Course information
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About this course
- Intensive training in stage management and theatre technology
- Career preparation for backstage work in theatre, with extensive transferable skills for the live events industry
- Collaborate with teams of designers, makers, performers, technicians, engineers and artists
- Discover the theories, processes and practices that underpin contemporary performance and production arts
As a Stage Management and Technical Theatre student, you will learn hands-on skills and techniques that will prepare you for a career in theatre production; whether you are aspiring to become a multi-skilled theatre maker, or build specialist abilities such as rigging, prop sourcing, technical drawing or show-calling. Building on core knowledge of stage management, stage technologies, lighting, and sound, the flexible course structure then enables you to tailor your learning experiences to suit your ambitions.
Throughout the course, you will expand your contextual and critical understanding of performance making, through examining and challenging ideas, theories and issues within the contemporary society and creative industries.
In the final year, you have opportunity to undertake placements to further build your network of contacts, as well as exploring and understanding up-to-the-minute challenges, projects and developments in the sector.
You will be encouraged to make strong connections within the industry, which will expand your learning and support your transition from education to full-time employment. Throughout the course you will engage with professional networks and our alumni community. This will help you focus your learning towards the areas of the entertainment industry that interest you.
Second-year Entry
You can apply for second-year entry to this course if you have already undertaken first-year study at another institution on a relevant course, taken a HND and HNC qualification or have relevant experience. Please contact openevents@cssd.ac.uk to find out more
Accordion
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Course Detail
Year 1
Starting the course, you will begin expanding your knowledge of different job roles in professional theatre-making and how they relate to each other. This will include learning core technical theatre skills such as risk management, lighting, sound, construction, text analysis, technical drawings and prop sourcing. At different points in the year you will be working on projects with your immediate peers on the course and at other times with your wider year group of students across the BA Theatre Practice programme. This presents you with the opportunity to begin exploring and honing your communication skills with a diverse range of practitioners; experimenting with problem solving techniques in different situations to help you manage the professional challenges you will encounter.
Year 2
Your second year will be designed as a bespoke year in consultation with your tutor. This enables you a more in depth exploration of the areas of theatre making you are interested in, alongside developing further technical skills: pyrotechnics and stage weaponry, for example. There are options to undertake positions on Central’s broad range of public productions and collaborative projects; in a role such as Assistant Stage Manager or Head of Stage. Alternatively, an in-depth specialist skill-building project could be undertaken in areas that include event rigging, digital technologies, and construction processes.
Year 3
The third year focuses on professional development and preparation for you to enter the industry. During the year, you will have opportunity to undertake a senior role on one of Central’s public productions. In this role you will work with a diverse team of fellow students and visiting professional practitioners. In addition, you will be able to undertake industry placements, in an area that compliments your interests and supports your personal goals and ambitions. Over the year, you will develop a career plan, setting out the next steps in your professional life, advised by leading industry figures, who will offer suggestions to support your chosen path into the industry.
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Professional Focus
Graduates of BA Theatre Practice have progressed into a wide variety of professional careers in the creative industries; such as stage management at all scales of performance, technical and production management, pyrotechnics, technical drawing, automation engineering and producing.
Students have undertaken a variety of placements in many areas of the performing arts industry. London theatre companies include the National Theatre, English National Opera, the Young Vic, Hampstead Theatre, Kiln Theatre and Unicorn Theatre, as well as receiving houses such as Sadler’s Wells, Hackney Empire, the Pleasance Theatre and many West End theatres. Touring theatre companies include Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures, English Touring Opera, Kneehigh Theatre, Ambassador theatre Group, dreamthinkspeak, Shunt, Goat and Monkey, Walk the Plank, The World Famous and Emergency Exit Arts.
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Entry Requirements and Admissions
Minimum Entry Requirements
Our standard academic entry requirements range between 120 and 64 UCAS tariff points. As part of meeting these tariff points, we consider a range of qualifications including A Levels, BTECs, T Levels and many more. You can see how many tariff points your qualifications would gain on the UCAS Tariff Calculator. International qualifications and others not covered within the UCAS tariff can also be accepted. Please email us if you need further clarification.
Please note that we make lower offers (including unconditional) to exceptional candidates and those who have alternative or prior experience to offer. All candidates invited to interview are asked to bring a portfolio. Interview and portfolio are key factors in determining which applicants are accepted on to the course.
Admission with Academic Credit
For information on alternative entry requirements please see www.ucas.com.
Application Details
See How to Apply section for Undergraduate courses.
We particularly encourage applications from groups currently under-represented in higher education, such as students with disabilities and members of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic groups. Find out more information on Central’s commitment to equality and diversity.
Interviews
Find out more about the interview process for this course.
International Interviews
Each year Central hosts a number of interviews outside of the UK, with a team of tutors from Central traveling to meet applicants. The international interviews are designed to replicate the London-based interview experience in every aspect (other than a tour of our site!).
International Students
Visit the International Students section to view details of English language requirements for Central’s courses.
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Tuition Fees, Bursaries and Scholarships
Tuition Fees for 2024 Entry
UK (Home) students: £9,250 per year*
Overseas students: £25,200 per yearPlease note that there may be additional costs that you need to incur as part of the training for the course.
Full information is available on the Tuition Fees and Additional Costs page.
Bursaries and Scholarships
Central offers a range of bursaries and scholarships. If you are holding an offer for a place on a course then you will be invited to apply for a bursary or scholarship.
UK-based undergraduate students who are applying for a student maintenance loan and have a household income under £35,000 will automatically be awarded our Access to Central Bursary.
*If you are a UK student but already hold a qualification at the equivalent or higher level to the one that you are applying for, then you may be classed as an ELQ student and be required to pay the same fee as an overseas student.
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“My time at Central taught me how to work with a wide range of people and disciplines and opened my mind to the full spectrum of theatre genres. It was there that I was able to transition into working on real live projects. It was an amazing opportunity to explore the areas that I enjoyed, and those that I didn’t, to set the foundations for an exciting career working in technical theatre. Working on projects within Central with fellow students and later with the freedom to develop my own work and contacts outside, gave me opportunities that shaped my future development.”
Gary Beestone
Gary established Gary Beestone Events & Theatre providing production and project management for clients such as Disney and Sonia Friedman Productions, as well as worldwide Technical Director for Harry Potter And The Cursed Child.
Staff On The Course
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