Dance/Drama Studies

Focus of the course

BA Creative Arts is a 3-year full-time Honours degree programme, and provides the opportunity to work across the barriers between the arts. The course offers you the unique chance to develop as artists in two out of six different disciplines:

• Art
• Creative Studies in English
• Dance
• Drama
• Music
• Textile Design Studies

'Our technologies, our interpretive and inventive skill, our physiology all affirm the interdisciplinarity of much of our experience. Our education should also be prepared to affirm this '

Creative Arts is designed to encourage challenging and independent thinking in artists who do not wish to be restricted by subject boundaries. We assume that you are primarily artists who are driven by the desire to create in a variety of media, and much of your time will be taken up with making things; theoretical or critical elements in the programme are aimed at supporting and enabling your personal practice. You will be working with tutors who have good professional profiles as: exhibiting artists internationally renowned designers published novelists and poets practising choreographers and dancers playwrights, theatre directors and radio scriptwriters composers with a good record of performances, recordings and broadcasts Taught modules are supplemented by supervised individual projects, which offer an opportunity for you to define your own area of expertise and exploration. Projects may be within one of your subjects - or they may explore relations between the two: Precedents for cross-art projects at Bath Spa include: CD of compositions to the composer's own texts exhibition exploring a unified theme across Art and Textile Design dance performance to the choreographer's own music installations combining visual work and sound design theatrical productions with script film with music exhibitions of painting, photography or textiles embodying text

The Creative Arts programme is based on the belief that the arts and artists perform an important role in interpreting and translating society and the material world.

How is the programme structured?

Creative Arts is a joint programme combining two of the six subjects. You undertake at least one module in each of these disciplines in each semester, and some subjects (Art, Textile Design Studies, Dance) offer a basic core, which is structured sequentially through the programme. Other subjects (Creative Studies in English, Drama, Music) offer a core route and/or a choice of optional specialist modules.

In Year 2 all students take a Vocational Skills element with a variety of modules available; these can be directed towards one of your arts subjects, with placements in, for example: arts administration (galleries, orchestras, theatre or dance companies) education, festival management, sound studios, internet arts promotion, or publishing.

Dance

The course requires interest and commitment and is designed for students with a range of abilities including those with appropriate previous experience as well as those with, for example, an 'A' Level in Dance. The focus of Dance study is on choreography which offers students the opportunity of developing their imagination and original thinking. This is supported by the development of practical performance skills as well as critical and analytical skills. A unique feature of the course is the relationship between Dance and other art forms, which is introduced in Levels 2 and 3 modules. Collaborations between Dance, text, sound, the visual arts and film are explored with the student as artist and/or with artists. Projects are undertaken in a range of venues and students are encouraged to engage in exciting and interactive arts processes, alongside their continuous development of Dance study. You will also develop your performance and critical skills through practical and theoretical classes. You will have opportunities to participate in extra-curricular classes, theatre visits, and work with local choreographers and artists.

Drama

Drama Studies is an exciting and relatively new area of study at Bath Spa University College. One of the major characteristics that make it so distinctive is its emphasis upon twentieth century and contemporary British, European, and American drama. Furthermore, we have a huge commitment to developing and extending those aspects of drama that are often missing from or marginalised by many other drama programmes: for example Black British and Post-Colonial Drama, Representations of Alternative Sexuality, and Drama as Community.

Our approach to the study of drama is the dynamic combination of workshop practice with high quality, challenging academic study and critical reflection. We produce plays for performance both in-house and in local professional venues, and if you've got the talent, energy and commitment, there'll be plenty of opportunities for you.