Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Performance Making

course overview

Introduction

The BA (Hons) Performance Making course, offered in collaboration with the world-renowned University of the Arts London (UAL), is a three-year course that will prepare you with performance, creation and production knowledge and skills required of emerging professional dance and theatre artists.

You will follow a specialisation in either Dance or Theatre and have dedicated classes in that discipline. In addition, students from both Dance and Theatre will also attend classes together that focus on interdisciplinarity, research and performance making skills.

The course aims to develop your ability to work collaboratively and independently on making original and interpretative works that can contribute to today’s fast-evolving performing arts landscape.

You will learn research methodologies and approaches as well as digital technologies and consider their possible application to performance making.

The course provides you opportunities to connect and engage with the industry and professionals including directors/creatives.

You will also be involved in interdisciplinarity as a process: collaborating with another/other discipline(s); thinking critically about a subject/topic from different perspectives and synthesizing information to gain a more comprehensive understanding; and integrating your own discipline with another/other discipline(s) to construct new knowledge/practice.

Please watch this webinar to learn more about the BA (Hons) Performance Making course from our faculty and students.

Please click here to view the English course brochure and the Chinese course brochure.

Practice-Led and Industry-Focused Curriculum
Development of specialised pre-professional technical and artistic proficiency in Theatre or Dance to forge a personal performance identity, enhance content creation, and realise original performance projects.

Interdisciplinary Learning
Participation in classes and workshops to engage and examine interdisciplinary forms and processes. The opportunity to practice and apply interdisciplinarity in an original group devised work will be provided in year 3 of the course.

Cultural Awareness, the NAFA Spirit and the Southeast Asian Dimension
Cultivation of local, regional, and global awareness and appreciation through immersion in diverse cultural capitals and opportunities to experience multi-cultural integrations.

Engagement in creating contemporary performance expressions with a sense of adventure and innovation, drawing on Western and Asian performing arts traditions, with a focus on Southeast Asia.

Industry Project
Development of industry related skills through participation in a professional-standard public production directed by an industry professional.

Central Location within Singapore’s Arts and Heritage District
Engagement in Singapore’s vibrant performing arts scene accessible by NAFA’s location within Singapore’s Arts and Heritage District. The Stamford Arts Centre, The Theatre Practice, Singapore Dance Theatre, Singapore Chinese Dance Theatre and other organisations are within walking distance. The Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay, Goodman Arts and Aliwal Arts Centre are within proximity to NAFA.

International Placement at UAL
The opportunity to spend five weeks on an international placement at University of the Arts London, studying with international practitioners and experts in their fields. Students will benefit from the immersion in a lively cultural capital with opportunities to experience performance making from fresh perspectives.

The UAL-NAFA Partnership
The UAL-NAFA partnership is the first time that the University of Arts London is offering validated courses outside the United Kingdom. This partnership signals another step towards eminence for NAFA which has established itself as a premier arts institution in Southeast Asia known for its rigorous and high-quality curriculum. The inaugural partnership will extend UAL’s expertise in the teaching and learning of art and design to this part of the world, enriching the arts education landscape in Singapore and the region.

  • A broad-based fine art course that brings together a wide range of practices including film, video, digital media, sound, print, performance, painting, sculpture and drawing
  • To apply research, practical, creative, and critical skills to performance making
  • To make performance across a range of creative forms and disciplines
  • To investigate critical approaches to contemporary performance
  • To study the theory and practice of performance composition
  • To have the opportunity to develop your own compositional practices
  • To gain an understanding of performance in relation to text, image, action, body, and movement
  • To investigate different performance environments
  • To look at performance in the context of different cultures, particularly in Southeast Asia
  • To work collaboratively with a range of artistic and non-artistic disciplines
  • To learn about digital, participatory, and relational performance practices
  • To have access to NAFA and (during the International Placement) UAL: Wimbledon College of Arts performing arts facilities

The BA (Hons) Performance Making is offered in full-time mode. It is divided into 3 stages over 3 academic years. Each stage consists of 28 teaching weeks. You will be expected to commit an average of 44 hours per week to your course, including teaching hours and independent study.

A variety of learning and teaching methods will facilitate students' artistic, creative, and theoretical development. The integration of practical and contextual studies will see students develop technical and performance skills continuously and simultaneously with critical enquiry, performance making, and management skills. Lecturers and professional practitioners facilitate student-led, self-directed, and collaborative learning in a range of processes including conceptualisation, research/investigation, practice/rehearsal, exploration/creation, production/administration, and performance/presentation. Students are guided to be future-ready towards increased independence and autonomy, resiliency and adaptability in learning and experience in the industry.

