MA Interdisciplinary Dance Performance
 

MA INTERDISCIPLINARY DANCE PERFORMANCE

Type: Postgraduate

Qualification: MA Interdisciplinary Dance Performance

Duration: 1 year full-time (Home & Overseas students)

Validated by: University of Kent

In 2024/25, students on this course will perform in 3 major projects with leading interdisciplinary artists Florence Peake, Complicité Theatre and Benji Reid, in addition to undertaking multiple laboratories with current artists working in the field.  Read more

Suitable for dancers and movement artists at various stages of their careers, this course enables you to:

  • Develop and expand your artistic practice beyond conventional performance
  • Learn to work effectively in highly collaborative processes and actively contribute to the authorship of artistic work
  • Gain an in-depth understanding of performance processes by looking at different devising methodologies, ensemble creation, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
  • Work with leading interdisciplinary artists

APPLICATIONS FOR 2025 ENTRY ARE OPEN

In 2025/26, students on this course will work with artists from Punchdrunk and Johannes Wieland, director and curator of b12 Festival.


To learn more about next year's artists > click here


Download Factfile HOW TO APPLY

Course overview

This course offers the opportunity to rethink your practice as a performer and to collaborate with leading interdisciplinary artists, developing skills beyond conventional choreographic approaches.

It focuses on facilitating a wider preparation for dancers from all disciplines looking to perform in works requiring an interdisciplinary approach, combining dance, theatre, performance art and film.

Through a range of laboratories you will work across a range of movement practices such as film, theatre, VR, non-conventional spaces and traditional theatre spaces to co-author work, collaborate with artists across different disciplines and perform.

You will work on developing your skills as a performer, exploring a range of approaches and methods, allowing you to gain an experiential understanding of stage presence, performative styles, confidence, and generosity in performance. Additional emphasis on professional practice increases employability and career prospects within the industry.

What will I study?

The MA in Interdisciplinary Dance Performance covers:

  • Modes of Performance
  • Devising and Collaboration in Performance
  • Technical and Embodied Practices
  • Marketing, PR & Digital Representation
  • Research Project

Each module has a credit value between 15 and 60 credits, including a final major research project worth 60 credits. Each credit taken equates to a total study time of around 10-20 hours. Total study time includes scheduled teaching, independent study, directed study.  You will study a total of 180 credits for the MA in total.

View modules

FACILITIES

Students have access to our wide range of excellent industry-standard facilities to develop their practice, carry out research and test ideas in a supportive, creative learning environment:

  • 7 large dance studios
  • Riley Theatre, our on-site performance venue
  • lighting studio
  • video and sound editing suite
  • arts and dance library
  • fully resourced Bodywork Studio
  • Pilates equipment
  • NSCD VLE (Virtual Learning Environment)
Explore our facilities

RESEARCH

In the final term, students undertake a substantial major research project on a topic of their choice. Recent students’ research topics include:

  • Editing, Drama, Hype and Hyperreality. Performance of Self in a Post-Internet World.
  • The Multi-Self: Using interdisciplinarity as a narrative approach in order to perform multi-facets of myself.
  • Dance as an act of protest against ‘Modern Iran’ after the Islamic Revolution
  • Masochistic Contract: investigating the relationship between artist, audience and the body
  • Location, location, location: ‘stratified awareness’ in performance and personal development contexts, and the value of Life Coaching methods in the education and creation of dance. 
  • Traditional forms reimagined; how traditional dance from Scotland and Spain can be dovetailed through contemporary performance to discover a new movement and music vocabulary.

WHO CAN APPLY?

We welcome movement-based artists and dancers from various styles and backgrounds looking to develop their performance practice for works that utilise an interdisciplinary approach. Above all, we are looking for ambition and commitment to your practice.

The MA in Interdisciplinary Dance Performance is open to graduates of two/three-year dance training programmes at higher education level, or to dance or movement artists with some professional experience and equivalent vocational training at an appropriate level.

We welcome applications from EU, EEA and International applicants.

Students with English as a second language will need a 6.5 ESOL level (with a minimum of 6.0 in reading and 5.5 in speaking and listening)

Entry is through a successful audition and interview.

NSCD Value for money

We are committed to providing a holistic experience for our students. Based on a comparison with other courses of an equivalent price, we typically offer the following as ‘value added’:

  • Enrichment classes, some of which are free to NSCD students – these have included Gaga, pointe work, fitness, men’s ballet vocabulary, yoga, percussion, lighting for dance and gymnastics for dancers
  • Access to visiting artists’ and practitioners’ talks
  • Reduced-price theatre tickets and deals
  • On-site injury intervention and support
  • On-site counselling service
  • On-site learner support
  • On-site English language support
  • Access to additional rehearsal spaces
  • Access to projects and research run by staff and our network of partner organisations