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What can theatre tell us about everyday life in a digital culture? How does dance inform and shape society? How can we analyse, interpret and respond to this - as critical thinkers? In this programme you will learn how to investigate and reflect on the dynamic ways in which theatrical and choreographic practices respond to a society in transition. This programme welcomes both Dutch and international students who are interested in dramaturgy, programming and curating, critical writing and art criticism, as well as arts professionals who wish to enrich their practice through academic research.
Contemporary performance practices are increasingly hybrid projects that approach and transcend the borders of theatre, dance, visual arts, music, media and daily life. Theatre and dance are inextricably linked with other media that shape our reality; they extend beyond the theatre’s walls and inject themselves into our daily lives. Theories and concepts derived from the performing arts are progressively deployed in cultural theory and (social) science. Such a field in transition demands an approach that studies theatre and dance as intermedial and interdisciplinary phenomena, and addresses the interrelationships of these phenomena, the audience and the socio-cultural context.
This dynamic is the focus of our Contemporary Theatre, Dance and Dramaturgy programme.
Fully taught in English, this Master’s programme takes an academic approach to contemporary performance. We closely collaborate with the field of theatre and dance in the Netherlands and Flanders, internationally regarded as the forerunners of the exciting new trends that emerge on the European stage. You will get acquainted with state-of-the-art theory yet we are also actively oriented towards the practice of theatre and dance. This is exemplified by the focus on dramaturgy, an internship in the second semester, and the many opportunities to meet with practitioners, build-in components within the programme and closely related to the staff’s expansive network.
Research topics
Our research focus areas include:
Since the workfield is multifaceted and comprises both larger and smaller companies as well as public and private initiatives, many alumni combine various jobs - for instance, dramaturge and writer or programmer and artistic advisor. Read more about possible career prospects.
This highly successful programme offers specialist pathways in Playwriting and Dramaturgy. We concentrate on the process of writing for live performance, together with an ongoing evaluation of the work in process. Through practice and reflection, we enable you to establish a distinctive, individual approach as both a writer and dramaturge. Projects include site-specific work, writing for a specific audience, verbatim theatre and interdisciplinary collaboration.
We support the development of texts for performance, alongside intellectual understanding of the diverse forms and contexts in which live performance can be made and the writer/dramaturge’s role in this. We examine texts from a wide range of periods and cultures. We engage with work that is innovative, or which challenges established notions of practice.
Dramaturgs and playwrights study side by side, and examine creative and dramaturgical issues from various perspectives as writers, spectators and creative collaborators. There are opportunities to collaborate on an Interdisciplinary Project with MA Performance Makers and composers from the Department of Music. Final project texts, performed and directed by industry professionals, are presented at the Soho Theatre in London, attended by key industry representatives. Graduates are highly successful in obtaining commissions, dramaturgy posts and artistic directorships. Recent successes include:
All students receive Professional Orientation and support towards career development.
Autumn term
All students take the Writing Projects module: you will work on three diverse, short playwriting projects. Each addresses particular generic issues that relate to writing for live performance, and you will engage with the specific challenges and demands of differing circumstances of text development and production. These will vary from year to year, but they are likely to be selected from the following:
You will also take the Dramaturgy module, which has two main elements: analysis of dramatic text (these will include classics and modern classics, as well as new plays); and analysis of live performance seen by the group (including some visual, environmental or non-text-based work). During the module you will assemble a portfolio of critical analyses and creative writing projects for assessment.
You will also take one contextual module alongside students from other Masters programmes, to be selected from a list of options that will vary from session to session.
Spring term
You will develop your work on Dramaturgy with the term-long practical workshop module Creative Intervention in Text. This will examine: translation; adaptation of work from other media for live performance; and the re-writing and/or adaptation of extant plays; planning and curating seasons of performance work. You will assemble a portfolio of creative projects for assessment.
You also start work on your Final Project the personal Dissertation-equivalent project that will be the core of your work for the next six months). Weekly seminars and workshops will examine themes relevant to the range of projects chosen, and a first draft or outline will be produced. Each project will be the focus of individual tutorials, and then a class workshop led by a guest dramaturg, director or playwright as appropriate. You will then plan the next phase of the research or development of your project.
