BA (Hons) Musical Theatre and Dance

Summary

This module will build on the skills you developed in your first year. In The Creative Industries and You module, you utilised concepts and principles to explore the nature of creativity, developing a short and longer-term plan for your personal and professional practice.

In this module you will carry out an individual investigation, utilising secondary research to investigate the lineage of your creative practice. You will directly apply ideas to your own discipline and development, selecting an area of investigation relevant to your own practice, and communicating your argument in writing or via a narrated slide presentation. The concepts you explore in this module, including your positionality and identity, are themes you will encounter frequently as a creative professional.

Module Aims

By examining existing case studies and undertaking a research case study you will further develop secondary research skills and contextualise your professional identity. The research methods and study skills you develop throughout this module will prepare you for next year’s Final Project, in which you will self-direct a significant piece of academic, creative and/or professional practice. Additionally, this module will help you develop the following graduate attributes:

• Global Awareness
• Self-awareness
• Intellectual curiosity
• Professionalism

This module is intended to extend a range of performance and technical skills acquired throughout Level 4. Students will continue to undertake technical and artistic classes in ballet, tap, contemporary and jazz. The module ensures a progressive and challenging development of dance skills, building upon existing knowledge and developing individual progress. Students will look to cement a dancers’ mind and body with reference to strength, flexibility, alignment, co-ordination and range of movement quality within each dance genre.

Students will be equipped to address individual physical characteristics to enable them to reach their full potential alongside an understanding of how to perceive and express concepts and personal responses in order to develop aesthetically and artistically. There will be direct connection to promote the capacity of personal evaluation to develop technically and to encourage an understanding of the performer as an individual artist in a mature fashion.

The aim of this module is to develop the skills acquired in acting and singing in level 4 and to explore further styles and techniques. In singing you will discover a wider range of musical genres and styles and start to build a personal repertoire of performance material, improving your knowledge of musicianship. In acting you will study a variety of texts and you will work on a range of duologues from different eras to give you an increased understanding of purpose, form and style.

You will work on delivering a believable characterisation, with increased truth and spontaneity of performance. You will work on sight-reading in both singing and acting and you will strive to gain an enhanced presentation and audience engagement This module builds upon the essential core skills and techniques to increase your technical, physical and emotional musical theatre skills.

Summary

In the Defining Your Practice in Context module, you evaluated the lineage and traditions of your creative practice, investigating how it connects to artistic and industry practices. This module will require you to utilise your acquired knowledge to plan and create, collaboratively, a piece of work that links to your practice. Collaborating with others can help you develop new and innovative ideas and can also help you develop confidence as a creative practitioner whilst practising your communication, project management, reflection and feedback skills.

Module Aims

• To develop collaborative working practices.
• To plan and execute a creative project.
• To document your creative process including the nature of your collaboration.
• Seek and use developmental feedback.
• Evaluate the nature of teamwork, communication and collaboration.
• Appraise your professional values, ethics and goals.

Additionally, this module will help you develop the following graduate attributes:

• Employable and Entrepreneurial.
• Creative, Collaborative and Connected.
• Socially Responsible.
• Self-awareness.
• Professionalism.

This course module looks at the creation of a devised performance through the processes needed to successfully create a piece of theatre combining the disciplines of movement, acting and song. You will gain a knowledge of the creative processes involved in production, deliver a confident and focused performance whilst being able to reflect on your success in extending your own skills base. You will begin to appreciate collaborative working methods through contributing to group interaction whilst underpinning performance through suitable preparation and research.

This module will begin to develop your knowledge of creative processes and how to utilise these in performance. You will gain knowledge of working within the performance industry and start to hone your skills to begin setting yourself on the path for developing yourself as an artist.

You will work on creating an abridged musical alongside a director and gain valuable knowledge on the application of stagecraft and the use of appropriate theatre vocabularies. You will gain awareness of the value of direction, responding actively and positively, including the practical application of notes, whilst developing company mentality and ethos.

