BA (Hons) Drama course preparation
To help you feel prepared for your university studies, we’ve gathered together a range of course related activities including suggested reading, useful websites and some great things to do right now. Open the links below to find out more:
Suggested reading
The books listed below are some of the key critical texts that you’ll need for your course and, although they’re available in our University Library, you may choose to get your own copies to ensure they’re always available when you need them. More specific reading lists will be provided when you start your modules and there are many books and journals in the Library for you to investigate once you are here.
Suggested materials/clothing
It’s important during your first week to bring a pen and notepad with you and a good diary and planner would be a very sensible purchase. The one we recommend is The Palgrave Student Planner by Stella Cottrell.
You should also sign up for your free Arts Centre Membership which will give you access to tickets to the forthcoming season. You’ll need this as performance analysis of shows in the Rose Theatre forms part of your assessment in Year 1.
Practical clothing
For all practical classes in Drama you’re required to wear suitable clothing and footwear that allows complete freedom of movement and which you don’t mind getting dirty. Tight jeans, leather boots, expensive fashion items and the like are therefore not suitable.
You’ll usually find that a set of ‘rehearsal blacks’ (black top, loose black trousers) and black trainers (or bare feet) are the best thing to wear. In some classes tutors will insist you wear rehearsal blacks, so come prepared. Any simple black t-shirt and thin black training (or dance) trousers (rather than thick tracksuit bottoms) available from most sports outlets would be fine.
Useful websites
Researching, viewing and engaging online effectively allows you to be in touch with theatre throughout the world. Here’s a list of recommended viewing:
- National Theatre at Home is showing National Theatre Live productions free every Thursday.
- Created by BBC Arts, Culture in Quarantine has a range of production work from the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Globe and the National Theatre. You can find details of the productions available on the website. Scroll down to the section labelled Theatre.
- If you’re thinking about the future and careers in the performing arts visit the prospects website here or the Times Higher Education website here.
Things to do now
Reading plays is really important for the study of Drama. Try to read as many play-texts as you can from as many different historical periods. You can read a great many play-texts online so why not take the time to read some plays and use this as a starting point to think how you might stage a production in your favourite theatre. Here are some play-texts available to read on-line to get you started:
Additional ways to prepare
Preparing to start
This session examines how to make a successful transition to university. From planning your results day, accommodation and commuting tips, extra support available to you and general advice on uni life.
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Find out more about who you are
The following information provides an insight into what to expect when coming to university along with some good advice on how to navigate some of the potential challenges you may face.
Start preparing yourself