DRAMA UNDERGRADUATE STUDY • 2011 ENTRY

STREATHAM CAMPUS, EXETER

Key InformationWhy study Drama at Exeter?

For further details on all our entry requirements, please see our Drama pages at www.exeter.ac.uk/undergraduate/degrees/drama

Streatham Campus, ExeterWebsite: www.exeter.ac.uk/dramaEmail: ugdrama@exeter.ac.ukPhone: +44 (0)1392 722427

UCAS CODE TYPICAL OFFER

BA Single Honours Drama W400 AAA-ABB; IB: 36-31

4th in the UK for overall satisfaction

in Drama in the National Student

Survey (2009)�

4th in the UK for Drama in The Times

Good University Guide 2010

collaborative and practice-based

approach including drama in the

community

opportunities to specialise in areas

such as playwriting, contemporary

performance, music theatre, actor

training, applied drama, theatre

history and technical theatre crafts

ranked 9th in the UK for world

leading research�

�based on the average of positive responses for full service universities(ie, excluding specialist colleges)

�RAE 2008 based on percentage of research categorised as 4*

Drama at Exeter offers you the time and space toexplore and experiment with performance andperformance making. Taught largely through studiosessions, the relationship between theory andpractice is central to the discipline. Our academic staffteach a range of performance and specialist skills andall of our teaching grows out of our research interests,so you will be taught by people at the forefront oftheir field who are passionate about the subject.

ere is the opportunity to research a wide range of theatre histories and critical theories as well asspecialist practical modules which will prepare you forwork in many areas of the cultural industries. e keytransferable skills you will obtain may be taken intomany varying professions.

You’ll have plenty of contact time with staff, who willchallenge you and support the development of yourintellectual and creative skills. You will be taught by active researchers whose interests include areassuch as theories of actor-training, non-westernperformance, twentieth-century theatre practitioners,new media, site-specific performance, gender andperformance in the seventeenth century, musictheatre and the politics of culture.

We offer you a supportive environment, wherecollaborative work with fellow students allows you totake innovative new approaches. You will need a greatdeal of commitment (and demand it from us) – we arecommitted and if you are too you will find Drama atExeter is a very exciting experience.

e study of Drama at Exeter dates back to 1927 withevening classes and we have now offered a full-timeDrama programme for over 40 years. e Departmentis one of the largest and best equipped in the UK. We were ranked 4th in the UK for overall studentsatisfaction in the 2009 National Student Survey.

Over the last few years we have expanded and haveexcellent facilities which place Exeter at the top forteaching spaces and resources. We have invested £3.7 million in our industry standard drama facilitiesproviding a superb environment for learning andresearch.

e Department currently has two AHRC fundedcreative fellows: the internationally renownedphotographer, Hugo Glendinning, and ‘Britain’s mostimportant living playwright’ (e Times), HowardBarker. Both contribute to the Department’s researchand teaching culture.

Degree programme e programme aims to develop anunderstanding of performance skillsalongside a critical and imaginativeengagement with the social, historical andcultural contexts of theatre. Interest andinvolvement in contemporary theatre arecentral. e programme encourages thisboth as a subject of research and as apractical experience through performanceand community-based activities. e studio-based work also equips you with abilities tocommunicate effectively, to pursue creativeanalysis and to initiate and organise complexindividual and group projects.

Most of the teaching and learning isundertaken in studio exercises, rehearsalsand training workshops. Other activitiesinclude seminar presentations, independentresearch projects and public and restrictedaudience performances. All students have a personal tutor who is available for adviceand support throughout their studies and a student mentor during the first year.

How your degree is structurede degree is divided into core and optionalmodules, which gives you the flexibility tostructure your degree according to yourspecific interests. Individual modules are worth 30 credits and full-timeundergraduates need to take 120 credits in each year. Within Drama, in addition tothe core modules, you can choose from anextensive range of options, a few examplesof which are shown at the back of thisbrochure.

