BA (HONS) MUSICAL THEATRE PERFORMANCE

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.

Performance Projects

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.

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3