Master of Arts - Performance: Design and Practice
- 2 years
- Duration
- 19,845 GBP/year
- Price
- September
- Start
- June
- Deadline
- Master
- Degree
- Campus
- Format
- London / United Kingdom
- Location
Program description
The MA Performance: Design and Practice at Central Saint Martins supports you to become an independent practitioner in your chosen field, focusing on innovative sectors where performance ideas are in flux. It encourages you to interrogate conventions, roles, and hierarchies while exploring new compositional strategies for time-based practice. You will critically examine the relationships between media, performance, socio-political context, and audience.
The course promotes a methodological approach to cultural consumption and uses research as a base for radical experimentation. It develops strategies for collaborative work and strategic thinking about professional practice. Through an integrated approach to practice and research, it aims to develop your creativity and a critical understanding of your work's broader context. The program is committed to developing ethical performance practices by embedding UAL's Principles for Climate, Social, and Racial Justice.
Program structure
- Unit 1: Collaborative Practices
The initial unit of the course focuses primarily on collaborative processes to realize a shared creative vision. Students undertake several group projects, culminating in public presentations, while also learning to utilize available resources for future independent practice. This foundational phase builds the creative relationships that will support students throughout the subsequent stages of the program.
- Unit 2: Performance as Dialogue
The second unit shifts focus towards developing your individual artistic practice, whether working alone or collaboratively to support a singular creative vision. It centers on critical questions about the socio-political context, purpose, and audience of contemporary performance. Through proposals, critiques, and deeper research, you will refine your performance language and explore how your work is interpreted, laying the groundwork for the final project.
- Unit 3: Independent Project
The final unit requires you to define your specific professional role (e.g., performer, director, or designer) and bring your developed ideas to a conclusion. You will produce a significant piece of independent collaborative work for public presentation. This practical outcome is accompanied by a written research document that contextualizes and supports your creative project.
Price
Tuition fee:
- 19,845 GBP per year*
*Tuition fees may increase in future years for new and continuing students on courses lasting more than one year. For this course, you can pay tuition fees in instalments.
You may need to cover additional costs which are not included in your tuition fees, such as materials and equipment specific to your course.
Requirements for applicants
The standard entry requirements for this course are as follows
- An honours degree
- Or An equivalent EU/international qualification.
Exceptionally applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered.
The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:
- A portfolio of creative practice or relevant experience.
- The quality of the personal statement.
- Recommendations from employers or professionals in relevant fields of practice.
- Or a combination of these factors.
Each application will be considered on its own merit but we cannot guarantee an offer in each case.
English language requirements
- IELTS level 6.5 or above, with at least 5.5 in reading, writing, listening and speaking
About the university
The University of the Arts London (UAL) produces and encourages the creativity essential for a better future. Its colleges have been at the forefront of innovative education since 1842, creating work with a lasting impact on people and the planet, driven by curiosity, imagination, and purpose.
London is fundamental to UAL's identity, providing a vital context where the university connects and exchanges ideas with individuals from all walks of life. Globally, its creative network influences education, culture, business, and society.
Through innovative research and creative instruction, UAL's faculty and staff bring fresh perspectives to education. The university enables students to build the careers they desire by working with them at every level - from pre-degree to postgraduate, and from short courses to online learning.
UAL's colleges
Ranked second in the world for art and design, UAL comprises six distinct colleges:
- Camberwell College of Arts
- Central Saint Martins
- Chelsea College of Arts
- London College of Communication
- London College of Fashion
- Wimbledon College of Arts
Together, they form a community of creatives, innovators, trailblazers, and storytellers, united in their mission to reimagine the future.
Courses in the visual arts, animation, screen, communication, fashion, media, and performance are available at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
