This Masters gives you a practical and theoretical engagement with the many forms of writing and production for theatre. Blending practice, theory and history, the programme is designed for those wishing to develop playwriting skills and knowledge of script development and support, opening the way to many theatre roles, including dramaturgy. You will learn about the changing roles of the playwright and dramaturge in contemporary theatre in the UK and elsewhere around the world, and be supported to define your own creative practice while developing valuable transferable skills in research, project management and critical reflection.
WHY THIS PROGRAMME
In this course, you will develop your skills in writing for radio, theatre and screen with an emphasis on your individual voice and style.
You will graduate with a portfolio of pieces and an understanding of how to approach theatres and film and TV production companies and work towards securing commissions as a professional playwright or screenwriter.
The MLitt will provide you with technically-oriented tuition by leading contemporary and award-winning playwrights, with an emphasis on best practice in recent and contemporary writing.
At RADA, you learn by doing. You will engage in creatively rigorous and fulfilling vocational training that immerses you in the world of the professional playwright, ensuring you're artistically and practically equipped for the industry. Through continuous reflective practice you will workshop your writing, gain feedback and develop your creative work.
Teaching will be delivered by seminar (lecture and discussion), masterclasses, one-to-one tutorials, group tutorials and writing workshops.
Throughout your training, you will receive personalised feedback and career guidance to develop your expertise, resilience and leadership. The course will also include theatre trips, and prioritise an understanding of access, diversity, and inclusion.
This MA programme will enhance your creative and collaborative abilities while developing your playwriting craft. You will establish your identity as a creative practitioner with the skills and confidence to take an original idea from conception to production.
You will consider the role of new technologies, including artificial intelligence, and the impact they may have on the writing process and creative practice and industries.
Through this course you will write two plays; a one act play for a showcase reading, and the first draft of a full-length play for submission to professional production companies.
Gain practical skills and critical insight in directing, design, performing, playwriting and more. You'll explore plays and productions covering theatre’s many pasts and presents. Discover the connections between theatre practice and its histories, theories, politics and ethics. Analyse scripts and develop performance, workshop, and rehearsal approaches. Hone your craft through ambitious production and research projects.
Thrive in exceptional facilities. We have two fully-equipped theatres, rehearsal rooms, and set design spaces. You’ll join an inspiring collaborative community of students and staff in music, film and television and creative technologies.
Our academics are leading researchers in theatre practice, history and theory. Many have worked as professional writers, actors, directors and designers.
Gain industry connections and prepare for your career. Engage with contemporary performance practice through theatre trips across Yorkshire. Build connections and get career insights through masterclasses with visiting professionals. You’ll have access to careers support from our in-house employability team.
In this course, we look to the future. Theatre can take place in front of large audiences in dedicated performance venues, but it can also happen all around us – on the street, in community centres, in prisons and schools. When done well, theatre can have a transformative impact on individuals, communities and society. And you can be part of that.
Focussing on the emerging trends and innovations of 21st-century theatre and performance, we will teach you the building blocks of performance making, whilst supporting your ability to develop highly creative, challenging and impactful work.
You will engage in collaborative group performances throughout the course, allowing you to specialise in what you enjoy the most. You might choose to focus on acting, building your confidence on stage, perfecting your characterisation and portraying that character through performance. You could opt to work in pre-production, playwriting or script writing, or even scenography, designing sets and scenes that bring your production to life.
Head to the link to read more!
At Kent, you will develop your individual voice and hone skills to express yourself creatively through performance.
Whether you want to be a stand-up comedian, actor, director, writer, producer, choreographer, or set designer – or even start your own theatre company – you’ll have the opportunity to explore your passions at Kent.
With a wide range of topics including acting, community theatre, musical theatre, puppetry, dance, stand-up comedy, and even alternative cabaret, there are plenty of opportunities to tailor the programme to your interests.
Theatre, drama and performance have the power to connect people, bring communities together and examine big issues. You’ll explore all this when you join our warm and inclusive creative community.
Our strong connections with industry and local arts venues will give you the chance to put your learning and creativity into action through placements, internships and other opportunities.