You also take another option from the list of contextual modules shared with students from other Masters programmes.
Summer term
You will present the second draft of your project for another phase of tutorials and group workshops.
Playwriting projects will then be prepared for some form of public rehearsed reading or scratch performance, in extract form – with the writers involved in all aspects of the work.
Dramaturgy projects will be given practical support of an appropriate, equivalent kind. You will further develop your work, with tutorials and workshops and public presentation of work as appropriate, before writing and submitting the finished project.
Throughout the year, various seminars and workshops will examine diverse issues that affect writers today, and these will be led by visiting professionals as appropriate.
We deploy a range of assessment approaches, each appropriate to the module taken. Students taking Writing Projects will submit three short playtexts for assessment. Dramaturgy is assessed by a portfolio of analytic reviews, and Creative Intervention in Text by a series of short creative writing projects and writing exercises. Each of the contextual option modules is assessed by a 4,000 word essay. Final Project leads to the production of a playtext (Playwriting), or a Dissertation or equivalent practical project (Dramaturgy).
Numerous playwrights completing this programme receive high-level professional development opportunities, commissions, awards and full-scale productions of their work at major new writing centres in the UK, USA and in continental Europe. Many also work for at least part of the time in the fields of script development (for theatre and television), and in theatre publication.
Recent playwriting alumni include:
In each of these cases the award-winning play was the writer’s Final Project from this programme.
Dramaturgy alumni work in professional literary management for mainstream and fringe building-based companies, as well as on freelance script development programmes in the UK and internationally. These include:
The Masters in Playwriting & Dramaturgy gives you a practical and theoretical engagement with the many forms of writing and production for theatre. The programme is designed for those wishing to develop playwriting skills and knowledge of script development and support, opening the way to many theatre roles, including dramaturgy.
Our programme is the only one in Scotland that combines playwriting with dramaturgy. You will undertake core practical playwriting courses and core dramaturgy courses before choosing to specialise in one pathway.
A significant part of the programme is delivered by professional writers and dramaturges. This programme also includes the opportunity for playwrights to develop a major script, through workshops and staged readings with actors and directors.
Core teaching is delivered in two semesters, followed by an independent desk- or practice-based project.
Our core courses introduce you to the foundations of both playwriting as a craft, and dramaturgy as a historical and contemporary practice.
In addition, core courses develop other skills useful to the role of the dramaturg and the practitioner, including critical reading, writing and reflection, independent research skills (such as archival and audience research), and presentation skills.
These courses will also prepare you to pursue doctoral study in the future.
The design of the Playwriting & Dramaturgy programme is intended to develop both the practical and critical skills of students. There is both subject-specific development (including knowledge of playwriting as a craft and dramaturgy as a role, working knowledge of the playwriting process, in-depth knowledge of plays and processes of textual and production analyses) alongside more generic skills development (including presentation skills – written and oral, a capacity for critical reflection, project management, team work, and independent research skills).
The role of the dramaturg is becoming increasingly recognised within the theatre industries, as is the capacity of playwrights to apply their skills and knowledge to other tasks (including, for example, providing script development support for emerging writers). This programme aims to equip playwrights and potential dramaturges with knowledge of other writing roles in theatre.
The critical components of this programme also provide a good foundation for students wishing to progress to doctoral study.
Graduates of this programme have gone on to become commissioned playwrights, production dramaturges, theatre critics, literary advisors, doctoral students, theatre makers and academics.
In this one-year program you will encounter and explore dramaturgy beyond work with written texts and literary play scripts to encompass the contexts of dance, hybrid works, installation, community-based and performance art work. The program provides opportunities for you to develop your potential for artistic leadership and attain in-depth knowledge of dramaturgical thinking and practices.
The course is underpinned by a commitment to the pursuit of artistic excellence, collaboration and interdisciplinarity within established and emerging local, national and international dramaturgical practices. Students collaborate with other VCA postgraduate disciplines and engage with writers, directors, designers, choreographers, performance-makers and actors on a range of projects in an intensive training environment.
