Performing Arts
Vivien Lau Wee Na – BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance UCA Rochester
Megan Krull – BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance UCA Rochester
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Foreword
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At UCA, our Performing Arts courses help you explore your creative abilities in an inspirational, artistic environment. Listed as the number one specialist creative university in The Guardian Good University Guide 2018 and the Complete University Guide 2018, we offer a personal learning experience, with smaller numbers on our courses that deliver a unique approach to performance. Most members of our teaching staff have a background in acting for theatre and film, as well as experience directing for the stage and screen. This makes them well-equipped to teach you in all areas of the performing arts, such as how a team of creative practitioners contribute to the staging of a performance, through to the development of a film from initial conception to final iteration.
Our creative community also enables you to build a network of contacts that could provide the bedrock for your future career. Depending on your subject, you may even collaborate on projects with students studying topics like animation, film production, computer games arts and many others – strengthening your skillset even further. Our BA (Hons) Acting & Performance course in Farnham integrates the teaching of acting for stage and screen. As well as learning acting techniques, you’ll become versed in the use of digital technology, with rehearsals and live performances taking place at Farnham Maltings. BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance and BA (Hons) Performance take place at our Rochester campus, where you’ll have the chance to learn about design and production, theatre design, film, technical drawing, costume design, puppetmaking and set building, or develop your skills as a performer for the stage, festivals or screen. BA (Hons) Music Performance and BA (Hons) Performance are both brand new courses which bridge the gap between conventional practice, innovative new technologies and the changing demands of those industries. We are confident that you’ll really grow as a professional during your time with us. Our graduates leave us with an understanding of the creative process, and appreciate the collaboration behind final productions and performances. Once you join us, you’ll benefit from an exciting and innovative curriculum which supports you in developing your skills as part of a creative community. Studying one of our degrees will prepare you in taking that next step towards an exciting career within this competitive industry. Sarah Jeans Head of School Film, Media and Performing Arts
BA (Hons) Acting & Performance UCA Farnham
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Find the right course for you BA (Hons) Acting & Performance – UCA Farnham This course focuses on preparing actors to work and flourish, both on stage and screen. Using the camera as a teaching and learning tool, this course offers a uniquely creative springboard for innovative and confident actors. You’ll graduate with all the practical, academic and entrepreneurial skills needed for a successful career in the competitive world of acting and performance. The course is practically based, with a bias towards finding your individual voice through writing and devising, as well as more traditional skill development. With a dual emphasis on recorded and live performance, you’ll be immersed in learning the core skills of voice and movement, along with a range of techniques for camera, microphone and stage. We’ll encourage you to draw on your own personality and background in your explorations and performances.
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Our partnership with Farnham Maltings – a leading performance venue located in the heart of Farnham – means you’ll also benefit from its network of professional theatre makers and extensive resources, including performance and rehearsal spaces, and a screening room. The resources on campus include rehearsal spaces, a cinema, TV studio, sound recording studios and filmmaking equipment.
We offer a variety of courses in performing arts.
BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance – UCA Rochester Our Design for Theatre, Film and Performance course will fully prepare you for a career in this exciting sector – where designers, informed by the skills of departmental making, develop collaborative designs for sets, costumes and props. You will have the opportunity to construct scale models, create characters and develop the hands-on problem solving skills required to bring theatrical and film production to life. Whether working on a small scale within traditional venues, or on a larger scale in art direction for film or events, this course will enable you to develop artistic interpretation in support of live and recorded performance. We offer an exciting range of opportunities to put what you’ve learned into practice via externally commissioned projects and work experience.
BA (Hons) Music Performance – UCA Epsom (subject to validation) Our Music Performance course is taught by an experienced team of professionals who will give you a global understanding of music and the music industry, teach you to question musical forms and help you to understand your own development as a performer. You’ll learn through live projects and work experience placements, have the opportunity to collaborate with other UCA courses, from Music Journalism to Fashion and Graphic Design, and network and engage with industry experts. You’ll be able to experiment creatively with music, image and performance, and by the end of the course, you’ll have developed a distinctive portfolio of work. Strong links to the music industry will help you learn a host of performance skills, work creatively with others, and make important connections that will prepare you for a career, not just in music, but in the wider creative industries too.
