Hairspray (West End) Heathers (West End and UK Tour) Crazy For You (West End & Chichester Festival) Saturday Night Fever (Uk Tour) Hamilton (West End), Dear Evan Hanson (West End) Fiddler on the Roof (West End), Ghost The Musical (International Tour), 42nd (West End), Rocky Horror Picture Show ( Germany) Derry Girls (TV) From Here to Eternity (West End) Betty Blue Eyes (Union Theatre) Rock of Ages (UK Tour), Motown Musical (UK Tour) My Lands Shore (Rose and Crown), Babe the Sheep Pig Musical (national tour) The Hired Man – (Union Theatre), BBC Drama, 110 In The Shade – (Rose and Crown), Soho Cinders – (Union theatre) , Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (UK Tour), Thriller Live (West End and UK Tour).
Other destinations include cruises, pantomimes, devising work. teaching, leadership in schools, workshop leaders, development of theatre companies, producers, writers, choreographers, musical directors & directors.
To learn more visit Alumni Destinations and explore our Alumni Profiles.
Useful Links
Key Facts
| UCAS | 230F |
|---|---|
| Location | Laurie Grove / Laban Building / King Charles Court |
| Duration | 3 years (full time) |
| Start Date | September |
What our students say
Jack McNeill, Musical Theatre Performance
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