This course module looks at the construction of movement vocabulary, through thorough physical investigation. It will make use of improvisation in order to aid devising and will look at choices made in use of the body and movement vocabulary, spatial decisions, use of time and dynamics, general structural devices and intention through movement. There will be various stimuli in form of photo/ picture, text, emotion in order to create original and appropriate vocabulary and key in making informed choices. There will also be opportunity to see live production and digital media. Verbal analysis throughout the course will provide a constructive layer in observation, reflective practice, critical response and informed decision making.

The Applied Musical Theatre module will help you to develop a deeper practical application of Musical Theatre Practitioners and the contextualisation of them within Musical Theatre today. You will explore pivotal eras and influential professionals who have shaped Musical Theatre and develop a more complex understanding through reading, research and critical thinking. Through this project you will develop essential communication and presentation skills whilst building on your performance skills to engage with an audience

This module is designed to introduce you to acting for camera, facilitating both your ability and confidence in this medium. The module seeks to embed the processes and terminology involved in screen acting. You will become well versed in the medium and have experience of acting for camera and the specific skills set that this entails. Being equipped to audition and work in a variety of genres, such as soaps, commercials, drama, comedy and film enhance employment opportunity. All sessions will be practical, allowing you the maximum amount of time to become comfortable being filmed and to make sure you fully understand the acting requirements for different shots and situations. During the sessions you will be given scripts that make different demands on you in terms of style and choice. You will become used to working quickly, with very little rehearsal, depending on the genre, and to making clear decisions quickly. Audition technique for film and TV will play a part in the practical sessions, as will self-taping.

More information about this module will be available soon.

More information about this module will be available soon.

This module will enhance your employability as you integrate your academic learning and vocational skills with a placement or creative enterprise project, engaging with industry for a minimum of 30 hours. During your work-based learning, you will be developing a deeper understanding of the realities of professional practice and the personal attributes and skills required to successfully realise your career goals.

Working in a professional environment will afford you the opportunity to gain practical skills, consolidate and expand professional networks, build confidence and develop a sound knowledge of the employment opportunities in the creative industries.

Working in the Creative Industries will guide you through the process of developing your CV and covering letter, working through applications, preparing for interviews, developing business ideas and promoting your personal brand. Using BIMM Connect and the advice of tutors and careers teams at BIMM, you will explore, research and secure a work-based learning placement or creative project within the creative industries

Module delivery will be in weekly sessions and will include career case studies, presentations from employers, advice and guidance for creative enterprise projects and information on the range of BIMM industry projects to work with; magazines, TV shows, record labels, blogs, festivals etc – all offered to further develop your professional skills.

Once a placement or project has been chosen, you will need to negotiate and complete a learning agreement, where you, the employer (where relevant) and your module leader agree in writing the key goals and measures for success for the work-based learning.

Please note that you will be expected to keep a journal of your own learning during your WBL and you will need to show that you have researched and planned for the learning that occurred on your placement or creative enterprise project. The Learning Agreement is evidence of this.

Work-Based Learning handbooks are available on Moodle for both students and employers, these contain your learning agreements and important information relating to health and safety, insurance and BIMM contacts for use during a placement.

There are two elements to the assessment of this module intended to observe and critically reflect on your experience; a learning diary and a project evaluation which both form your Work-Based Learning Report.

You need to complete a minimum of 30 hours WBL to satisfy the requirements of your Working in the Creative Industries module. The 30 hours can be worked as one block (e.g. a two or three-week placement) or as flexi-time (e.g. one day a week for several months). During this time, you may be visited onsite by a member of the Careers & Industry team, where appropriate.

Teaching and learning skills are essential elements for practitioners in the creative arts, both in terms of supporting lifelong development through self-teaching and self-assessment, and in terms of generating income and deriving satisfaction from teaching others. The foundations of effective teaching are the abilities to empathise, conceive, plan, communicate, adapt, assess, and provide feedback in an inspiring, motivational and safe environment that stimulates learning.

