Objectives
Performance Design and Practice is conceived as an expanding field incorporating aspects of both the theatre industry and professional fine art practice. The course draws upon and seeks to contribute to this broad territory, promoting practitioners with understandings ranging across contexts: from traditional theatre to live and performance art, installation, film, television, spatial/exhibition/event design, video and live music events, gaming and virtual performance. It aims to introduce, analyse and challenge the idea of performance, interpreting it in the context of the current eclectic, cross-disciplinary nature of the arts - transcending language barriers and encouraging students to explore and challenge traditional territories and assumptions. The course approaches the enormous diversity of the subject area through offering the experience of creative perspectives, broadly expressed as design, composition/authorship, and performing. The activities are inherently collaborative - whether designing, directing, writing, performing or taking responsibility for any individual role in the creation of a performance event. The course seeks to enable students to work as self-directed creative individuals in relation to collaborative contexts.
Course description
BA Performance Design and Practice
Programme
Stage 1
The emphasis of Stage 1 is on introducing perspectives on the creation of performance, investigating the breadth of inter-related concerns involved through explorations of source material, space, time, and the audience/performer relationship. Stage 1 introduces and develops practical and collaborative skills in order to begin to develop an informed personal approach to creating performance. Critical and evaluative skills necessary to communicate ideas in collaborative, time-based media are developed particularly through peer group project working and assessment.
Personal and Professional Development introduces you to resources of the College and of London, including basic research and communication skills as part of Library and Learning Resources and College IT inductions. A project focuses on London as a research resource investigating performance venues and relevant museums/galleries in order to develop your ability to maximise the extraordinary facilities of the capital throughout the course.
Contextual Studies introduce you to the nature, origins and constituents of theatre and performance as a contemporary subject. It has a written component that is an in-depth exploration of a topic discussed in the unit. Aspects of art and ritual are discussed; typically Ancient Greek theatre is examined as a type of model practice, together with examples of contemporary renditions of the performance paradigm.
Development planning is discussed at tutorials and is concerned at this stage with discussing and advising upon your choice of direction through identifying the inter-related perspectives of design, composition/authorship and performing that can become a focus of study as the Course progresses.
Stage 2
consists of the same main integrated curriculum elements as Stage 1, but additionally requires you to undertake an Elective during the Autumn term, in which you have options expanding your perspective on cultural studies.
Stage 2 is a year of transition: you progress from an understanding of the breadth and interplay within performance creation to beginning to develop an individual creative identity and methodology, and to identifying areas of specific interest which will inform your choices in Stage 3. The practical and personal skills required to communicate your ideas effectively (introduced in Stage 1) are refined, particularly regarding the adoption of a 'role’ within a collaboration. It also gives you opportunity to gain practical experience of creating performance within a collaboration either involving external practitioners or taking the form of a peer group collaboration within a real or replicated professional working context.
Contextual Studies focus on developing a personal approach to forming a theoretical and cultural context for practice. This comprises debates of contemporary issues and problematics surrounding art and design with a particular emphasis on current theatre and performance practice. Research methodologies and experimentation, and production of a written proposal for an individual research topic are included, informingchoice about the balance and relationship of practical and theoretical studies in Stage 3, a decision which must be made at the end of Stage 2.
Development planning, discussed at tutorials, is particularly realised through development of a Learning Proposal in relation to your studies for Stage 3, drawing upon your experience and achievements to date.
Stage 3
Stage 3 is the most integrated of all three Stages, reflecting as far as possible challenges you are likely to encounter in professional practice outside college or in further study at Masters level. Stage 3 is designed to help you apply, expand and deepen the skills and understanding developed over the previous two Stages. Project work focuses on your development through a creative perspective, such as design, directing, performing etc, and enables you to move between activities and contexts or to pursue a specialist research or practical direction. All Units offer a lot of flexibility, both to facilitate your personal perspective and enable you to select the best way of demonstrating your abilities.
The Research Project (dissertation) focuses on an individual chosen topic and field of research that relates to your practice and locates it within a theoretical framework: it involves the development of a piece of research work that is documented. You are encouraged to link your dissertation and practice with a common theme or area of investigation. The emphasis is on a rigorous personal exploration and demonstration of a theory-practice relationship in performance creation.
Development planning links your interpretation of projects and your career direction and is discussed in tutorials. You will have made a guided choice to reflect theoretical learning at 17% or 33% of your final degree award. Practical project work to be undertaken is adjusted accordingly
Whichever balance you choose, theoretical, contextual, practical and professional understandings mutually inform your work for the final assessment and beyond. The very process of managing your studies underpins your personal and professional development, which is additionally supported by guest speakers on current practices and issues relevant across the range of professional futures in performance design and practice.
