Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Performance Making

Duration: 3 Years
Mode: Full-time

Make Performance. Make Possibilities. Across Disciplines.

The Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Performance Making, conferred by the University of the Arts Singapore^*, invites you to create, collaborate and push the boundaries of contemporary performance. Combining specialised pre-professional training in Dance or Theatre with interdisciplinary performance-making, the programme helps you develop a distinctive performance identity while creating original work that responds to contemporary artistic and cultural contexts.

Through studio practice, professional productions and collaborative projects, you will explore performance, creation and production across disciplines while working alongside peers, faculty and industry practitioners. The programme encourages experimentation, critical thinking and innovation, while engagement with Southeast Asian perspectives and international learning opportunities broadens your artistic outlook.

You will graduate as an innovative performer, creator and collaborator, ready to contribute confidently to the evolving performing arts and creative industries.

^*Students entering the programme in Year 1 of August 2027 intake will graduate with a degree conferred by the University of the Arts Singapore. Students granted direct entry into Year 2 of August 2027 intake will graduate with a degree conferred by the University of the Arts London.

Specialised Artistic Practice

Develop specialised artistic and technical expertise in Dance or Theatre while developing your own distinctive performance identity.

Interdisciplinary Performance-Making

Create original performances through collaboration across disciplines, exploring diverse approaches to performance, creation and production, culminating in two final-year collaborative works.

Professional Performance Experience

Develop industry-ready skills through public productions and collaborations with industry practitioners and in authentic creative environments.

Global and Cultural Perspectives

Broaden your artistic outlook through engagement with multicultural and Southeast Asian perspectives, together with international learning opportunities.

Read The Straits Times feature on our transformative programme.
Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction

More Information

UAS Common Curriculum

The UAS Common Curriculum supplements the core curriculum by equipping you with a broader set of proficiencies, empowering you to adapt to evolving professional and industry demands. These non-credit bearing graduation requirements include:

IN-depth Module – 36 hours
Career Skills Module – 10 hours
Industry-Based Learning Module – 10 weeks (approximately 400 hours)

Graduation Requirements

In order to graduate from the bachelor’s degree programmes and be eligible for the award of a BA (Hons) degree, you must fulfil the following conditions:

Attain a total of 360 credits¹, including exempted credits and credits for non-graded modules but excluding credits associated with repeat attempts.
Attempt and attain a minimum Grade D for all modules.
Fulfil the non-credit-bearing graduating requirements comprising the UAS Common Curriculum: IN-depth Programme (36 hours), Career Skills (10 hours), and Internship (10 weeks / 400 hours).
Obtain a minimum CGPA of 2.00 at the end of the programme².
Complete the programme of study within the stipulated maximum candidature period³.

¹If you have been admitted via direct entry into your second year, 120 credits will be exempted for your first year and you are required to attain the remaining 240 credits – 120 credits for your second year and 120 credits for your third year.

²You will be graded on a 5–point Grade Point Average (GPA) system. You will receive letter grades for each module taken and each grade corresponds to a grade point as shown below:

Letter Grade	Grade Point
A+	5.0
A	5.0
A-	4.5
B+	4.0
B	3.5
B-	3.0
C+	2.5
C	2.0
D+	1.5
D	1.0
F	0.0

The Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) represents the grade point average of all graded modules (including failed modules) attempted by a student. The computation of CGPA is as follows:

CGPA =

sum (module grade point x module credits assigned to module)

sum (module credits assigned to all modules used in calculating the numerator)

The BA (Hons) classification and corresponding CGPA requirement are as follows:

CGPA Range	Classification of Award
4.50 – 5.00	Honours (Highest Distinction)
4.00 – 4.49	Honours (Distinction)
3.50 – 3.99	Honours (Merit)
3.00 – 3.49	Honours (Commendation)
2.00 – 2.99	Honours
0.00 – 1.99	Will not graduate

³The period of candidature for a BA (Hons) programme is as follows:

Entry	Period of Candidature
Entry	Normal	Maximum
For entry to Year 1	3 years	6 years
For direct entry to Year 2	2 years	4 years

Mode of Instruction

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.

Assessment Methods

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.