  • Workshops
  • Rehearsals
  • Productions
  • Practical classes
  • Laboratory/studio-based practice
  • Screenings
  • Lectures
  • Seminars
  • Tutorials
  • Web-based interactions

Students demonstrate their level of achievement in a diverse range of performance- making assessments to ensure that they are appropriately prepared for industry expectations. A variety of summative and formative assessment modes recognise students’ different learning styles to assess their technical ability, artistry, creativity, knowledge, critical understanding, and application. Formative assessment includes relevant feedback strategies to enable students to meet the course learning outcomes. Assessment submission formats acknowledges a range of learning needs and abilities, including those listed below. Additionally, opportunities may be provided for self and peer assessment which may be of value to the learning process.

Coursework

  • Workshops
  • Rehearsals
  • Productions
  • Practical classes
  • Laboratory/studio-based practice
  • Screenings
  • Lectures
  • Seminars
  • Tutorials
  • Web-based interactions

Examination

  • Practical (for example, internal (restricted) and/or public performances)
  • Written (for example, timed, take-away)
  • Oral (for example, presentation and/or viva voce)

  • Demonstrate an artistic identity and an embodied knowledge of Dance or Theatre performance forms with technical proficiency and confidence.
  • Demonstrate reflexive thinking, critical, and creative engagement with traditions and histories to construct/reconstruct and present/represent culture in performance making.
  • Engage in performance making through the application of appropriate performance vocabularies, techniques, research, new media and digital technologies, structures, contexts, and methods. Retrieve and synthesise document and describe, analyse, evaluate, articulate, and communicate information and ideas about performance.
  • Participate with enterprise, resourcefulness, and resilience in the organisation, curation, and realisation of contemporary performance productions.
  • Apply interdisciplinary approaches to realise contemporary performance.

Course Modules

Code Title Semester Credits






PM1411 Performance Making Lab: Introducing 1 20

This unit will introduce you to some of the key principles and approaches informing the study of performance making as an academic discipline and artistic practice.  You will focus on the concept of collaboration, including interdisciplinarity through critical thinking and participation in a range of processes and strategies supported by stage and production management skills. Contemporary performance will be investigated through creative and critical inquiry, framed by the questions: ‘What is performance making? What can it be?’ across a range of forms and contexts.
PM1412 Performance Practice: Creation and Performance Fundamentals 1 40

This unit will introduce you to dance and theatre techniques to support and enhance your performance and creation practices. Performance and its related aspects are considered in the context of history, culture, the arts and the study of body and movement. You will study key performance practitioners and explore their methodologies and ideas through practical exercises. You will be guided to identify your own personal and professional goals.
PM1421 Performance Making Lab: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Southeast Asian Performance 2 20

This unit will further develop your collaborative skills and practice. You will examine interdisciplinarity and its link with interculturalism, focusing on the performing arts in Southeast Asian. You will be introduced to lighting and sound to support and enhance performance making.
PM1422 Performance Practice: Critical and Conceptual Frameworks 2 40

In this unit you will continue to contextualise your own artistic practice within the cannon of performance histories. You will further develop your technical performance skills through knowledge of performance practice as well as critical and conceptual frameworks. By refining your personal aspirations, you will begin to develop the requisite skills to achieve your goals.
PM2511 Performance Making Lab: Exploring Creative and Professional Practice 1 20

In this unit, you will engage in research methodologies and apply them to your own creative practice. You will expand your approaches to creation and begin to develop a personal aesthetic. Additionally, you will explore how project management can define and support your creative practice.
PM2512 Performance Practice: Embodied Knowledge 1 20

In this unit you will expand your technical performance skills through the exploration of a range of performance practices, as well as critical and conceptual frameworks.
PM2513 Industry Project: Engaging with the Profession 1 20

In this unit you will work with an industry director/creative in a professional-standard public production to develop an understanding of the practical process of staging a performance.
PM2521 Performance Making Lab: Individualising Creative Identity 2 20

In this unit you will be equipped with a range of skills and techniques to conduct your own independent performance research. You will forge a personal creative identity and explore how to articulate this in your work. Arts policy and proposal writing will also be introduced.

PM2522 Performance Practice: Embracing the Contemporary 2 20

This unit will expand your technical performance skills through a clear and consistent knowledge of performance practice through critical and conceptual frameworks. You will acquire compositional improvisation strategies and performance techniques working with a range of stimuli.
PM2523 International Placement: UAL: Digital Performance Lab 2 20

In this unit you will explore digital strategies for performance making and their transformative impact on contemporary performance.
PM3611 Performance Making Project: Contemporary Southeast Asian 1 60

In this unit you will explore and interrogate the notion of ‘contemporary Southeast Asian’ and position yourself and your practice in the Southeast Asian performing arts landscape. You will draw on the information, skills and techniques you have developed during this course. Working collaboratively, you will create a public performance. You will document, critically reflect, analyse, and evaluate your process in a project report.
PM3621 Performance Making Project: Interdisciplinary Collaboration 2 60

In this unit you will explore and interrogate the notion of ‘interdisciplinarity’ drawing on the information, skills and approaches you have developed during this course.  Working collaboratively, you will create a public performance. You will document, critically reflect, analyse, and evaluate your process in a project report.

