Design for Theatre and Live Performance BA (Hons)

This module introduces a variety of practical technical skills and the concepts of safe professional practice. Through exploration of a range of materials and processes, you will build relevant skills and develop your practical knowledge base, while allowing flexibility for personal direction and acquiring an understanding of industry needs.

This module will introduce you to design for theatre and live performance through collaborative and individual projects, equipping you with theoretical and practical skills necessary for creating and expressing design concepts and narratives. You will develop observational abilities, experiment with various design elements, and enhance their visual communication, self-evaluation, and critical thinking skills through practical and digital work.

Building on the previous module 'Introducing Visual Narrative,' this module will allow you to apply your knowledge in live performance design and develop professional practices in production techniques. Focusing on collaboration and core scenic crafts like set construction and lighting design, you will work in small teams to create a spatial design concept, guided by technical and industry professionals, and you will learn to manage materials, tools, and digital technologies within the interdisciplinary performance design field.

This module introduces contextual studies, research approaches, and academic writing, focusing on the interaction between theatre, performance, and live events with social, political, and cultural landscapes. It aims to develop critical thinking and writing skills, culminating in a final illustrated essay that reflects the significance of design in narrative creation and its broader cultural implications.

This module supports your career aspirations through a professional placement, enhancing your professional practice and awareness of sustainable design. You will document your experience, share insights in a symposium, and develop key professional attributes, employability, and a professional network while reflecting on your future aspirations.

Through active participation with team-based problem solving, you will work together in mixed teams on a project where you will use your creative ideas to generate solutions to the challenge or brief. Your project will allow you to explore how creativity can make an impact in society, as you choose a theme of sustainability, social justice, enterprise and innovation or community. This collaborative learning experience will expose you to a range of new processes and approaches that will develop your creative thinking.

This module helps you discover your personal design process through exploration and experimentation, enhancing your understanding of performance design practice and authorship. It introduces diverse theories and practices, emphasises transformative relationships with audiences, and focuses on evolving technologies, encouraging you to apply these concepts in various performance styles while reflecting on contemporary industry practices and sustainable principles.

This module connects you to live industry briefs and professional practice, allowing you to develop experimental design for performance using traditional and evolving technologies while reflecting on current influences and debates in performance design. It aims to build your confidence in designing for various spaces, promote ethical and sustainable practices, and enhance your ability to connect with audiences, culminating in a work-like experience with direct client and audience engagement.

Develop your 3D design skills through CAD software and fabrication techniques such as 3D printing. You'll explore materials like resin, plastic, metal, and ceramics while designing and prototyping 3D products. Taught in mixed-course groups, this module encourages collaboration and supports personalised learning.

Explore the creative potential of storyboarding in this optional module. Learn how to plan visual narratives for film, TV, and media using filmic language, script breakdown, and pre-production techniques. Taught in mixed-course groups, the module supports collaboration and personalisation. You'll develop storyboards from concept to final visuals, gaining practical skills and industry insight.

Explore the art of hat making and millinery in this optional module, rarely taught in higher education and relevant across performance and cultural industries. You'll examine the meaning of objects through semiotics, develop a personal design brief, and create 3D outcomes. Studied in mixed-course groups, the module encourages collaboration and allows you to personalise your learning.

Explore how models communicate space, scale, and ideas in this optional module. You'll experiment with materials, digital techniques, and traditional craft to develop 2D and 3D model-making skills. Studied in mixed-course groups, the module supports personalisation and cross-course collaboration while building professional practice, creative confidence, and portfolio-ready outcomes for performance and cultural industries.

On this module you will learn key performance techniques associated with acting, dance and puppetry, incorporating Laban theory of movement and applying motion capture to a digital avatar for a range disciplines.

This module provides a practical and conceptual exploration of multi-sensory art-making, combining time-based media, performance, installation and movement. Students will engage with sensory interaction and technologies to create work that extends beyond a single mode of perception. The module introduces approaches from live art, expanded cinema and multimedia practice, encouraging experimentation, collaboration and reflection. Students will develop and present a resolved live, staged or screened artwork informed by critical research and feedback.

This module provides a detailed exploration of Virtual Production, a cutting-edge filmmaking technique that integrates live-action footage with digital environments in real-time. Students will explore a range of advanced technologies such as CGI, augmented reality, motion capture, and LED walls in order to shoot content using immersive and realistic virtual sets. The module will introduce students to the workflow of Virtual Production, from pre-visualisation and real-time engine integration to in-camera visual effects and performance capture.

This Year 2 optional module introduces fantasy prop design for industries like film, TV, theatre, and games. You'll learn 3D CAD and traditional making techniques to create imaginative, functional props. The module covers concept development, digital modelling, prototyping, and final production, culminating in a tangible artefact and a portfolio developing both creative and technical skills for industry application.

We have an option for all of our students to undertake a placement year and allow you to decide whether this is right for you once you have completed years 1 and 2 of your course. This time spent working in industry provides our students with crucial work experience, which is highly prized and much sought after by employers upon graduation. If you are successful in securing a placement you will have the chance to gain an additional Certificate or Diploma in Professional Practice, dependent on duration.

The additional placement year incurs a fee. For international students considering the transfer to the 4-yr SW route it's important to seek advice from the International Student Support team and the Home Office regarding any potential visa implications and costs. For UK students, advice should also be sought regarding SLC eligibility, if applicable.

* If you choose to take the sandwich route option, you will need to apply for this course by using the full-time UCAS code.

If you're studying on our sandwich route you can also opt to study abroad for a full academic year, or for a semester, during Year Three. This is an optional and additional period of study that complements your degree at NTU as an alternative to taking a work placement.

This is an exciting opportunity to experience a different national culture, teaching and learning styles and subjects in an international environment. The destination university must be a year abroad / exchange partner of NTU or member of a formally recognised scheme such as the International Student Exchange Programme (ISEP).

Our NTU Global and student mobility team will support you in finding the right opportunity from one of the many international partners available around the world.

Successful completion of a period of international study will earn you a standalone award an International Study Certificate (minimum six weeks) or the International Study Diploma (minimum 36 weeks).

This module aims to advance your theatre and live performance design skills to a professional level through a competitive industry project, providing a work-like experience with significant national and regional organisations. You will work alongside industry professionals to create a full-scale set and costume design, experiment with evolving technologies, and develop a graduate portfolio, preparing you for a successful career in various creative professions.

This module allows you to create a personalised design project, enhancing your role as a theatre maker through self-initiated work. You will develop a learning agreement with your tutors, initiate and manage a complex project, and present your research through various formats, such as a reflective essay, video presentation, or podcast.

In this module, you'll create a Reflective Evaluative Document (RED) in either written, video diary, or podcast format. You'll explore real-world industry insights to prepare you for your future career path. Throughout the year, you'll engage in activities that enhance your professional development and build a Professional design portfolio. These projects will help you reflect on your skills, experiences, and career goals, making you more employable in a global context.