The course provides a balance of theory and practice across two semesters through laboratory-based workshops, seminars, lectures, self-directed exercises, tutorials, practical master classes and an independent project. An intensive first semester focuses on skills and research training, including a discrete subject where you will closely engage with the dramaturgical expertise of Melbourne’s diverse theatre industry. The second and final semester allows more independent practice and research, building reflective performance practitioners with a high level of research and practice skills.
● Work in partnership with students from other performing arts disciplines
● Build your confidence and technical and critical skills
● Option to complete an internship relevant to your specialism
Dance at Winchester focuses on the academic study of dance, preparing you for a career in teaching, lecturing, research, choreography, dance dramaturgy or dance facilitation. It is also suitable if you are a professional interested in honing your analytical and critical skills, out of a passion for the subject or in order to change career direction. The programme provides you with a firm grounding in the critical theories and dramaturgical structures of musical theatre that are necessary for analysing, critiquing, choreographing or facilitating dance practice. You are encouraged to engage with academic literature, case studies and each other by reflecting on your own experiences.
The suite of Masters programmes in the Department of Performing Arts draws together students on courses in Theatre Studies, Musical Theatre and Dance. You work together on modules in Critical Theories and Dramaturgy (Analysis and Composition) and in the optional intensive practical module, benefiting from interdisciplinary interactions, debates and discussions. Over the duration of the course, you develop skills in independent and critical learning, building your confidence and expertise progressively through independent and collaborative research, problem solving, and analysis, with the support of staff.
You specialise through your choice of optional module and through supervision of Research Preparation and Dissertation modules. Optional modules include Theatre Stories, Cultural Entrepreneurship, Performance Now, and Dance Facilitation. The programme can be taken entirely by distance/blended learning, but Intensive Practice, Extending the Voice, and Physical Skills 3 are only available on campus and may be subject to audition.
The course prepares you for a range of careers, including research, teaching in schools or at further and higher education levels, the entertainment industry, the performance sector and production-related work, and outreach and facilitatory roles in community and social care settings.
Intended employment route for graduates include:
• Research or archival based careers
• Teaching in schools, and at FE and HE levels
• Entertainment industry – criticism, dance dramaturgy etc.
• Performance sector and production related – dance, production support
• Community and social care settings - outreach and facilitatory roles
*'Validation' is the process by which the University approves a new programme to ensure that it provides a distinct, high-quality academic experience for students, that enables them to acquire the necessary academic knowledge, understanding, general and subject-specific skills required to pursue a graduate level career. In the unlikely event that a programme is not validated then we will do our best to find you an alternative programme within the University.
UK, EU, World
Start Dates: September
Teaching takes place: Daytime
Distance learning available
The University aims to shape 'confident learners' by enabling students to develop the skills to excel in their studies here and be transferable to further studies or the employment market. Staff and students form a community of learners who, together and independently, seek to generate and exchange knowledge. Over the duration of the course, students develop independent and critical learning, building confidence and expertise progressively through independent and collaborative research, problem solving, and analysis with the support of staff. Students take responsibility for their own learning and are encouraged to make use of the wide range of available learning resources available.
In addition to the formally scheduled contact time (i.e. lectures, seminars etc), students are encouraged to access academic support from staff within the course team, personal tutors and the wide range of services to students within the University.
Taught elements of the course take place on our King Alfred Campus or at West Downs, Winchester.
Our validated courses may adopt a range of means of assessing your learning. An indicative, and not necessarily comprehensive, list of assessment types you might encounter includes essays, portfolios, supervised independent work, presentations, written exams, or practical performances.
We ensure all students have an equal opportunity to achieve module learning outcomes. As such, where appropriate and necessary, students with recognised disabilities may have alternative assignments set that continue to test how successfully they have met the module's learning outcomes.
Further details on assessment types can be found by attending an open evening or contacting our teaching staff.
We are committed to providing timely and appropriate feedback to you on your academic progress and achievement in order to enable you to reflect on your progress and plan your academic and skills development effectively. You are also encouraged to seek additional feedback from your course tutors.
For more information about our regulations for this course, please see our Academic Regulations, Policies and Procedures section.