Entry Requirements

 

Through an audition that consists of three (3) components – Solo Performance (online submission), Interview, and Workshop (in-person session), we look for:

  • Passion for the performing arts
  • Commitment and motivation to strive for excellence in the course
  • Openness and willingness to collaborate creatively and respectfully with others
  • Ability to create, develop and respond to new ideas and to work with new creative forms
  • Openness and responsiveness to different cultural perspectives
  • An aptitude for self-directed learning and critical evaluation of work
  • Ability to communicate ideas physically and/or verbally
  • Aptitude for creative problem solving
  • Technical/artistic acumen

Audition

1. Solo Performance (online submission)

Applicants are expected to perform a monologue that has been learnt by heart, taken from a published playtext (2-3 minutes), or a dance solo (1.5 minutes) choreographed either by the applicant or by someone else. Through the presentation of a solo performance piece, applicants are assessed on the following:

  • Technical/artistic acumen.
  • Ability to communicate ideas physically and/or verbally.

Monologue (Theatre Specialism)

  • Ability to perform a dramatic text – comprehension, characterisation and creativity.
  • Physical skills - presence on stage, spatial awareness, physical range, movement vocabulary and physical portrayal of character.
  • Vocal skills – projection, clarity, range and tone.

Dance Solo (Dance Specialism)

  • Technique - coordination, control and alignment.
  • Artistry - spatial awareness, musicality, dynamic range and performance quality.
  • Fitness - strength, control, flexibility, coordination, speed, stamina and stretch.

Guidelines for Video Recording and Submission:

  • The recording should be a clear and accurate representation of your performance. Do not edit the audio/visual of your recording.
  • The camera should be stationary for the performance.
  • The recording should show you in full body.
  • The recording should be uploaded at https://pss.nafa.edu.sg/ at least 2 days before the in-person Interview and Workshop Audition.
  • Allowed video file types are .mpeg,.mp4,.mov,.m4v,.avi,.wmv,.flv,.asf,.mpg,.mp3 and the maximum file size is 200 MB.

2. Interview (In-Person Session)

Guidelines for Interview and Workshop In-Person Audition:

  • The audition may take up to 2 hours.
  • Wear comfortable clothing that would allow for ease of movement.

Applicants are expected to discuss why they want to study ‘performance making’ during the interview and share any relevant experience. Through the interview, applicants are assessed on the following:

  • Passion for the performing arts.
  • Commitment and motivation to strive for excellence in the course.
  • Aptitude for self-directed learning and critical evaluation of work.

3. Workshop (In-Person Session)

Applicants are expected to participate fully in the interactive workshop. Through the workshop, applicants are assessed on the following:

  • Ability to communicate ideas physically and/or verbally.
  • Aptitude for creative problem solving.
  • Openness and willingness to collaborate creatively and respectfully with others.
  • Ability to create, develop and respond to new ideas and to work with new creative forms.
  • Openness and responsiveness to different cultural perspectives.

The standard minimum entry requirements for this course are one or a combination of the following qualifications:

Entry into the first year (any one of the following):

  • Singapore-Cambridge GCE A-Level: Minimum 2 A-Level/ H2 subjects with a pass in General Paper
    GCE A-Level students in their final year of study may use their mid-year examination results to apply for the degree Early Admission Exercise (EAE).

  • Polytechnic Diploma (Singapore)
    Graduating Diploma students from a local Polytechnic may apply for the Degree EAE with their latest cumulative GPA and examination results.

  • International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma
    Graduating IB students may use their mid-year examination results to apply for the Degree EAE.

  • Equivalent of Year 12 qualification (e.g. Senior High School Leaving Certificate Examination, National College Entrance Examination (NCEE), also known as “Gao-kao” in China.)
    Current Year 12 students may use their mid-year examination results to apply for the Degree EAE.

Direct entry into the second year:
  • A relevant Diploma from NAFA, local Polytechnics, Lasalle College of the Arts, or other recognised institutions.
    *Diploma transcript must indicate passing grades in equivalent modules in NAFA’s Diploma

    Graduating students from local Polytechnics may apply for the Degree EAE with their latest cumulative GPA and examination results.