For up-to-date details of our programme and modules, please check www.exeter.ac.uk/drama

Single HonoursBA Dramae degree is composed of a series ofmodules, most of which conclude with apresentation open to other Drama studentsand staff, to the University at large, or to thegeneral public. In the early stages of theprogramme the emphasis is on groupcollaborative work. As you move through thedegree this group work becomes the basisfor the development of individual interestsand skills. roughout the programme allDrama students get equal opportunities and challenges to act, to direct and to writeor otherwise create dramatic events.

Year 1: In the first half of the year you willstudy a studio-based module called Actingand Not Acting, and a seminar-basedmodule, Pre-texts and Contexts of Drama,which is aimed at introducing you to acritical and theoretical vocabulary oftheatre. In the second half of the year yourpractical work will focus on a performance-orientated module rooted in researchthrough practice entitled Research andPerformance, and Pre-texts and Contexts ofDrama will continue.

Year 2: In your second year you study twocore modules: eatrical Interpretations:Practitioners, which looks at play texts intheir historical and cultural context, andeatrical Interpretations: Texts, a studio-based investigation of leading modern andcontemporary practitioners. You will also

choose two practical options from a range of modules. You may be able to study abroad for half a year.

Year 3: In your final year you can specialisein practical options such as InterpretativeActing, Contemporary Performance,Directing, Playwriting and Applied Drama.You can also write a dissertation. Yourdegree culminates in the Practical Essay, apiece of original performance that you willcreate with a small group of fellow studentsfor an audience beyond the University, and eatre Praxis, a piece of writing that asksyou to reflect backwards over your threeyears at university and to think aheadbeyond the degree.

Your mind is opened inways you can’t possiblyimagine. The practicalelements of the courseare met with an incredibleenthusiasm from staff,it’s difficult not to whollyemerge yourself into anew world of creativethought.

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UNDERGRADUATE IN DRAMA

We teach mainly through studio sessions,which means that you will practise thesubject at the same time as you learn about it. At the start of the programme theemphasis is on group collaborative workwhich becomes the basis for development ofyour individual interests and skills later on.Practical class sizes are limited to around 20.

e programme aims to develop yourunderstanding of performance skillsalongside a critical and imaginativeengagement with the social, historical and cultural contexts of theatre. We expectyou to be interested and involved incontemporary theatre and will encourageyou in this both as a subject of study and asa practical experience through performanceand community-based activities.

All Drama students get equal opportunitiesand challenges to act, to direct and to writeor otherwise create dramatic events andregular workshops will help you to increaseyour experience in specialist areas ofperformance and media.

Each week you’ll have on average 6-9teaching hours per module and will need to allow for additional hours of privatestudy per module. You should expect yourtotal workload to average about 40 hoursper week during term time. As well asattending sessions and writing essays andassignments, you’ll be expected to makepresentations from time to time. Weencourage your presentation work becauseit involves you actively in the teaching andlearning process and develops important life skills such as good verbal and visualcommunication and effective interactionwith other people.

We’re committed to enhancing anddeveloping your key personal andtransferable skills. You’ll develop a range of professional skills, for example, timemanagement and team-working. You’ll gain valuable critical, analytical and

communication skills. Technical skills will include accurate note taking frompresentations, research and IT skills and you’ll also learn a wide range of Drama-specific skills appropriate to your module choices.

FacilitiesOur facilities include two digital mediasuites and upgraded technical facilities. Wehave six studios fully equipped for stagelighting and sound, ten other studios andseminar rooms, two sound studios, a videoand multimedia studio, state-of-the-artcomputer facilities for lighting and sounddesign, and workshops for set construction,costume and prop-making. To find outmore, please see www.exeter.ac.uk/drama/about/spaces.shtml

Research-led teachingResearch-led teaching ensures lectures are up-to-date and relevant and you willbenefit from access to the latest thinking,equipment and resources. All staff teachsecond and third year options which arelinked to their own interests which includeareas such as theories of actor-training,non-western performance, twentieth-century theatre practitioners, new media,site-specific performance, gender andperformance in the seventeenth century,music theatre and the politics of culture.

