Drama (Musical Theatre)

BA Drama (Musical Theatre) consists of six modules in musical theatre (a third of your degree) alongside an exciting range of Drama modules that will equip you with the skills to perform, make, explore and analyse a wide variety of performance work.

The course enables you to develop specialised musical theatre skills and knowledge through acting, singing, staging and contextual work, while also enjoying the benefits of a more broadly-based Drama degree, preparing you for a range of career destinations in the creative industries, teaching, and allied professions.

You'll engage with key ideas and movements in theatre history through the study of plays, musicals, practitioners and genres that have helped to shape contemporary theatre and performance, and through our three-fold focus on skills development, exploration, and performance.

You'll explore approaches to performance making including writing, directing and performing. Performance opportunities include workshop presentations in campus performance studios, workshops and performances in schools, and public performances at the University Theatre and local venues.

Year one
Build the foundations. You’ll take modules in theatre history, approaches to working with dramatic texts, contemporary performance and theatre skills. Musical Theatre studies will see you taking foundation modules in musical theatre history and musical theatre skills, with a strong focus on vocal performance and working with music.

Year two
Apply your skills. Core Drama modules focus on approaches to creating your own original work, while a range of optional modules will allow you to explore your particular areas of interest such as physical theatre, writing for performance, applied theatre and theatre production. Musical Theatre workshop modules will explore different types of musical theatre with a focus on acting, vocal interpretation, dramaturgy and staging.

Year three
Specialise. You’ll research an area of drama or performance of your own choice for your dissertation, as well as selecting areas of study from a range of specialist modules such as Performance Projects, Staging Gender, Modern American Drama, Staging Shakespeare, Docu-drama, Media and Performance, Devising and Site-Specific Performance. The practical work of Musical Theatre will culminate in a formal showcase, while the contextual work will finish with an exploration of the place of musicals within popular culture.

We use a variety of assessment tasks across the programme, including:

• Public performance
• In-class performance of devised or published work
• Playwriting
• Devising
• Performance of backstage/technical roles
• Oral presentations
• Critical reflection
• Working as part of an ensemble
• Script and song analysis
• Individual and group research projects.

You'll be taught through a range of activities including lectures, workshops, seminars, skills classes, rehearsals, tutorials, work placements and theatre visits.

To find out more about how we teach and how you'll learn, please read our Learning and Teaching Delivery Statement.

As part of your degree, you could study abroad on a placement at one of Bath Spa’s partner universities.

As a Drama student, you’ll benefit from our partnerships with local performance venues, schools and community groups as well as visits from industry professionals. Previous visitors have covered a range of specialisms including playwriting, directing, acting, television production, theatre in education, and children’s theatre.

Recent visiting professionals include:

• Baz Taylor - Television director (Bergerac, Eastenders, Shine on Harvey Moon, Lovejoy)
• Neil D’Souza - Actor and writer
• Kylie Walsh - Paper Birds Theatre Company
• Mark Wilson - Natural Theatre Company
• Geese Theatre Company - Internationally renowned applied theatre company
• Local professional theatre companies - The Misfits, Travelling Light Theatre Company, Up In Arms Theatre Company.

We equip you with creative, collaborative, writing, presentational and communication skills that are invaluable in many professional and vocational areas.

Many of our graduates pursue careers in the creative industries and teaching. Others use it as the basis for specialised postgraduate study - either academic or vocational training.

Recent graduates have won places at Central School of Speech and Drama, Yale Theatre School, Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, Guildford School of Acting and Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

If you’re a full-time undergraduate student starting your first year at Bath Spa University, you can apply for the Certificate in Global Citizenship, which you’ll study alongside your degree.

You’ll gain global awareness and add an international dimension to your student experience, and funding is available. On successful completion of the programme, you’ll be awarded a Certificate in Global Citizenship. This is in addition to your degree; it doesn’t change your degree title or results.

This optional placement year provides you with the opportunity to identify, apply for and secure professional experience, normally comprising one to three placements over a minimum of nine months. Successful completion of this module will demonstrate your ability to secure and sustain graduate-level employment.

By completing the module, you'll be entitled to the addition of 'with Professional Placement Year' to your degree title.

Before your Professional Placement Year, you'll work to secure your placement, constructing a development plan with your module leader and your placement coordinator from our Careers and Employability team.

On your return to University for your final year, you'll submit your Placement Portfolio, detailing your development on your placement.

You'll benefit from use of teaching and rehearsal facilities at Newton Park campus.

Facilities include:

• University Theatre
• University Theatre studios
• Ashton Drama studio
• Commons lecture and seminar rooms
• Michael Tippett Centre: auditorium/practice rooms
• Library
• TV studios.