Career Pathways

Upon the completion of this programme, dynamic careers in the creative industries await:

Actor/Actress
Choreographer
Dancer
Dance/Drama Teacher
Director
Dramaturg
Performing Artist
Performance Maker
Playwright
Production Assistant

Modules

Code	Title	Credits
NBPM1101	Performance Practices: Creation & Performance Fundamentals In this module, you will engage in a range of discipline-specific and interdisciplinary dance/theatre practices to strengthen and broaden your performance and creative development. You will consider performance within artistic, cultural, and historical contexts, and investigate methodologies and ideas through practical exercises. You will be guided to identify and shape your personal and professional aspirations. You will develop your chosen specialism through an integrated, embodied, reflexive approach connecting theory and practice. This includes applying performance perspectives to your creative work and critically reflecting on your artistic choices and processes. Such reflective practice will support the development of your artistic voice and enable you to articulate the significance of your work. Additionally, you will acquire practical knowledge of performance production, including stage management. Foundational principles such as terminology, stage planning, equipment use, and staging procedures will provide you with the organisational and technical skills necessary for effective performance making.	40
NBPM1102 (Elective)	Performance Studies: Interdisciplinarity This module will introduce principles and approaches to studying performance making as an academic discipline and artistic practice. You will focus on interdisciplinarity through critical thinking and participation in various processes. 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. You will explore how interactions between different artistic disciplines generate fresh possibilities in performance. Active participation in interdisciplinary strategies will allow you to expand your creative and critical capacities while learning to navigate complex processes. An inquiry-led framework will guide your investigation into diverse forms and contexts, encouraging you to question assumptions, test boundaries, and reconsider how performance can be understood and practised. By integrating theory and practice, you can situate your work within the evolving landscape of contemporary performance, strengthening your capacity to adapt, innovate, and contribute meaningfully to performance making.	10
NBPM1103 (Elective)	Performance Practices: Collaboration This module introduces the principles and approaches to performance making as an academic discipline and an artistic practice. You will focus on interdisciplinary collaboration through critical thinking and participation in various processes. 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. You will investigate how physical theatre and collaborative processes shape artistic practice and open new pathways for performance. Engaging in practical exploration, you will explore strategies that integrate different disciplines, expanding your creative range and deepening your ability to work collectively. An inquiry-based approach will guide your study, prompting you to question established conventions and consider alternative possibilities. This process will challenge you to situate your practice within varied artistic contexts while developing a reflective and analytical perspective. Integrating theory and practice will enable you to navigate the shifting landscape of contemporary performance, equipping you with the adaptability and insight needed to contribute to evolving forms of artistic innovation.	10
NBDP1001 (Elective)	Digital Visualisation for Communication The module introduces you to drawing and making as fundamental tools for digital visualisation and communication in design practice. You will engage in hands-on exploration across both digital and physical mediums in developing an integrated understanding of design processes for storytelling and communication.	10
NBDP1002 (Elective)	Ethnographic Research within Creative Practices The module introduces you to the use of ethnographic research methods within art and design practices. You will explore how ethnographic approaches – such as fieldwork, observational studies, and participatory engagement – can enrich creative practices by offering insights into cultural contexts, communities, and social dynamics. The module emphasises critical reflexivity, ethics, and the diverse ways to collect data and conduct research. You will learn to engage with ethnography not just as a research tool, but as a creative and collaborative process in the development of their practice.	10
NBFA1102 (Elective)	Introduction to Fine Art This module introduces you to the historical, cultural, and regional contexts that inform contemporary Fine Art practice in Singapore and Southeast Asia. You will learn to engage with key artistic movements, case studies, and practices that have shaped the cultural landscape of the region, and explore how these histories intersect with contemporary issues such as postcolonialism, migration, hybridity, and identity.	10
NBFA1103 (Elective)	Introduction to Artistic Research This module equips you with foundational tools and methods for conducting artistic research. You will learn how to generate enquiries, locate resources, and critically analyse materials that inform your practice. Emphasis will be placed on developing research as a creative and reflective process that supports studio practice and connects personal interests with broader artistic and cultural contexts.	10

Students to complete 2 electives in Year 1 Sem 1.