BA (Hons) Performance for Stage and Screen – UCA Rochester (subject to validation) Our exciting new Performance for Stage and Screen course incorporates a wide range of performance skills and techniques, through both theoretical and practical study. You’ll study a wide range of acting and performance, dance and movement, and singing and vocal techniques, and discover how to get work seen both in and outside of the theatre. As well as allowing you to develop practical performance experience, the course also teaches you valuable business acumen, including marketing and managing artists, and event management. Based at our Rochester campus, you’ll benefit from our close ties with the nearby Maidstone TV Studios, giving you the opportunity to establish unique creative partnerships with other UCA students and make the most of our extensive links with the film and television industry.
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We create careers
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The UK’s creative industries are growing faster than at any time in their history, generating £9.6million an hour in revenue for the UK economy. Thanks to tax relief incentives for film, TV and theatre productions, many producers are choosing the UK as a top destination to develop their projects, and demand for graduates is at an all-time high. Our Performing Arts courses give you the opportunity to learn practical skills for the industry alongside exploring your own creativity and imagination. Technical workshops teach our students relevant skills such as camera work, screenwriting and editing alongside traditional acting and performance skills.
BA (Hons) Acting & Performance UCA Farnham
You’ll be equipped with a strong knowledge of each aspect of the industry to get your foot in the door of this competitive market. You can pursue a wide range of exciting technical and creative careers in areas such as acting, sound design, advertising, broadcast programming and production management. After your studies, you can go on to work as a set director, filmmaker, set designer, or screenwriter; or you could launch your own acting career and make your name on the stage or starring in films, TV productions, commercials, or even voicing popular computer game characters. But importantly, our performing arts courses will have equipped you with the confidence and creativity to thrive in any arena. UCA is the number one specialist creative university (Complete University Guide 2018 and The Guardian University Guide 2018), and we have a proud tradition of supporting students and equipping them with everything they need to thrive in the workplace. 94.6% of our students find employment or go on to further study within the first six months after graduating.
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Graduate profile
Kathleen Bell – BA (Hons) Design for Theatre and Film UCA Rochester, 2017
Tell us a bit about your work. –
What’s your plan for after you graduate? –
My project is about the Greek play The Oresteia, working with self-reflection, because the characters are constantly judging themselves. They ask of themselves and the Gods ‘Am I right in what I’m doing?’, ‘What is murder?’, ‘What is man?’, ‘What is humanity itself?’.
I’m hoping to work in freelance; there are a couple of places that I undertook work experience with that I’m hoping to get some work with – The National Theatre, The Royal Opera House, Footprint Scenery, Cardiff Theatrical Services and Bay Productions. It’s carpentry I really love, but this project has made me love design again, so I want to branch into both sides and see where it takes me.
So my piece focuses on the structure of self-reflection, with undertones of mental health, as I felt that it’s a very important subject and also important to represent in the theatre. It’s all about reflections but rather than one clear mirror as it’s a shattered mirror, for the shattered mind. It’s all metaphors, working with the idea that when you look at yourself it’s not your own reflection it’s slightly different, distorted. The characters see twisted versions of themselves when they question their knowledge and reality so when they perform, they’re reflected as they would see themselves not as you would see them on stage.
Work experience was invaluable. As much as university gives you amazing insights in industry, you learn in a week on the job what you learn in a term here, just because it is every day all day, and it’s amazing. That’s such a great thing about this course – it gives you the chance to work in industry. During your second year, you can take 10 weeks to do whatever you want to do and if you use your summers too, by the time you graduate you have a huge amount of experience – which should stand us in good stead! What was your favourite thing about studying at UCA? –
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Definitely the workshops, I am really loathe to leave them, that’s the bit that’s really hard to say goodbye to. The technicians here at Rochester are amazing, they have carried us through this course and everything down even to the machinery they have is brilliant.