You can see shows and even take part in them at our fantastic on-campus venue, the Gulbenkian Arts Centre – which puts on an incredible programme of theatre, dance, music and film.
You can also take this course with a year in industry or year abroad.
With school holidays offering many young people the opportunity to take part in creative activities, it’s often a time when interests grow, and future ambitions begin to take shape.
Whether a young person is already engaged in the arts or just starting to explore, there are many different pathways into a career in the creative industries. However, for many families, these routes can feel unclear or uncertain.
Recent research from Netflix and the National Youth Theatre found that 89% of parents from working-class backgrounds would be unlikely to encourage their child to pursue a career in the creative industries. Building understanding and confidence among parents and carers is an important step in helping more young people feel supported in exploring these opportunities.
Parents Unscripted is a new series from Discover! Creative Careers, created in collaboration with organisations across the creative industries. The series shares the perspectives of parents whose children now work in the sector, offering honest reflections on their journeys.
We’re proud to have collaborated on one of the films in the series, developed alongside Discover! Creative Careers and the National Theatre. In this film, Angela Jumbo, mother of actor and playwright Cush Jumbo, reflects on her child’s journey into the industry and shares her perspective as a parent.
You can watch the other films in the series here!
We know that when parents and carers feel more confident about creative careers, it can make a real difference to a young person’s ability to pursue them.
By sharing these stories, Parents Unscripted aims to open up conversations, challenge misconceptions, and highlight the many routes available across the creative industries.
We encourage teachers, industry professionals and partners to share these films with their networks, whether through newsletters, social media, or conversations with young people and their families.
Helping more families understand the opportunities available in the creative industries is a vital step in supporting the next generation of talent.
Find out more about Discover! Creative Careers here.
Find out more about the National Theatre Skills Centre here.
Script in hand performances of work from writers based across Dorset. Our regular evenings of 3-4 extracts from scripts currently in development, performed for the first time in our Sherling Studio.
You can expect drama, comedy, experimentation, suspense, emotion and invention – though not necessarily all in the same script.
After the pieces have been performed, there is an opportunity to give feedback to the writers and have a drink. Presented in association with Dorset Scriptwriters. Lighthouse are always on the hunt for new material. If you have a piece that you would like to put forward, please get in touch.
Perfect for anyone aged 14 to 17 with an interest in creative writing. No experience is required, just interest and enthusiasm.
Put pen to paper, let your imagination roam free and conjure your creativity with this new two-day course, led by London writer Annie Hayter.
Working with Annie, you will explore a range of literary texts including poetry and fiction, and will use artwork, photographs and songs to inspire your own creative writing. You will learn to draft and develop your own stories and explore the best ways to present, perform and publish them.
Maybe you want to write about your pet goose Doris, an imagined day in the life of your favourite popstar or whatever is important to you, this course will be a warm and open space for you to freely express yourself and delve into the depths of your imagination.
Dates: Sat 18 – Sun 19 Jul 2026
Cost: £230
Deadline to book: 5pm, Friday 3 July 2026
Free training opportunity for South West based performing arts practitioners
Over the past couple of years we have been working with brilliant artists and companies to provide quality training for creative practitioners in the South West.
Next up we are joined by Open Theatre – a physical theatre company who specialise in working with young people with learning disabilities.
This training session will involve a practical exploration of the key elements of their unique non-verbal physical theatre practice developed over the last 25 years. The practice is used as both a theatre-making process, developing performance work on the borderlines of theatre, dance and mime, and as an educational tool with special schools that supports young people with learning disabilities to discover their capabilities.
This session is perfect for artists and practitioners who want to extend and adapt their practice to be more inclusive of young people with learning disabilities and to enrich and extend the ways in which we create theatre, opening up new ways of creating and discovering capabilities for all.
The session will be practical – sometimes challenging – asking us all to connect in unfamiliar ways, but above all are great fun! The atmosphere created by the practice is authentic, playful, and joyful – within a space that feels free, safe, non-judgemental, and alive with possibility.
The session is FREE but booking is essential as there are only 12 places available.
Travel bursaries for South West practitioners are available through application, contact Charlene@strikealight.org.uk