Visit our website for more information on fees, scholarships, postgraduate loans and other funding options to study Creative Writing (Extended) at Swansea University - 'Welsh University of the Year 2017' (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017).
The MA in Creative Writing is a unique programme that offers integrated training in the writing of literary and media text. The MA in Creative Writing is taught by prize-winning writers of fiction, poetry and drama who provide core training and individual pathways in the major genres of contemporary literary and media writing. Modules on the Creative Writing programme are taught through workshop sessions, group work and one-to-one mentoring between students and a tutor. Courses include the writing of prose fiction, poetry, drama, screenwriting and creative nonfiction. Writers and representatives from the arts world and the publishing industry are invited to address the MA Creative Writing group about creative work and publishing. We have strong links with Swansea’s Dylan Thomas Centre, which offers a lively programme of events throughout the year.
The Extended MA (EMA) in Creative Writing is a 240-credit postgraduate qualification that is equivalent to 120 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) and is thus a recognised Masters qualification throughout the European Union. The EMA is a standard UK MA plus an additional 60 credits (30 ECTS) and this additional coursework is undertaken in one semester at a partner institution overseas. The EMA is therefore not only an EU recognised postgraduate qualification it also adds a study abroad experience thus enhancing the qualification’s employability credentials.
- The MA in Creative Writing is taught by experienced writers and offers a wide range of writing genres including fiction, short story, poetry, drama, screenwriting and creative non-fiction.
- Drama writing is a particular strength, including the relatively new and unexplored field of Dramaturgy.
- Regular play readings and students' dramatic writing is often performed by professional actors in the Rough Diamonds mini-festival in the summer.
- Creative Writers have a close relationship with National Theatre Wales and also open-mic poetry events at local venues such as the Dylan Thomas Centre and Howl.
- There is scope for work experience with local publishers.
- The writing programme has an online journal, The Swansea Review, and students write for The Siren, a student-run online journal, and The Waterfront student newspaper.
- Creative Writing students have free membership of Literature Wales, the national literature promotion agency.
- Students are involved in the annual Writers’ Day at the Dylan Thomas Centre, where they meet editors, agents, publishers and writers to discuss the ins and outs of publication and the craft of writing.
- Students are part of a vibrant community of writers and artists – Swansea, the birthplace of Dylan Thomas, having a fair claim to being Wales’s city of culture.
- The programme has connection with and experience of the unique literary culture of Wales, home to possibly the oldest (but still vibrant) bardic tradition in Europe.
Modules on the MA in Creative Writing typically include:
• Writing Fiction
• Writing Poetry
• Genre: Writing for Stage
• Creative Non-Fiction and Travel Writing
• Nature Writing
• Screenwriting
• Writing Radio Drama
• The Art of Short Story
• Writing the Self
• International Dramaturgy
Students or Professionals interested in Creative and Professional Writing. Students interested in preparation for postgraduate research, MPhil or PhD.
- To offer students the chance to belong to a warmly supportive community of writers, passionate about their art.
- To give students the opportunity to discuss literary matters with agents, editors and publishers.
- To provide active participation in Swansea’s burgeoning literary scene and have students’ dramatic writing performed by professional actors at the Dylan Thomas Literature Centre.
- To offer research seminars presented by eminent creative writers and academics.
- To develop study and research skills in Creative Writing research and practice methodologies.
Career expectations are excellent for Creative Writing graduates. MA degree holders enter careers in professional and creative writing, publishing, education, global marketing and advertising, media, business, heritage and tourism, and performing arts. Some graduates go on to pursue further postgraduate study leading to a PhD and a career in Academia.
"Since graduating with an MA with Distinction in Creative Writing from Swansea University, I have published three collections of poetry, founded Grievous Jones Press, and begun lecturing in Creative Writing. In the near future I will finish my PhD in Creative Writing and have books forthcoming with Blackheath Books and Seren Books. The training, experience, and rigour of the Swansea MA in Creative Writing was invaluable for launching my career as a writer and publisher. Without the inspiration, guidance, and critique of the excellent faculty and peers, my own writing would not have grown and my flame for creation might have faltered."
