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Performing Arts Courses

students mid-dance
Getting Ahead

Performing Arts Courses at South Downs Campus

Are you studying Acting for Stage & Screen, Musical Theatre, Dance Performance & Choreography or Performing Arts at South Downs Campus in September? If so, you’re in the right place! 

Welcome to Performing Arts at HSDC South Downs! We are looking forward to seeing you in September. Please select your chosen pathway and engage with this summer activity to get your creative juices flowing and prepare you for your journey ahead. 

Musical Theatre – ACTIVITY ONE 

Acting for Stage and Screen – ACTIVITY TWO 

Dance – ACTIVITY THREE 

a group of students acting out a play

Task 1  

Take a look at the below types of musicals and write a brief description for each one. (To help you, just pop in ‘types of musicals’ into Google and this will point you in the right direction). 

  • Book Musical 
  • Jukebox Musical 
  • Concept Musical 
  • Rock Musical 
  • Golden Age Musical 

Then list at least two musicals that would fit into each type of musical. 

Task 2 

Research a musical theatre composer from one of the shows you have listed above. We would then like you to choose a song from that composer and video yourself performing it. You do not have to learn it by heart so don’t panic, enjoy and we look forward to seeing you in September!

Complete this activity for the Acting courses.  

Find images of each of the following types of theatre space (staging styles) label them with their name, location, and the source that you got the image from.  

  • In-the round 
  • Thrust stage 
  • Traverse stage 
  • Arena or amphitheatre 
  • End on stage 
  • Proscenium arch theatre 
  • An Apron stage

Then for each type of audience configuration or stage – list the benefits or difficulties of that set up. Consider views, angles, set and lighting impact as well as emotional response and relationship between the actors and the audience. 

Acting course research

View the following clips and write a paragraph describing the style of the theatre, the different production elements (such as music, lighting, staging, costume) and techniques you see being used by the performers. 

Frantic Assembly 

https://youtu.be/ieWs3hl3O4w 

https://youtu.be/x8f9saYLJJc 

https://youtu.be/2pN-effv8PY 

Sally Cookson 

https://youtu.be/mhfROi3nOC4 

https://youtu.be/9KPE6uXhFEU 

https://youtu.be/d1cGPCHCKbE 

 

Roy Williams 

https://youtu.be/H7jPlNXmQmI 

https://www.pilot-theatre.com/past-work/loneliness-of-the-long-distance-runner-2012 

Katie Mitchell 

https://youtu.be/NOdzJWssnjk 

https://youtu.be/B9zzxgYl_hk 

 

Write a 400 word review of your favourite professional dance work.

Identify

  • The choreographer
  • The name of the work
  • The date of the work
  • The company
  • Who performed the work
  • Details about the dance
    • The genre, style, choreographic devices, costumes, set, props, music

Then discuss why this is your favourite professional dance work

 

Resources

Meet your Lecturers

  • dance lecturer matt newman

    Matt Newman - Musical Theatre & Dance

  • acting for stage and screen lecturer sally barlow

    Sally Barlow - Acting

  • ""

    Karen Leadbeater - Acting

  • Polly Hadzis - Acting

  • Sarah Parsons in the photo

    Sarah Parsons - Dance

  • Zoe Majczac - Dance

  • Chris Earle - Performing Arts

We look forward to seeing you soon!

Your Learning Space

*This is a representation of your learning space and may not be the exact room you will be using

I overcame a couple of barriers by working really hard to get the top grades. My experience was really good, with the course and the lecturers, the residentials and activities, together it was all really good. I had really great teaching support, I could always go to the lecturers and speak to them if I needed to.

David Stenning, Public Services student

“HSDC provided me with the opportunity for autonomous study and the choice of subjects that I wanted to study, which helped me develop relevant knowledge as well as relevant skills for the workplace.”

Lucas Ratcliffe, A Level and CTEC student

My experience at the college has been really good, it’s been really rewarding, all the lecturers were so lovely and supportive there’s no way I could have done it without them - the teaching has been outstanding.

Lucie Brooks, A Level student