Electives can be selected from those offered within their own programme (with prefix NBPMXXXX), or offered by other programmes (with prefix NBDPXXXX and NBFAXXXX).

Code	Title	Credits
NBPM1201	Performance Practices: Critical & Conceptual Frameworks In this module, you will continue to develop your artistry through engagement with a range of discipline-specific and interdisciplinary dance/theatre performance practices within critical and conceptual frameworks. You will refine your aspirations and develop the skills necessary to achieve them, extending your dance or theatre practice by critically examining historical and contemporary developments that shape current performance. You will explore how different influences can inform your artistic development. You will participate in practical investigations that draw on diverse creative sources, applying them to shape and refine your performance making processes. You will also increase your awareness of technical production practices, acquire the tools to collaborate effectively across creative contexts, and contribute meaningfully to the broader professional landscape.	40
NBPM1202 (Elective)	Performance Studies: Interculturalism This module will examine interculturalism. Focusing on the performing arts in Southeast Asia, you will investigate how performance practices inform contemporary creative processes, considering how cultural exchange shapes artistic innovation. You will engage with both theoretical perspectives and practical explorations to understand how traditions are reinterpreted, adapted, or transformed in current performance contexts. This approach will enable you to situate your practice within a broader intercultural landscape and articulate Southeast Asia’s diverse artistic heritage in shaping future performance making.	10
NBPM1203 (Elective)	Performance Practices: Southeast Asian This module will focus on the performing arts in Southeast Asia through a practice-based approach. You will consider regional performance traditions affecting contemporary creation and how these practices interact with global artistic influences. Through critical and creative exploration, you will refine your ability to interpret performance, evaluate artistic processes, and connect theoretical perspectives with practical application. Collaborative projects will provide opportunities to apply these insights in practice, strengthening your artistic skills and capacity to contribute meaningfully within collective performance making environments.	10
NBDP1003 (Elective)	Experiential Interactives This module encourages you to push creative experimentation, develop critical thinking skills, and develop prototype artefacts that demonstrate the integration of theory and practice. This module will further orientate you to the practices and knowledge of the design field. You will deepen your technical expertise, exploring how to apply specialised processes and methods across different design contexts.	10
NBDP1004 (Elective)	Storytelling for Business This module explores storytelling as a powerful tool for communication and persuasion in design. It guides you to use empathetic, visual, and iterative thinking to craft narratives that connect with audiences, drive engagement, express value clearly, and bridge the gap between design intent and business outcomes.	10
NBFA1202 (Elective)	Art and Ethics This module introduces you to the fundamental questions and ethical considerations that shape contemporary art practice. You will explore how artistic decisions – from the choice of materials and subjects, emerging concerns around AI and technology, to modes of representation and engagement with audiences – impact communities, cultural narratives, contemporary art discourse. You will learn how to critically reflect on the intentions, processes, and consequences of your creative decisions while developing a deeper awareness of your role as an artist within wider social, cultural, and political contexts.	10
NBFA1203 (Elective)	Curating as Artistic Practice This module introduces you to curating as an expansive framework for thinking about and extending your artistic practice. The focus is less on becoming a curator and more on exploring the ethos of curating as a way to organise, activate, and contextualise artistic work within wider cultural, social, and spatial frameworks. You will examine how artists often curate – not only exhibitions, but also ideas, spaces, audiences, and communities – as part of their creative process.	10

Students to complete 2 electives in Year 1 Sem 2.

Electives can be selected from those offered within their own programme (with prefix NBPMXXXX), or offered by other programmes (with prefix NBDPXXXX and NBFAXXXX).