Combining theory and practice throughout, this module is focussed on teaching, self-teaching and learning of learner-relevant content in one to one contexts, such as individual tutorials, instrumental lessons or individual practice sessions.

In this module, you will undertake a significant project of your own choosing. It’s your chance to explore your passion within the industry and creative arts: experiment, take risks, strengthen your skills and create a product/cohesive portfolio of work that you are proud to showcase at the end of your degree. This module will support you in consolidating the broad learning and development from the course so far, building a bridge into the industry, the workplace and future opportunities. You will be supported to self-direct your own learning through a series of lectures, seminars and 1:1 tutorials with expert supervisors.

This module is the final step in your journey and will support you as you look to enter your chosen field as a creative professional. Drawing on evidence from throughout your time here. you will critically self-evaluate your personal learning journey and industry engagements to date. You will explore concepts and theories of personal and professional development to support, challenge and test your assumptions, to determine your readiness for work in the creative industries. You will have the opportunity to discuss this with your peers and learn from your collective experiences in both small degree path groups and large mixed discipline sessions.

With this position in mind, you will then be challenged to create and consolidate creative assets to give you the edge over the competition in your chosen field. Specialist workshops will be offered throughout the module, informed and delivered by our wide-reaching connections and specialist lecturers in the creative industries. This culminates in the creation of a portfolio that tells the story of your personal and professional journey so far, communicating your unique professional identity and future career plans in the creative industries.

This module is intended to extend and solidify a range of performance and technical skills acquired throughout Level 4 and 5. You will continue to undertake technical and artistic classes in ballet, tap, contemporary and jazz, as well as acting, song and voice work. The module ensures a progressive and challenging development of dance skills, building upon existing knowledge and developing individual progress and establishment as a well-rounded ‘triple threat’ performer. You will display active practice in understanding professional convention within each genre and will appreciate the correlation and interdisciplinary qualities and skills needed in technical and performance skills.

You will be equipped to address individual physical and emotional characteristics to enable you to enter the professional environment as a well-rounded and skilled artist. You will be able to perceive and express concepts and personal responses in order to develop aesthetically and artistically. There will be direct connection to promote the capacity of personal evaluation to develop technically and to encourage an understanding of oneself as a performer and individual artist in a mature fashion.

This course module looks at the creation of a devised performance through the processes needed to successfully create a piece of theatre combining the disciplines of dance, acting and song. You will gain experience in working with a musical director to collaborate collectively in producing a professional performance through musical narrative. You will draw on previously learned skills in devising theatre to deliver a focused professional performance with effective integration of core technical skills and artistic performance.

This module consists of audition, development, rehearsals and performance of a production in a professional theatre. You will audition for your role within the showcase in line with current industry practice. In dance auditions you will be expected to be able to pick up a routine with speed and execute it with excellent technique and appropriate style. In singing auditions, you will be expected to choose and perform your material with an intelligent understanding of necessary style and a confident and accomplished delivery. For the acting auditions you would be expected to have studied the given material and be able to perform it with the ability to convey character, style and intention. All auditions will be performed in front of the artistic team for the productions, in keeping with industry practice.

You will engage creatively and critically with the skills and processes of performance and production. You will be expected to demonstrate a highly skilled, engaging and sophisticated performance with a clear ability to convey intent to the audience. This module adheres to a professional working environment; the audition process, rehearsal period and the performance will replicate, as far as possible, a professional engagement. Individual student skills will be identified by tutors and aimed to be maximised at each showcase. The showcases will consist of relatively small groups of graduates, thus maximising potential for exposure. Each production will undergo an audition process in line with industry practice. Small casts allow equal opportunities for all students to be featured accordingly thus ensuring the best platform for exposure. To ensure that all students are showcased, shows will be tailored to include solo numbers, duets and trios and small ensemble numbers with featured tracks.