Academic supportAll students have a Personal Tutor who isavailable for advice and support throughouttheir studies. ere are also a number ofservices on campus where you can getadvice and information, including theStudents’ Guild Advice Unit. You can findfurther information about all the services inthe University’s undergraduate prospectusor online at www.exeter.ac.uk/undergraduate

Study abroadStudying for your degree at Exeter offersyou the exciting possibility of spending timestudying abroad. In 2009/10 Exeter’s highlysuccessful programme helped about 200students study at one of our 180 partneruniversities.

You can spend half a year abroad under the EU funded Erasmus programme. As anErasmus student, you will not pay academicfees to your host institution although youwill still need to pay for accommodation,travel and living expenses. You will still beentitled to any national grant/loan that you would receive if studying at Exeter.

e Drama Department has exchange linkswith Deakin University, Melbourne andGriffiths University, Brisbane, Australia; theReal Escuela Superior de Arte Dramatico(RESAD) in Madrid, Spain; University ofHildesheim, Germany and the IcelandicAcademy of the Arts, Reykjavik. Additionally,we are looking into contacts in the USA.

For further details of our study abroadoptions, please check our website atwww.exeter.ac.uk/drama/ug/studyabroad

AssessmentModules include continuous assessment ofpractical and written work. Other modes ofassessment are chosen to suit the work youare doing. ese might include portfolios,essays, interview/viva, performance,presentations, etc. ere are no written,timed examinations on this degree.

You must pass your first year assessment inorder to progress to the second year, but theresults do not count towards your degreeclassification. e assessments in thesecond and third years all contribute to yourfinal degree classification.

Learning and teaching

For full details of the assessment criteria for each module, check theundergraduate section of our website at www.exeter.ac.uk/drama

CareersA degree in Drama from Exeter will provide you with a wide range of skills, which will beuseful in your future study or employment.Our students develop skills in researching,analysing and assessing sources, written and verbal communication, managing andinterpreting information and developingideas and arguments. ere is a wide rangeof career options open to you:

Perform Each year some of our students go on to further training at LeCoq, RADA,Guildhall, Central, and so on. Many becomeactors without further training and you seethem regularly on your TV screens. Manygraduates are working in theatre companieslike the RSC, or touring with nationalcompanies like Out of Joint or e OxfordStage Company.

Direct Graduates of the Department workas theatre directors with many small andmedium-scale touring companies, as well astheatres across the country. Several of ourgraduates have also gone on to work in thefilm and television industries as directorsand producers.

Write Writers have recently had workproduced for e Royal Court, the RoyalNational eatre (Olivier Stage), the Lyceumeatre in the West End and the Donmareatre and worked with companies such as Frantic Assembly. Other graduates havewritten for EastEnders and had one-offdramas produced for television and radio.

Form new theatre companies Manygraduates set up theatre companies. Long-standing groups that grew from Exeterstudents include eatre Alibi, Foursighteatre and Forced Entertainment. emost recent is Punchdrunk who’ve receivedfirst class reviews.

Teach Significant numbers of our studentsgo on to teach at all levels of the educationsystem. Graduates are also working aseducation officers connected to theatrecompanies including the Royal Nationaleatre, Sheffield Crucible and Complicite.

Work with Drama in a social contextSome graduates go on to take furthertraining as dramatherapists, and many go on to take up employment possibilitieswithin community drama, eatre-In-Education, or work in prisons and withmental health clients.

Work in technical areas Students havebecome stage managers at venues such ase Royal Court, company managers forcompanies such as e Reduced ShakespeareCompany, lighting designers and televisionfloor managers for example.

Research Each year a number of studentsgo on to further research in Drama andrelated subjects at universities worldwideand become researchers and teachers inHigher Education.

Work in arts related areas Graduates are working as DJs on BBC Radio, stand-upcomedians and programme producers intelevision and radio, arts administrators for companies and Arts Council England, as musical directors for theatres, operacompanies and films, as musical composers,casting directors and theatrical agents.

Draw on transferable skills to workoutside Drama Graduates also find work in other very varied areas: websitedesign, press relations, magazine editing,copywriting, account managing, nationalhealth practice, law and journalism.

