Postgraduate Studentships - Search for funding opportunities.
Postgraduate Studentships - Search for funding opportunities.
Study Details: MA 1 year, full time
MA Acting Classical at Central is a creatively, physically and intellectually demanding, advanced-level conservatoire acting programme. It is designed primarily for students with previous training or performance experience who wish to focus intensively on plays from the European classical repertoire.
The Classical training follows the development of the theatrical art from its earliest ritual and political roots to the birth of psychological naturalism:
The structure of the course draws on the hugely influential theories of the great French acting teacher Michel Saint-Denis, training the expressive body, voice and imagination.
Methodologies are drawn from a range of European and other theatrical thinkers: from Stanislavsky and his inheritors Vakhtangov, Demidov, Adler, Hagen, Meisner and Strasberg; from the physical theatre, improvisation and mask work of Lecoq and Johnstone; from the psycho-physical expressionism of Laban and Meyerhold; from the post-Brechtian and post-Grotowskian experimental traditions; and from radical contemporary dramaturgical practices.
Working with some of the greatest dramatic texts ever written, you are asked to consider what they mean now, and how their 21st century reinterpretation and re-imagining still holds a ‘mirror up to nature’
You are encouraged to understand the demands of both art and craft as participants in the European theatrical tradition; and to envision the recreation and reimagining of that tradition for the future. The course rests on three structural pillars, three key moments of dramatic innovation and social transition, encountered in chronological order: Greek theatre, early modern English theatre, and 19th/20th century Russian and European theatre.
Applicants will normally have either undertaken conservatoire training, have professional acting experience, or have a degree in the broad field of performance and drama studies. Students from other disciplines may be considered if you have sufficient experience of theatre. An offer will normally only be made after audition and interview, and you may also be required to take part in a short practical workshop and/or submit a short piece of written work.
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.
Applicants for whom English is not their first language are required to prove their English language proficiency by gaining an overall score of 7.0 in an IELTS test. We do accept equivalent English language qualifications. Applicants are advised to gain this certification as early as possible and more information can be found through the English Language Requirements page.
Auditions
We audition all applicants for MA Acting. We will require you to submit a self-tape including the following elements:
International Auditions
Each year Central hosts a number of auditions outside of the UK, with a team of tutors from Central traveling to meet applicants. The international auditions are designed to replicate the London-based audition experience in every aspect (other than a tour of our site!).
For fees and funding options, please visit website to find out more
Our graduates have performed in leading theatre venues worldwide including national and international tours, West End and Broadway.
UK:
National Theatre, National Theatre of Scotland, English National Opera, Royal Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare’s Globe, Almeida, Donmar, Royal Court, Old Vic, Young Vic, Stratford East, Bush, Gate, Finborough, Southwark Playhouse, Kiln, Arcola, Vaults, Theatre 503, Theatr Clwyd, Sheffield Crucible, Leeds Playhouse, Liverpool Everyman, Manchester Royal Exchange, Hull Truck, Northern Broadsides, Northern Stage, Sonia Friedman Productions, Mischief Theatre, Flute Theatre, HighTide, Paines Plough, The Factory, Secret Cinema.
International:
National Theatre of Norway, National Theatre of Greece, National Theatre of Northern Greece, Rome National Theatre, National Theatre of Spain, National Classical Theatre of Spain, National Theatre of Catalonia, Festival de Almagro, Lincoln Center (New York); Goodman Theatre (Chicago), Stratford Festival, Shaw Festival (Canada), Cameri Theatre (Tel Aviv), Pop-up Globe, Sydney Theatre Company, Sport for Jove (Australia/NZ).
Screen includes major UK, US and international films, and TV productions by BBC, ITV, Channel 4, NBC, HBO, Netflix, Amazon, Sky, FX, Starz, ABC, S4C.
Graduates have also worked as writers, directors, designers, filmmakers, producers, agents, musicians, singers, scholars, comedians, acting teachers, acrobats and dancers.
Indicative course content includes:
In the first term, the ensemble principle is nurtured through four weeks of practical work on the choruses of ancient Greek tragedy, neutral mask and intensive physical and vocal training. Texts may derive from adaptations of Greek plays from a variety of cultural traditions, and exercises from different experimental theatre methodologies; focus is on the physicality and musicality of dramatic text. Accompanying contextual seminars address the social and political histories and discourses of classical drama from antiquity to the present day, including those relating to identity, ownership, appropriation and colonialism.
In the second term, the training focuses on the revolutionary Realist and Expressionist dramas of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and their contemporary legacy. Underpinning the work are the theories and practices of Stanislavsky and his Russian and American successors, and the psycho-physical methodologies of Rudolph Laban and Yat Malmgren. During the term students work on character preparation and transformation, developing one devised and one text-based character study, and undertaking a rehearsal exercise of scenes from a Chekhov or other realist play. Practical assessments, showings and feedback panels take place at the end of term.
The course’s outward-facing work begins after the mid-session break with an industry showcase, either filmed or in a professional theatre venue. Screen acting classes help to prepare you for auditions for TV and film.
The public productions season involves participation in two professionally-supported productions of classical plays either in Central’s theatres or external theatre spaces.
Throughout the practical training, you will work on a Sustained Independent Project (SIP), which may take the form of either: a solo performance with a 4000-word critical reflection; or a 12000-word dissertation.
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama is a small specialist institution of the theatrical and performing arts within the University of London....
