Overview

Live performance has shaped human culture for millennia, offering a uniquely powerful way to explore society, history and identity. The BA Drama at the University of Exeter combines rigorous critical study with extensive practical training, ranked fifth in the UK for Drama, Dance and Cinematics. Teaching takes place largely in studio settings, with practical class sizes kept small and supported by dedicated performance spaces, sound and video studios, and workshops for set and costume-making. Students begin with a shared foundation in theatre history and performance analysis before moving into a fully flexible second year, choosing from a wide range of studio and seminar modules to shape their own pathway. The course culminates in a dissertation or portfolio alongside a self-devised practical project, and students can extend their degree with a year abroad or a work placement. This degree suits those drawn to performance-making as much as critical enquiry, developing communicators equally comfortable on stage and in analysis, ready for careers spanning theatre, production and the wider creative industries.

What You'll Learn

Global theatre history and historiographical methods

Performance analysis using approaches from semiotics to postcolonial theory

Staging a dramatic text, including dramaturgy, direction and design

Collaborative and devised performance-making

Specialist options such as acting Shakespeare, applied drama, and entertainment technologies

Cultural and critical perspectives on identity, activism, and performance

Producing, stage management, and other production-based skills

Independent research methods and dissertation writing

A self-devised final year practical project

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to draw on a rich and layered understanding of theatre and performance, from its historical and cultural foundations through to contemporary practice, and will be equipped to critically evaluate performance in relation to its social, political and artistic contexts. Extensive studio-based training throughout the degree, culminating in a self-devised final year project delivered with a small group of peers, builds practical skills in acting, directing, devising and production that few purely academic courses can offer. Students will also complete an independent dissertation or portfolio, sharpening their research and critical writing abilities, while the freedom to choose from a wide range of studio and seminar options allows them to specialise in areas such as applied drama, screen performance or creative producing, in a direction suited to their own artistic interests and career ambitions.