BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance

Introduction

Our three-year BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance prepares you for a life-long career in contemporary dance. You will have the opportunity to gain the technical, creative and performance skills needed to become an individual and versatile dance artist. Our graduates find work as dancers, choreographers, teachers, facilitators, directors and curators amongst many other dance related professions. The programme will also help you gain the contextual and critical understanding of how dance can shape and influence the wider creative industries and benefit society.

Key Features

Working with leading international dance practitioners you will engage in a range of performance projects. This involves the creation of new choreography as well as the restaging of existing repertoire investigating movement and dance in its historical, socio-political, and cultural contexts. Training in contemporary dance techniques including Hip Hop and ballet will further equip you with the finely tuned skills, flexibility and inquisitive mindset required to respond to the current developments within the artform of contemporary dance.

Over the three years you will collaborate across artforms and explore different creative modes such as dance in galleries, site-specific dance, dance film or community engaged dance. You will develop your own artistic practice and perform in your own and other students’ projects. You will participate in traditional and more experimental showcases aimed at specific audiences or the general public including your family, friends and industry experts.

In your first year, your instructors will introduce you to dance pedagogy, and you can choose to further specialise in this field in the second and third year. Electives, industry placements, master classes and an independent project in your third year will allow you to tailor your course to areas of your personal interest and will set you up for a successful transition into the profession.

You'll study on the BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance course on a full-time basis, over three consecutive years. The curriculum integrates technical practices, creative practices, performance and contextual knowledge to support your development as an independent learner and dance artist.

The programme in Year 1 supports a smooth transition into higher education by introducing new ways of working, building strong foundational knowledge, and fostering a feeling of community and belonging for all our students.

Year 1 Components:

Dance Techniques 1 (Release Technique, Hip Hop styles, Ballet, Cunningham Technique, Partnering skills, Improvisation for Technique and further dance techniques through project-based intensives)

Complementary Embodied Practices 1 (Experiential Anatomy, Pilates, Yoga)

Physical Awareness and Development 1 (Topics include safe dance practice such as physiological warm-up and cool-down, injury prevention, nutrition and psychological skills for dancers)

Choreography 1

Improvisation

Choreology 1

CoLab (collaborative project between dance, music and musical theatre students)

Performance Projects

Leading and Facilitating

Research Methods 1

Historical Perspectives on Dance

Year 2 further encourages versatility and risk-taking in all core areas of the curriculum with an opportunity to embark on an element of individual interest in either film, music collaboration, performance design or teaching within community practice. All students undertake an industry placement of their choice and have the option to participate in our international exchange programme in the first term.

Year 2 Components:

Dance Techniques 2 (Dynamic Floorwork, Ballet, Release Technique, Hip Hop styles, Cunningham Technique, Classical Indian Dance forms and further dance techniques through project-based intensives)

Complementary Embodied Practices 2 (Capoeira, Pilates, Body Conditioning and Feldenkrais)

Physical Awareness and Development 2

Choreography 2

Contact Improvisation

Choreology 2

CoLab

Dance Repertory Project

Industry Placement

Research Methods 2

Cultural Perspectives on Dance

Electives: Dance and Film, Performance Design (costume and lighting), Dance and Music collaboration or Teaching (community and schools)

Year 3 is designed to facilitate the creation of a personally relevant portfolio of work, to delve deeper into the development of an individual artistic voice and to prepare for the transition into the professional context.

Year 3 Components:

Dance Techniques 3 (Release Technique, Hip Hop styles, Ballet, Cunningham Technique, Partnering skills, a range of current practitioner-based techniques and company-style classes)

Complementary Embodied Practices 3 (Voice work, Yoga)

Commissioned Works and Tour

Industry Engagement (entrepreneurship, masterclasses, audition coaching, talks with industry specialists)

Independent Research Project

Research Methods 3

Options: Further engagement with either Choreography, Performance or Teaching

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