Code	Title	Credits
NBPM2101	Performance Practices: Embodied Knowledge In this module, you will expand your artistry by exploring a range of discipline-specific and interdisciplinary dance/theatre performance practices within critical and conceptual frameworks. You will broaden your versatility by working with different styles and approaches, strengthening your craft and ability to respond to varied performance contexts. You will investigate the cultural and historical influences that shape artistic practices, situating your work within more expansive creative landscapes. As part of this process, you will generate original performance material, applying your skills to demonstrate creativity and proficiency. Reflection and analysis will support you in articulating the significance of your artistic choices and their impact. In addition, you will engage with project management principles relevant to performance making, equipping you with practical strategies to design, organise, and deliver artistic work effectively.	40
NBPM2102 (Elective)	Performance Studies: Autobiographic Research In this module, you will conduct independent performance research to forge a personal creative identity and explore how to articulate this in your work. You will investigate autobiographic research that connects personal experience with creative practice. By experimenting with different modes of inquiry, you will learn how to generate and refine ideas that inform original performance work. This process will support the development of a distinctive artistic voice, allowing you to articulate your creative choices with clarity and confidence.	10
NBPM2103 (Elective)	Performance Studies: Ethnographic Research In this module, you will engage in research methodologies to expand your performance making approaches. You will explore how an ethnographic qualitative method can generate insights that inform performance making. Attention will be given to processes of documentation and writing, equipping you with tools to analyse, articulate, and communicate your work in both practical and academic contexts. Integrating research with practice, you will learn to generate ideas, refine your creative process, and produce original work grounded in critical reflection. This approach will support the emergence of a distinct artistic identity while strengthening your ability to situate your practice within broader cultural and theoretical frameworks.	10
NBDP1005 (Elective)	Design Insights This module introduces you to design trends and long-range strategic thinking as essential tools for shaping a sustainable and regenerative future. You will explore the designer’s role as a change agent, developing critical awareness of ethical issues, cultural difference, and social responsibility in global contexts. Through case studies and discussions on sustainability, community regeneration, and collaborative practices, you will learn to envision interdisciplinary, future-oriented design scenarios that respond to global challenges and anticipate emerging forces of change. You will learn to: Analyse design trends and anticipate future challenges in ecological, economic, and social contexts. Apply critical thinking to cultural, ethical, and sustainability issues in design. Envision and propose innovative, interdisciplinary design strategies for a regenerative future. Develop collaborative and strategic approaches to community and environmental engagement.	10
NBDP1006 (Elective)	Creative Business Innovations This module guides you to critically examine business practices and envision transformative solutions. By employing design research methods and creative thinking, you will explore how to cultivate deeper engagement and strategically reimagine business practices to foster stronger engagement or revitalise business operations for future success.	10
NBFA2102 (Elective)	Art in Public Spaces This module explores how contemporary artists respond to, intervene in, and activate public spaces through collective inquiry and site-informed artistic practices. You will investigate the social, spatial, and historical dimensions of public environments, drawing from psychogeography, walking practices, and other embodied research methods. Working in research collectives, you will identify a public site in Singapore, develop research methods, and test ideas through experimental activations.	10
NBFA2103 (Elective)	Art Books and Publications This module introduces you to the field of artist books, publications, and experimental printed and digital formats as extensions of artistic practice. You will examine the artist book as a liminal and experimental space — one that exists between art object, archive, and publication — and consider its potential as a strategy for generating, contextualising, and disseminating research. Through lectures, workshops, and collective inquiry, you will explore the relationship between image and text, and consider publication as both process and outcome, encouraging critical engagement with the histories and possibilities of artist-led publishing.	10

Students to complete 2 electives in Year 2 Sem 1.

Electives can be selected from those offered within their own programme (with prefix NBPMXXXX), or offered by other programmes (with prefix NBDPXXXX and NBFAXXXX).