Many students from the Department takepart in the Exeter Award and the ExeterLeaders Award. ese schemes encouragestudents to participate in employabilityrelated workshops, skills events,volunteering and employment which willcontribute to their career decision-makingskills and success in the employment market.

For further information about what theCareers and Employment Service offers at Exeter visit www.exeter.ac.uk/employability

Entry requirements and applyingYou can find a summary of our typical entryrequirements on the inside front cover ofthis brochure.

e full and most up-to-date informationabout Drama is on the undergraduatewebsite at www.exeter.ac.uk/undergraduate/degrees/drama and we strongly advise that you check thisbefore attending an open day or makingyour application. Some courses require prior study of specific subjects and may also have minimum grade requirements at GCSE or equivalent, particularly inEnglish Language and/or Mathematics.

We make every effort to ensure that theentry requirements are as up-to-date aspossible in our printed literature. However,since this is printed well in advance of thestart of the admissions cycle, in some cases our entry requirements and offers will change.

If you are an international student youshould consult our general and subject-specific entry requirements information forA levels and the International Baccalaureate,but the University also recognises a widerange of international qualifications. Youcan find further information about academicand English language entry requirements at www.exeter.ac.uk/undergraduate/international

For information on the application,decision, offer and confirmation process, please visit www.exeter.ac.uk/undergraduate/applications

Our admissions processWe endeavour to see as many applicants as possible before making an offer. Aroundhalf of applicants are invited to a shortinterview with a member of staff plus staff-led and separate, student-led studiosessions, held over two days. For mostapplicants this involves an overnight stay inExeter and, in certain cases, candidates maymake an application to their Local Authorityfor financial support. Usually, mostadmissions workshops are held in the firstweek of February, but we hold a small one-day workshop in December for earlyapplicants.

Drama modules

Dance/ChoreographyOption

InterculturalPerformer TrainingOption

DramaturgyOption

Digital TheatreCraftsOption

Experimental MusicTheatreOption

Interpretative Acting 1Option

Multi MediaPerformanceOption

properties, of acting techniques associated withmasks, and of interaction of individual actors withthe choric group.

This module will develop your skills, knowledgeand understanding of dance as a performing artthrough the inter-related process of performance(developing technical and expressive expertise in movement as a language) and composition(using a variety of stimuli as starting points for improvisation, exploration, selection andrefinement of movement).

This module develops a strong foundation in pre-performative, psycho-physiological, body-mindpractices applied to acting and performancethrough Asian martial and meditation arts.

This is the study of how playwrights make andshape plays and also questions of translation and adaptation from other sources, cultures andlanguages. As well as learning about the analysis of play texts for their dramatic structures anddynamics, you’ll look at texts in performance andthe work of the dramaturge in the theatre, fromtranslation to adaptation and how seasons of playsare planned.

This module offers you an exploration of thetechnologies which support performance, focusingon lighting, sound, video and stage management.Its constant aim is to test your understanding oftheory through practice.

This module examines and explores theories,practices and processes of devising experimentalmusic theatre. It reflects on and experiments withforms of music-theatre that challenge traditionalgenres and creation processes. The moduleintroduces you to a range of practices and theoriesthat redefine the interplays of music and theatre,for example by rendering theatrical means musicalor rendering the performance of music theatrical.

This module gives you the opportunity to explorethe possibilities of the interpretative actor’s role.You will also further extend your understanding ofthe theories and practices of performance and takean exploratory approach towards processes forpreparing texts for performance.

This module offers a practical overview and anintense working experience of devising, developingand presenting a multimedia performance. Themodule consists of staff-led workshops andseminars, short student practical presentations on key practices and forms, and culminates in adevised multimedia performance or performances.

For up-to-date details of all our programmes and modules, please check www.exeter.ac.uk/drama Please note that availability of allmodules is subject to timetabling constraints and that not all modules are available every year.

Year 1Acting and Not Acting Core

Pre-texts andContexts of Drama 1and 2Core

Research andPerformanceCore

Year 2TheatricalInterpretations:PractitionersCore

TheatricalInterpretations:TextsCore

Acting BrechtOption

Acting Greek TragedyOption

This module introduces drama as a processthrough both group practice and individualpractice, and to acting as a craft. You’ll exploresome of the uses, ideas, theoretical material, and training strategies that relate to both of these activities.