James Wright – BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance UCA Rochester
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Course leaders
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Ruth Torr – BA (Hons) Acting & Performance UCA Farnham Ruth Torr lectured at Middlesex University for 11 years and has significant experience of curriculum development within drama, performing arts and dance departments. Ruth read BA (Hons) Drama and Dance then spent time with Temba Theatre Company and completed her MA in Dance Studies. As well as being a theatre maker, Ruth holds professional experience of arts policy and funding, having worked for Arts Council England on project applications, supporting theatre makers in realising their plans. She’s continued to perform, notably as an actor with the English National Opera, and make her own work through her own company and as a director and collaborator on other projects. Ruth says: “Graduates from this course will make contemporary work which is relevant and innovative. Their contact with industry professionals throughout the course should give them a proper preparation for a successful and fulfilling career as an actor, and the interdisciplinary approach of the degree is essential for the current needs of the creative industries.”
Gary Thorne – BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance UCA Rochester
Prior to Motley, Gary studied fine art with Byam Shaw School in London, later acquiring his MA in Public Art (Art in Architecture) through UEL.
Gary Thorne is the Course Leader for BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance. Before joining UCA he was RADA's Head of Theatre Design between 2004 and 2016, responsible for the two-year Postgraduate in Set & Costume Design, a programme he co-wrote. Many of his graduates work professionally across theatre, film, television, opera, and dance.
Gary’s professional work since 1984 ranges from small to medium scale touring, repertory theatre in the UK and across Canada, opera, public art commissions such as Gloucester City Millennium Banners, to fine art group exhibitions in London. Gary has written three educational books on design: Stage Design, Designing Stage Costumes, and Technical Drawing for the Stage, published by Crowood Press, Wiltshire. Gary is under commission to combine current approaches to set and costume design in Design for Performance with Crowood Press, due in 2018. His conference papers have been published with École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs, Paris, France and with NACTA, Beijing, China.
As short-course tutor for 'Stage Design' and 'Costume for Stage and Screen' (1997-2016) with Central Saint Martins (UAL), Gary has supported over 100 students annually in preparing a design portfolio for applications to HE, and MA/ Postgraduate programmes in Theatre Design. Many such students are now fully trained and working within the industry. Gary studied in London with Motley Theatre Design (1983-84) under Margaret "Percy" Harris and Elizabeth Montgomery (Sophie Harris was the third Motley), whose creative period embraced 1920-2000. With a philosophy of respect for language and meaning of text – directorial and design integrity together craft a visual language to serve characters, their relationships and their developing situation.
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Student profile The main reason I chose UCA Farnham was because the course appealed to me; it was split between theatre and film and I wanted to experience both practices. I saw the campus at my audition and it felt very intimate and colourful which was very nice to see at a university – others I was interested in were so big and had a variety of subjects, whereas UCA specialises in artrelated subjects. I want to tell stories for a living and more than anything I want to learn more skills, meet new people, gain connections and experience new emotions. Studying acting is the pathway that will lead me to new enthralling and fascinating adventures. When I started university, I was shy and nervous and my mental health stood in front of me. However, I’ve learned so much through the teachers and the staff – I now love meeting new faces, hearing new views and opinions, and discovering new creativity; the university really encourages me to speak my mind.
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At the moment, I’m volunteering with Guildford Fringe Festival and helping with tickets, organising venues, booking the artists and assembling the whole package, which is a very hands-on experience and I enjoy the excitement of partly being a manager!