David Oprava, Creative Writing, MA
*New for 2017, subject to final approval.
The MA in Sound Design is a forward thinking course, which invites you to explore the creative use of sound within film and other visual media at an advanced level. The course focuses on the more creative aspects of sound design and post-production while providing you with the necessary technical skills.
You’ll develop your work within your areas of interest without stylistic boundaries. The content areas include:
• Sound editing (production audio, dialogue/ADR, SFX, music)
• The language and aesthetics of sound design (narrative, dramaturgy)
• Foley
• Field recording
• Sound sculpting and processing
• Working with directors
• Post-production workflows
• Dubbing
• Surround sound
• VR audio
• Industry deliverables
The course delivers a mixture of advanced technical skills related to sound design and audio post production for film and other visual media. It also provides creatively-oriented insights into contemporary sound design practice and encourages students to push the boundaries of the field. Subject areas include:
• Sound sculpting, processing and synthesis
• The language and aesthetics of sound design
• Storytelling and dramaturgy
MA Sound Design is part of a suite of postgraduate courses available across music and sound, operating alongside ‘sister’ pathways in Sound Production and Sound Arts, which allow further specialism in these areas.
For more information on the course structure, please go to: https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/courses/pg-sound-design/
In trimester one, you'll gain the skills you’ll need to fulfil the rest of the course. The Skills Portfolio module is built on the idea that you’ll already have technical skills in this area. It therefore allows you to choose a handful of skills projects from a large number of options – these cover skills right across the Sound Arts, Sound Design and Sound Production pathways and include (optional) elements of multimedia.
The Research Methodology and Context module develops skills in postgraduate-level research and writing.
In trimester two, the core module is the Sound Design Practice module. It explores the creative and practical application of Sound Design within a visual narrative and storytelling context.
Alongside this core module, you’ll be offered a wide range of options. The Post Production module explores an industry-level workflow for Audio Post within film and visual media and covers a wide range of associated skillsets. Intertextuality in Sound Production, from the Sound Production pathway, explores the overlap between Urban Music production and what are considered more experimental genres. The Visual Music module, from the Sound Arts pathway, explores the idea that musical thinking can be extended to the visual, and encourages students to develop multimedia projects that explore this idea.
There are also choices in Composition, Performance, Musicology and Professional Practice.
In trimester three, you'll complete the course with a independent research project, compromising of a large-scale practical project, supported by a reflective account.
For more information on modules please visit the course webpage: https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/courses/pg-sound-design/
The delivery of the course involves a mixture of teaching and learning activities, including lectures, workshops, seminars, online study materials and guest speaker sessions.
The workshop / seminar sessions will include ongoing peer review and tutor support opportunities. Some parts of the course are delivered using a ‘flipped classroom’ model, where students independently work through online study materials and tasks, which are followed up by practical support workshops.
The assessment is majorly based around practical coursework, with the aim to build an extensive portfolio of sound design and post production work. Practical coursework is typically supported by a written commentary or evaluation. The Research Methodology and Context module is assessed through a more substantial written paper.
You can use the course to develop an individually-tailored portfolio of skills. This will equip you for the current employment landscape, where a combination of traditional audio post production roles are required alongside broader practice in sound, music and other media.
Our graduates have range of successful careers in production, composition, music for film and TV, sound design for moving image and games, sound art, software development, engineering, further education, higher education and research.
Visit our website for more information on fees, scholarships, postgraduate loans and other funding options to study Creative Writing at Swansea University - 'Welsh University of the Year 2017' (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017).
The MA in Creative Writing is a unique programme that offers integrated training in the writing of literary and media text. The MA in Creative Writing is taught by prize-winning writers of fiction, poetry and drama who provide core training and individual pathways in the major genres of contemporary literary and media writing. Modules on the Creative Writing programme are taught through workshop sessions, group work and one-to-one mentoring between students and a tutor. Courses include the writing of prose fiction, poetry, drama, screenwriting and creative nonfiction. Writers and representatives from the arts world and the publishing industry are invited to address the MA Creative Writing group about creative work and publishing. We have strong links with Swansea’s Dylan Thomas Centre, which offers a lively programme of events throughout the year.
