Performance Design MA

Overview

Explore the creative application of design elements, including light, space, and costume, discovering how to shape live performance and generate meaning for contemporary audiences.

This course allows you to gain an understanding of the theories and concepts of designing for performance while also expanding your own creative practice.

You’ll use our specialist facilities to explore the performance experiences that can be created with light, space, objects, costume, sound, and digital technologies like pervasive media.

You’ll also examine contemporary performance practices, from the immersive and participatory to those staged outside of the theatre, within their wider social, cultural and economic contexts.

Throughout, you’ll have the freedom to experiment in order to create innovative performance through the medium of design. You will also have opportunities to work collaboratively and with external partners.

Leeds has a thriving cultural scene, and is home to contemporary performance events like Light Night, Compass Festival, and Transform Festival. Our industry connections allow you to work closely with local organisations such as Leeds Playhouse, Red Ladder Theatre Company, and innovative artists in the field of performance design.

Learning and teaching

We use different teaching and learning methods to help you develop your skills and make the most of our tutors’ expertise, including, practicals, seminars, tutorials, lectures and group learning. Independent study is also integral to the course, since it helps you to form your own ideas and build skills in research and analysis.

Assessment

The assessment methods you experience will vary depending on the module. However, to allow you to develop skills in a range of areas they will include essays, performances, visual documentation, verbal presentations, critical evaluations and reports.

Career opportunities

This course will give you the knowledge and skills to become an articulate and creative performance design practitioner. This could include; working as a designer or director in theatre, live performance, festivals or the events industry (either within a company or freelance), creating your own performance events or performance company, or working in community arts.

You’ll also gain a range of transferable skills in research, analysis, interpretation and communication, as well as imagination, independence and cultural awareness. This will equip you to work for a variety of roles across the cultural and creative industries, for example, in administration, marketing and management.

Because of the emphasis on research, this course is also good preparation for PhD-level study and teaching.