These modules explore ways of readingperformance, examine the nature and place ofperformance within culture and introduce the key theoretical and analytical approaches toperformance.

This module is an exciting studio-based modulethat culminates in a festival of performances fromeach tutor group. The idea of the module is thatyou theoretically and practically engage with aparticular area of research and develop your owngroup performance from that exploration. Thismeans that you are not staging a performance for ‘the sake of it’; rather you learn to develop a performance that is critically, creatively andthoughtfully developed from a particular area of research.

This module introduces you to a representativeselection of modern and contemporary theatricalpractitioners in their context, and to their role asinterpreters of texts, furthering your own sense of theatrical method and possibility.

This module explores the relationship betweendifferent kinds of texts and their interpretation inperformance. You will develop an understanding of performance contexts in relation to historical,theoretical and analytical approaches. Detailedstudy is encouraged through small groupdiscussion, presentation and essay.

This module introduces you to the complexities of Brecht’s theories of acting and theatricalperformance through the practical exploration of a range of his plays from the Lehrstücke to thelater plays. The aim is not to produce professionalactors, but rather to facilitate your understandingof Brecht’s work through theatre practice as aninteractive pedagogic process.

You’ll examine practically the implications forperformance found in ancient Greek tragic scripts,and explore the methods appropriate to theirrealisation by actors, working in monologue,dialogue, or three-performer scenes. Theexploration of appropriate methods will alsoinclude the study of acting with objects used as

Site-SpecificPerformanceOption

Applied Drama:Interactive TheatreOption

Year 3Practical EssayCore

Theatre PraxisCore

Applied Theatre –Practices andPerspectivesOption

Approaches toDirectingOption

Devised TheatreOption

Restoration TheatreOption

You’ll interrogate the term ‘site-specific’ as itstands in contemporary performance practice andexamine the relationships between performer,spectator and non-theatre space. You will also be given opportunities to extend your practical,intellectual and creative ability through integratedresearch and practice.

The key focus of this module is on InteractiveTheatre which is one form of applied drama. Withinthis form there are a range of dramatic approachesand structures used and you’ll look at ways ofemploying these within an educational setting. We will focus on Theatre in Education (TIE) andDrama in Education (DIE) and the distinctionsbetween them.

This module allows you to draw together theexperience of theatre-making gained through the degree programme and to work in a groupthrough the complex logistics of mounting aculminating presentation, that is likely to take theform of a performance.

This module facilitates your reflection on theideology, pragmatics and ethics of your ownintellectual and theatrical practice. You willinvestigate strategies for extending this practice in both existing educational contexts and futureprofessional contexts.

This module examines the notion of appliedtheatre and explores the key theoreticalperspectives, critical discourses and performancepractices that constitute the broad field of applied theatre.

This module offers you in-depth study of a range of approaches to directing and the changing role of the director. It explores specific directors andproductions focusing mainly on the 20th and 21st centuries.

This module gives an overview of the history ofdevising in Europe and the US, as well in-depthstudy of the work of specific companies andpractitioners. The module consists of staff-ledlectures and workshops, and student-led seminarpresentations of the work of specific companies.

This module offers an in-depth analysis of theculture, politics and theatre of England under the later Stuarts 1660-1714. Using a variety ofindividual and group research tasks, the moduleexplores the place of theatre in generating theideologies of celebrity, of monarchical democracyand party politics, of Englishness and England asan imperial trading nation.

Applied DramaOption

DirectingOption

Interpretative Acting 2Option

PlaywritingOption

Rough TheatreOption

DissertationOption

TechnicalSpecialisationOption

This module provides an opportunity for you toapply your drama skills within non-traditionaltheatre contexts. You’ll create appropriateapplications of drama in those contexts andexplore questions and issues raised by theexpectations and demands of the role of theapplied drama worker.

This module offers you an opportunity to explorethe possibilities and methodologies of thedirector’s role in depth, and its social implications.

This module furthers your understanding of the theories and practices of performance andencourages a flexible and exploratory approachtowards processes for preparing texts forperformance.

