Overview
In 2018, 18.7 million of us went to the theatre in the UK, with box office revenue in London alone recorded at £633 million in 2015 (creativeindustries.co.uk). Whether you dream of being in the spotlight or working behind the scenes, there are many rewarding career options in the performing arts.
Studying performing arts at UCA will give you the confidence and skills to forge a career in this competitive sector. You’ll find that all of our courses place an emphasis on cross-course collaboration, with units engrained in the courses giving you the opportunity to seek out exciting projects among students in animation, film, music, fashion, gaming, television production and more. These creative communities on our campuses enable you to build a network of contacts that could form the bedrock of your future career.
Academics and technicians provide strong industry links and you’ll have opportunities to develop your skills and experience, via internships and work experience with household names like the Royal Opera House, National Theatre and Pinewood Studios.
Our graduates leave us with a deep understanding of the creative process, and impressive portfolios or showreels which demonstrate extensive experience of collaboration, creativity and passion.
Performing Arts courses
Performing Arts courses are available at the following locations:
UCA Canterbury
UCA Epsom
UCA Farnham
UCA Rochester
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Take a look around our campuses and view 360 images of some of our creative studio spaces and workshops.
Careers in Performing Arts
Our performing arts courses will prepare you for an exciting career in a variety of creative industries.
You’ll be equipped with a strong knowledge of each aspect of the industry to get your foot in the door of this competitive market. You can pursue a wide range of exciting technical and creative careers in areas such as acting, sound design, advertising, broadcast programming and production management. After your studies, you can go on to work as a set director, filmmaker, set designer, or screenwriter; or you could launch your own acting career and make your name on the stage or starring in films, TV productions, commercials, or even voicing popular computer game characters.
Alongside - or as an alternative to - theatre, TV, radio or film work, a career for the professional freelance actor can include:
- Acting in corporate films, and live role-play in business training
- Forming a company to create and stage own work
- Commercials
- Film or audio
- Voicing computer games and animations
- Creating original material for Image Capture projects
- Community projects such as theatre in schools
- Teaching, running workshops, rehearsed readings and workshop productions of new plays
Located within easy reach of London, our students can take advantage of the fantastic West End theatres and the other performance venues the city has to offer. We have industry links with:
- Farnham Maltings, the local creative arts centre near our Farnham campus
- British Actors’ Equity
- Drama UK (the body which oversees drama training across the country)
- West End venues for showcase presentations
Case studies
Find out what some of our students and graduates think about their time at UCA
"The main reason I chose UCA Farnham was because the course appealed to me; it was split between theatre and film and I wanted to experience both practices."
Gabrielle Louise Ellison
BA (Hons) Acting, UCA Farnham
"I have learned so many new skills, I don’t even know where to begin. For a start all the design elements, the drawings and illustrations, the technical drawings that go with them, model boxes – making things to scale. Then you also learn a range of more practical skills - using silicone moulds and resin, and using the wood workshops. "
Catherine Barron
BA (Hons) Theatre Design, UCA Rochester