Gabrielle Louise Ellison – BA (Hons) Acting & Performance UCA Farnham, Year 3
Since I’ve come to UCA I have changed creatively and my imagination has increased. I also changed friends, changed opinions and views, and this is all down to the teachers and practitioners who have inspired me. When I started university in 2015 I was so scared of change, but I changed houses, atmosphere, even my accent! But then I started to accept the change and wanted to change, because staying the same got stale and old and I wanted to be that fresh, ripe avocado that I am today. My biggest accomplishment was challenging my mental state and not letting my mental health take over my studying. I felt extremely proud knowing that in my second year I received four A’s and one B overall. I worked hard and saw the result. Being a student and coming to university is a way of gaining more experience towards your career; it’s about the journey that you go through.
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We create space
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Farnham –
Rochester –
UCA Farnham has extensive purpose-built facilities for over 2,000 students studying a wide range of creative arts subject areas. We have dedicated rehearsal and performance spaces for our students.
Our UCA Rochester campus provides you with a fantastic range of facilities to help you realise your creative visions. Dedicated workshop space includes equipment for metal work, wood work, casting resin and plaster work. You’ll also have access to our sewing rooms, dye and print facilities, campus photography studios, laser cutting and 3D printing.
Our resources on campus include: – IT suites fully equipped with both PCs and Macs for graphic design and general work – Extensive equipment store for the hiring of digital equipment such as cameras, laptops and projectors – Photography equipment and darkrooms – Scanning and printing facilities – Access to industry design software – Access to the Media Resource Centre for printing and publishing. If you choose to study our BA (Hons) Acting and Performance degree you’ll enjoy our partnership with Farnham Maltings – a leading performance venue located in the heart of Farnham. You’ll get to benefit from its network of professional theatre makers and extensive resources, including performance and rehearsal spaces and a screening room. UCA Farnham has a long-term plan for a dedicated Film and Media Centre on campus containing industry-standard spaces and equipment. The building will include a recording studio, live room, dubbing theatre, film studio and performance spaces, to be completed by 2018.
Photograph: Angela Moore – BA (Hons) Design for Theatre, Film & Performance UCA Rochester
On our Rochester campus you’ll find the Design for Theatre, Film and Performance course – please note this is part of the school of architecture and is not a performing course. Our campus at UCA Rochester offers a range of theatre and prop design facilities, including: – Access to campus photography studios – Dedicated studios for set building, costume and prop-making – Dye and print facilities – Laser cutter and 3D printing – Sewing rooms – Wood, metal, resin, plaster and ceramic workshops. Please note, access to each campus and its resources can sometimes depend on the campus you choose to study at (for example, if you study at one campus, you may be using the facilities at that campus but not always at others – this depends on your course).
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Graduate Profile
Maddy Bush – BA (Hons) Creative Arts for Theatre and Film UCA Rochester, 2017
Tell us a bit about your work. –
What is your plan after you graduate? –
The piece is for a Greek play called The Oresteia, which is about a cycle of revenge in a family, and I see it as being about the judgement of humanity as well.
I’m looking into freelancing for a bit with some design work too, a bit of carpentry and metalwork in theatre – although I wouldn’t say no to film!
So, my design is based on Ovid’s Four Ages of Man which are gold through to iron, and this piece is the transition to the iron age, where everything is going to ruin, and humanity has become evil and overcome by evil. That is what’s represented with the metal coming down onto the walls.
I did a lot of work experience while I was here, at the National Theatre, the Royal Opera House, and Footprint Scenery as well as with Yvonne Arnaud theatre in Guildford. The benefit of doing a placement is that you learn so much in such a short space of time. I found it helped to gain a lot of confidence as well, and gain contacts, and learn what the industry’s all about. What did you like most about studying at UCA? – The resources are good – the technicians are good, the guys in the workshop have been amazing, really helpful.
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Next steps
Contact us – If you’ve got any queries regarding the admissions process or your application, please contact the relevant admissions team: UK/EU admissions: T: +44 (0)1252 892 960 E: admissions@uca.ac.uk International admissions: T: +44 (0)1252 892 785 E: internationaladmissions@uca.ac.uk
How to apply – The course you choose determines how you apply – this could be through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) or directly to UCA. uca.ac.uk/study/how-to-apply ucas.com/apply
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