- The MA in Creative Writing is taught by experienced writers and offers a wide range of writing genres including fiction, short story, poetry, drama, screenwriting and creative non-fiction.
- Drama writing is a particular strength, including the relatively new and unexplored field of Dramaturgy.
- Regular play readings and students' dramatic writing is often performed by professional actors in the Rough Diamonds mini-festival in the summer.
- Creative Writers have a close relationship with National Theatre Wales and also open-mic poetry events at local venues such as the Dylan Thomas Centre and Howl.
- There is scope for work experience with local publishers.
- The writing programme has an online journal, The Swansea Review, and students write for The Siren, a student-run online journal, and The Waterfront student newspaper.
- Creative Writing students have free membership of Literature Wales, the national literature promotion agency.
- Students are involved in the annual Writers’ Day at the Dylan Thomas Centre, where they meet editors, agents, publishers and writers to discuss the ins and outs of publication and the craft of writing.
- Students are part of a vibrant community of writers and artists – Swansea, the birthplace of Dylan Thomas, having a fair claim to being Wales’s city of culture.
- The programme has connection with and experience of the unique literary culture of Wales, home to possibly the oldest (but still vibrant) bardic tradition in Europe.
Modules on the MA in Creative Writing typically include:
• Writing Fiction
• Writing Poetry
• Genre: Writing for Stage
• Creative Non-Fiction and Travel Writing
• Nature Writing
• Screenwriting
• Writing Radio Drama
• The Art of Short Story
• Writing the Self
• International Dramaturgy
Students or Professionals interested in Creative and Professional Writing. Students interested in preparation for postgraduate research, MPhil or PhD.
- To offer students the chance to belong to a warmly supportive community of writers, passionate about their art.
- To give students the opportunity to discuss literary matters with agents, editors and publishers.
- To provide active participation in Swansea’s burgeoning literary scene and have students’ dramatic writing performed by professional actors at the Dylan Thomas Literature Centre.
- To offer research seminars presented by eminent creative writers and academics.
- To develop study and research skills in Creative Writing research and practice methodologies.
Career expectations are excellent for Creative Writing graduates. MA degree holders enter careers in professional and creative writing, publishing, education, global marketing and advertising, media, business, heritage and tourism, and performing arts. Some graduates go on to pursue further postgraduate study leading to a PhD and a career in Academia.
"Since graduating with an MA with Distinction in Creative Writing from Swansea University, I have published three collections of poetry, founded Grievous Jones Press, and begun lecturing in Creative Writing. In the near future I will finish my PhD in Creative Writing and have books forthcoming with Blackheath Books and Seren Books. The training, experience, and rigour of the Swansea MA in Creative Writing was invaluable for launching my career as a writer and publisher. Without the inspiration, guidance, and critique of the excellent faculty and peers, my own writing would not have grown and my flame for creation might have faltered."
David Oprava, Creative Writing, MA
This Masters programme engages with a range of theatre and performance practices, explored in a critically informed context. The programme encompasses practices such as contemporary devising and production dramaturgy, writing for performance, site-specific and locational performance, autobiographical performance, physical theatre(s) and socially/politically engaged practice. You will be encouraged to develop a reflective, rigorous and critically informed approach to theatre practice, with the intention of enriching and enhancing your creative work and furthering your career as a theatre/performance practitioner. You will be taught by leading academics as well as external professional practitioners.
The programme is designed to give you a practical and critical engagement with many forms of theatre and performance practice.
You will take core courses and create a portfolio of optional courses according to your personal interests and perceived needs. You can also select some courses from across the College of Arts, enabling an interdisciplinary approach.
The programme concludes with an independent research project. This provides you with a degree of flexibility in relation to the focus of your advanced study. It permits further applied practice or the opportunity to undertake an in-depth written study on an area of your choice.
This programme is ideal for practitioners who want to develop their practice; graduates who are planning a career in theatre making; and those who want to look more in depth into aspects of theatre practice they have enjoyed and benefitted from through undergraduate studies. The programme also provides an excellent foundation for PhD studies and an academic career.
