Collaborative Theatre Making

Course Content

What you'll study

This programme focuses on creating an ensemble, performer training, theatre making and performative writing.

Informed by critical reflection and practice research, the uniqueness of this programme lies in the opportunity to develop and present original work.

In a collaborative context, students move creatively between different roles to develop skills in performance and independent making practice.

We welcome students with a background in performance as well as theatre making, dance, writing, music, film and live art with an interest in developing their practice as collaborative and independent theatre artists.

Expert training: You will be taught, guided and mentored by experienced staff and world-leading theatre practitioners as you explore different processes and develop new skills

Explore different creative roles: You will deepen your practice as performers, devisers, writers, directors and dramaturges, ready to enter the industry as confident independent and collaborative theatre makers

Ensemble: Within a creative and supportive ensemble environment, you will be encouraged to take creative risks, make discoveries and expand your collaborative theatre making practice as you develop original work. You will learn how to embed core ensemble values and create an inspiring environment for collaborative play and discovery. By taking a physical approach to making theatre and working with text, you will experiment, with a focus on original approaches to making performance

Experimentation and innovation: As well as core workshops in performance, movement, voice and devising, you will learn from and collaborate with professional artists working with sound, light, scenography, film, new technologies and music. This creative exchange will equip you to develop fruitful collaborative dialogue with artists working across different disciplines

Create new work: You will focus on creating original work, with regular opportunities to collaborate with peers across the post-graduate school. You will build meaningful creative relationships and share work in progress. The course is highly responsive to the individuals within the cohort and to the work they want to develop

Sharing work: You will be encouraged to share work with audiences beyond Rose Bruford, for instance at scratch nights and new work festivals. In 2022, students shared new work with audiences at ‘Calm Down Dear’ Festival (Camden People’s Theatre) and had work accepted to the scratch night for Voila European Theatre Festival for Autumn ’22 (Cockpit Theatre)

Final project: You will share original work in a London theatre venue at the end of the year. In 2022 students shared an original, collaboratively created play at the Vaults Theatre, London.

MA Module Breakdown:

Module One: Performance Skills

Module Two: Performative Writing/Vade Mecum

Module Three: Director, Writer, Performer as Theatre Maker

Module Four: Final Independent Project

MFA Module Breakdown:
Year 1

Module One: Performance Skills

Module Two: Performative Writing/Vade Mecum

Module Three: Director, Writer, Performer as Theatre Maker

Year 2

Module Four: The Widening Field

Module Five: Final Independent Project