Overview

Theatre has endured as an art form for millennia, and understanding it fully means engaging with the interconnected roles of writer, director and performer rather than just one alone. The BA (Hons) Theatre: Writing, Directing and Performance at the University of York draws these three disciplines together, building both practical craft and critical insight into theatre's histories, politics and ethics. Students train in two fully equipped theatres alongside industry-standard rehearsal rooms and design workshops, learning from academics who are also practising writers, directors and designers, and gaining direct access to visiting theatre professionals through masterclasses. The course suits students with genuine passion for theatre-making who want hands-on experience across writing, directing and performance, culminating in a self-devised production or original script.

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What You'll Learn

• Acting, directing and playwriting fundamentals, alongside analysis of scripts from different historical periods

• How theatre engages with politics, both as makers and as spectators

• Dramaturgy, key practitioners and the historical and cultural forces shaping performance

• Core vocal, physical and workshop techniques for staging varied theatrical styles

• Specialist option modules such as performance design or theatre as industry

• Large-scale collaborative production work through Main Stage Theatre Production

• Independent research through a self-directed project on a topic of your choosing

• A final creative culmination, either an Independent Group Production Project or an Independent Playwriting Project

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Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to critically interpret how scripts are translated into performance, drawing on close analysis of scripted drama across different historical periods. They will be equipped to apply practical and organisational skills as writers, directors and performers, working collaboratively to realise a full theatrical production from a challenging script. Through independent research and a final creative project, students will develop the ability to work with flair, both individually and in teams, communicating ideas clearly to a range of audiences. Graduates will leave with strong transferable skills in presentation, leadership and project management, well prepared for careers as writers, directors and performers, or across the wider film, television and creative industries.