Confirmation of Conditional Offers for Degree Admission
Successful applicants for the Degree EAE will be given conditional offers and are still required to submit the following results, as applicable:
  • GCE A-Level results with minimum 2 A-Level/ H2 subjects with a pass in General Paper
  • Certificate and Academic Transcript for Polytechnic Diploma
  • IB Diploma and Transcript
  • Final Result Slip/Proof of completion of Year 12
Applicant who fails to provide documentary evidence of having met the admission requirements will have his/her conditional offer withdrawn.

NAFA hopes to attract applicants with the potential to become excellent arts practitioners. Applicants are selected by merit, based on the following criteria:
  • Potential in Artistic Talent and Creativity
  • Educational Qualification
  • Language Proficiency
  • Special Factor
  • Age Requirement
Selection is competitive and is subject to the availability of places.

APEL - Accreditation of Prior (Experiential) Learning
Applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered in exceptional cases.

The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:
  • Related academic or work experience
  • The quality of the personal statement
  • A strong academic or other professional references
  • A combination of these factors
Each application will be considered on its own merit though we cannot guarantee an offer in each case. In such cases, approval by the University of the Arts London will be required prior to final acceptance into the programme.

All classes are taught in English. If English was not the applicant’s primary medium of instruction throughout his or her school education, the applicant must provide evidence at enrolment of the following: IELTS level 6.0 or above, with at least 5.5 in reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Click here for other acceptable English language qualifications.

Applicants should be 18 years of age or older in the year of admission to Year 1.

GCE A-Level or Polytechnic/IB/NAFA/LASALLE students in their final year will be able to use their mid-year examination results to apply for UAL degree courses at NAFA.

Eligible international students in their final year will be able to use their mid-year examination results to apply for UAL degree courses at NAFA.

Applicants will be given conditional offer if they are successful in their portfolio interview/audition selection. Applicants are still required to submit their GCE A-Level/year-end examination results and meet the admission requirements of the respective courses. Any applicant who does not meet the admission requirements will have his/her conditional offer revoked.

At NAFA, we are committed to providing full and equal educational opportunities to all students. The Academy firmly believes that every individual deserves a supportive learning environment. Applicants are invited to inform us in advance of any specific needs, and/or type of physical facilities or support you might require. Please include this information in your application form, supplemented with the relevant medical reports. This will allow us to plan the appropriate learning support for you. 

Fees

Course fees for students entering NAFA in the academic year of 2023 is available at here.

How to Apply


Apply online here from 3 January 2023. 

  1. Print out the Application Acknowledgement for your reference and submit copies* of the following documents to the Student Admissions Office, NAFA Campus 1, for verification within five working days from the date of your online application.
    *You will need to bring the original NRIC/Passport and academic documents for authenticity check during submission.

    1. NRIC for Singapore Citizens (SC) or Singapore Permanent Residents (SPR), passport and valid Student’s Pass card (if applicable) for international students
    2. English qualifications (e.g. IELTS/TOEFL iBT), if applicable
    3. Certified true copies of academic certificates and transcripts:
      • For NAFA Diploma students
        • If you are currently in your final semester, please submit your Year 3 Semester 1 academic transcript
      • For Local Polytechnic Diploma students
        • If you are currently in your final semester, please submit your academic transcripts of your first 5 semesters. Subsequently, please submit your Diploma certificate and full academic transcript (all semesters) within 5 working days from the official release date
      • For other international qualifications
        • Please submit your most recent school examination or preliminary examination results, which must be certified by your school if you have not received your final results. Subsequently, please submit your final results and certificate within 5 working days from the official release date

  2. Make payment of the Application Fee at the cashier counter in NAFA or online at https://payment.nafa.edu.sg/Students. Applicants who are paying online will be required to upload the above documents during application.

  3. Upload your solo performance video recording at https://pss.nafa.edu.sg/. Allowed video file types are .mpeg,.mp4,.mov,.m4v,.avi,.wmv,.flv,.asf,.mpg,.mp3 and the maximum file size is 200 MB.

  4. You will receive an email from the Student Admissions Office on the details of your audition upon receipt of all required documents.

  5. Receive a letter by post/email on the outcome of your application within 4 – 6 weeks after your Interview or Audition.

 

Teaching Faculty

Potential Careers

Upon completion of this course, you may look forward to the following career options:

  • Acting
  • Administration and Management
  • Choreography
  • Dance
  • Directing
  • Performance
  • Playwriting/Dramaturgy
  • Somatic Practices
  • Stage/production management
  • Theatre making/Performance making
  • Voiceover acting

Programme

MORE RELATED COURSES

Make an Enquiry

Tel: 6512 4071

Please write to us at:
[email protected]