This module is designed for students with anactive and committed interest in developing theirwriting skills for live and recorded performancethrough: practical, progressive writing tasks todevelop an understanding of the writer’s craft;discussion of the writers’ role in contemporarytheatre; writing for different contexts and spaces;and input from professional directors, dramaturgsand designers.

This module introduces you to the principles andpractice of Rough Theatre: the use of populartheatrical and performance forms to addressserious (tragic) content. You’ll research and studycontemporary and recent popular performanceforms, analyse social, historical, documentary and political content, and experiment in practicearound questions of juxtaposition, distortion andhybridisation arising when such contrasting formsand contents are brought together.

This module allows you to undertake an extendedpiece of research into an area of performancehistory or theory. You’ll structure an independentexploration of an area of particular interest linkedto the general syllabus and develop research skills,utilising the research facilities offered by thedepartment and the University.

This module allows you to undertake an extendedpiece of research into an area of technical theatreor entertainment technology. It consolidates yourknowledge in a chosen technical area and allowsyou to extend your practical, intellectual andcreative ability through self-led investigation and practice.

The University’s undergraduate prospectus provides moreinformation about the University and the full range ofundergraduate degrees offered.

You can obtain a copy from www.exeter.ac.uk/prospectus

100% recycled :

This document forms part of the University’s Undergraduate Prospectus. Every effort has been made toensure that the information contained in the Prospectus is correct at the time of going to press. However,the University cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information contained within the Prospectus andreserves the right to make variations to the services offered where such action is considered to benecessary by the University. For further information, please refer to the Undergraduate Prospectus(available at www.exeter.ac.uk/undergraduate/disclaimer).

Photography by Apex, Kate Bailey, Alex Campbell, Express and Echo,Tim Pestridge, Princesshay, Steve Tanner and Karen Taylor.

2009AS108 02/10

Experience for lifeStudying at the University of Exeter isabout more than getting a degree – there’sa wealth of opportunities open to you todevelop personally as well as professionally.Exeter offers an exceptionally wide rangeof opportunities for you to gain the skillsemployers want – from managementtraining to business placements,volunteering programmes and pre-teachertraining, to a world-wide network of studyabroad opportunities and careers advicefrom our own successful graduates.

Great reputationExeter is ranked 9th in the UK in eTimes Good University Guide 2010, making it the highest ranked South Westuniversity. Exeter has one of the highestNational Student Survey rankings in thecountry, being in the top five for the lasttwo years and in the top 10 since thesurvey began, and in 2009 we scored inthe top 10 for teaching, academic support,organisation and management, andoverall satisfaction.* We are also in e Times top 10 research-intensiveuniversities: nearly 90 per cent of ourresearch was rated as internationallyrecognised in the latest (2008) ResearchAssessment Exercise.

Investing in your futureWe have invested over £140 million in the last five years in new buildings andfacilities ranging from academic resourcesto the Students’ Guild building. eUniversity is now looking to the futurewith a planned £270 million investmentin campus facilities over the next threeyears, including a redevelopment of thecentre of the Streatham Campus calledthe Forum Project. We have also invested£9 million in library facilities and £11million in sports facilities, making themamongst the best in the country.

Exceptional location andgreat atmosphereA safe, student-friendly city, Exeter israted one of the best places to live in theUK for the quality of its facilities, lowcrime rate and fantastic countryside. eUniversity has one of the UK’s most activestudents’ unions, sees some of the topbands in the country perform on campusand is one of the UK’s top sportinguniversities.

Explore the possibilitiesOpen DaysCome and visit our beautiful campuses.We hold Open Days twice a year in Juneand September.

Campus ToursWe run Campus Tours at the StreathamCampus every weekday at 2pm duringterm-time. You’ll be shown round by acurrent student, who’ll give you a first-hand account of what it’s like to live andstudy at Exeter.

For full details and to book your place,contact us on:Website: www.exeter.ac.uk/opendaysPhone: +44 (0)1392 724043Email: visitus@exeter.ac.uk

*based on the average of positive responses. Full service universities excludes specialist colleges.

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