Code	Title	Credits
NBPM2201	Performance Practices: Embracing the Contemporary This module will expand your range of discipline-specific and interdisciplinary dance/theatre performance practices through engagement within critical and conceptual frameworks. You will deepen your understanding of how diverse artistic, cultural, and philosophical perspectives shape performance. Practical exploration will be combined with critical analysis, enabling you to make informed, creative choices and clearly articulate the ideas behind your work. You will also broaden your repertoire of performance making strategies by developing tools, including new technologies, that can be integrated across different genres, contexts, and collaborative settings. This process will enhance your artistic range and capacity to generate original, innovative performances. In addition, you will be introduced to professional practices such as proposal writing and presentation, with attention to current arts policy. These skills will prepare you to position your work into the broader industry and pursue opportunities for artistic development and support.	20
NBPM2202	Industry Project: Engaging with the Profession In this module, you will participate in an interdisciplinary professional-standard public production and develop an understanding of the practical process of staging a performance. You will work with a team of professional creatives to make a performance that will be staged for a public audience. Where possible, this may be as part of a professional theatre festival. Collaborating with creative and technical specialists will give you firsthand experience of professional production processes. You will contribute to rehearsals, planning, and staging, developing a clear understanding of how different roles and responsibilities intersect in performance making. This practical immersion will sharpen your ability to work under industry conditions, balancing artistic vision with technical and logistical requirements. Presenting the final work to a public audience, potentially within the context of an arts festival, will provide valuable insight into professional standards of practice and the expectations of diverse audiences.	20
NBPM2203	International Placement: Digital Performance This module investigates the performer’s role in relation to the field of digital performance and explores its transformative impact on contemporary theatre forms. It will provide you with the opportunity to explore performance making for digital environments and platforms, including performing with established and emerging technologies, and using your voice and body to engage with hybrid forms of storytelling. You will explore the emergence of digital approaches to dramaturgy and explore their influence on theatre-making as an increasingly multi-modal field. You will learn practical skills and approaches to digital performance. You will learn to engage with key theories and practical approaches to digital performance, situating them within their historical, cultural, and artistic contexts. Alongside this theoretical grounding, you will develop practical skills and working knowledge of digital platforms and environments that shape contemporary creative practice. The module will enable you to explore specific approaches to digital dramaturgy, while encouraging experimentation with innovative uses of digital technologies in performance. Through this process, you will extend and transform your encounter with contemporary theatre and screen practices, broadening your capacity to create original and critically informed work in digital contexts. Alternative learning activities will be offered to students who cannot attend the International Placement due to extenuating circumstances.	20

Code	Title	Credits
NBPM3101	Performance Making Project: Contemporary Southeast Asian In this interdisciplinary module, you will explore and interrogate the notion of contemporary Southeast Asian and position yourself and your practice in the performing arts landscape. You will draw on the information, skills and approaches you have developed during this programme. Working collaboratively, you will create a public performance. In a paper, you will document, critically reflect, analyse, and evaluate your process. You will engage with the cultural, historical, and social forces shaping Southeast Asian performance, considering how artistic practices evolve through local and global influences. This perspective will allow you to locate your creative work within a broader regional discourse and articulate the value of your contributions to contemporary practice. Collaboration will be central to this module, as you devise an original performance with your peers. Through this process, you will integrate the theoretical and practical knowledge gained throughout the programme, testing new creative strategies that respond to Southeast Asia’s distinctive contexts. Finally, you will produce a critical paper that documents, analyses and reflects on your investigation and processes that informed the work. This will consolidate your learning while sharpening your ability to evaluate and clearly communicate your practice.	60

Code	Title	Credits
NBPM3201	Performance Making Project: Interdisciplinary Collaboration In this module, you will explore and interrogate the notion of interdisciplinarity, drawing on the information, skills and approaches you have developed during this programme. Working collaboratively, you will create a public performance and document, critically reflect, analyse, and evaluate your process. You will create an interdisciplinary performance that integrates diverse artistic practices and perspectives. The project will emphasise a non-hierarchical collaborative approach that expands performance making possibilities and encourages innovation beyond conventional forms. You will analyse the whole arc of the collaborative process, from concept development to public presentation, considering how the integration of multiple disciplines shaped decisions. This includes reflecting on challenges encountered, strategies adopted, and the impact of collaboration on the final work and its reception. Your paper will consolidate this learning, enabling you to evaluate your development and articulate interdisciplinarity's broader role in contemporary performance making practice.	60

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Performance Making

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Performance Making

Make Performance. Make Possibilities. Across Disciplines.

Students' Work

Modules

entry requirements

Audition Requirements

Educational Qualifications

Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL)

English Language Proficiency

How to Apply

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Performance Making

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Performance Making

Make Performance. Make Possibilities. Across Disciplines.

Students' Work

Modules

Year 1 Semester 1

Year 1 Semester 2

Year 2 Semester 1

Year 2 Semester 2

Year 3 Semester 1

Year 3 Semester 2

entry requirements

Audition Requirements

Educational Qualifications

Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL)

English Language Proficiency

How to Apply