The Year will cover the core acting principles and the craft of the actor, from a range of different practitioners and directors perspectives, both through theatre and screen practice. Students will cover, voice, movement, characterisation, text work, improvisation and impulse, presence, rehearsal process through to performance and audition technique, industry preparation.
We believe in an integrated and holistic approach to actor training, and that an actor never really concludes their learning, its is simply a continuous cycle of research, doing and reflection from workshop to workshop, job to job and year to year... So the course is content fluid and reflects a year cycle of doing, reflecting and learning suitable for all backgrounds and experiences.
To enable this we have articulated six key core elements of the actors craft or we like to refer to as the six DNA strands that make up the actor. These strands will be the focal point of the training and are also the same strands we work on in 'The Actor's Gym' with our professional actor network.
This is a unique and industry led London-based programme delivered by leading professional practitioners. The training also includes European and International residences to further enhance skills and industry contacts.
The aim of the MFA is to produce highly skilled, versatile and independently thinking professional actors who can confidently shape a sustainable career in the diverse and continually evolving Performing Arts industries including stage, screen and audio. It includes modules in Independent Production in recognition that today’s actor must create work as well as be in it.
The course is practical, in-depth and industry informed in its design and delivery. You will be taught throughout the two years by current professional practitioners and working directors in all the specialist training areas of voice, movement and acting for stage, screen and audio; providing you with advanced actor training, alongside rigorous academic study and performance research. Regular contact is also maintained with leading producers, directors, casting directors and agents to ensure that you emerge confident, capable and industry ready.
The course includes two international residencies. Year 1 will include a one-week, intensive training workshop with a European partner organisation. Year 2 will include a substantial training residency which last year took place in the USA, at a leading performing arts conservatory. Both these residencies will extend your understanding of specialist areas and explore creative possibilities across cultural landscapes. Please note that the travel and accommodation for these residencies will be covered at your own expense. We will give you an estimation of the costs as soon as possible at the start of the course but please make sure you budget for this.
Our full-time courses are vocational and practical. We will guide you through Spotlight and Equity membership and provide an industry career launch to present you to professional agents and casting directors. You will leave the MFA with a professionally shot filmed scenes a voice clips. You will be given the opportunity to showcase your talent in events for the public, agents and casting directors, as well as emerging with your own fully realised production that is ready for touring, viewing or listening.
The MFA is validated and awarded by the University of West London which prides itself as the Career University. Drama Studio London is also accredited by the Council for Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre (CDMT), a governing body which accredits excellent professional training in the leading drama schools. It is an integral member of the Federation of Drama Schools (FDS), an organisation dedicated to good practice in conservatoire training.
This course will give you the physical, critical and authorship skills to create performances that are relevant to our time. You will become a versatile performer who can make their own work and own their own stage, taking inspiration from live art, cabaret, circus skills, drag, spoken word, burlesque, stand-comedy, stage magic, immersive performance and festivals.
This course focuses on practical performance skills like magic, clowning, burlesque and wrestling, taught by cutting-edge practitioners. It is not a traditional Acting course; you will not learn classical texts; instead, you will create your own new, performances which engage with the audience and provoke thought.
You will benefit from the opportunity to do industry placements, network with professional practitioners and learn a wide range of practical skills to serve you in your practice (such as event management and collaboration). You will be taught at our Sidcup campus and also at the Tramshed in their new fully equipped premises, immersing you in the industry in the heart of inner London.
You will study with award-winning Marisa Carnesky – a renowned live artist and show-woman who has been helping both emerging and established artists evolve ideas, develop their practices and make new work for over 20 years. She also heads up the creative production, performance and theatre company Carnesky Productions (founded in 2004).
Location: Sidcup
Set, lighting, sound, props, costume. These are a few of the considerations required to put together a production. The Production Arts Extended Diploma course programme focuses on developing the broad range of skills necessary for progression to work or further study at degree level in technical theatre. The qualification has been designed to meet the needs of the creative and cultural industries.
This course looks at each of these and more develop skills that are transferable from an arena sized concert or a theatrical production all the way to small scale touring theatre. Employment has grown alongside technology in this area and so there are job and higher education opportunities for students who complete this course of study.
The emphasis is on practical skills underpinned by theoretical understanding and industry standard health and safety practices. Much of the work will be in support of the wide range of performances in theatre, dance and music that take place each year as well as having opportunity to speak to industry professionals, take part in production workshops and visit local and regional theatres. Each project you complete is designed to be realistic to what you would expect in industry.
In addition to your main programme, you will also engage in activities to develop your English, maths and employability skills.
Establishing the foundations for connected, imaginative artists, who are employable, knowledgeable and ready to take the next step in their training journey.
Fourth Monkey’s CertHE Acting & Theatre Making is a one-year professional, vocational actor training course aimed primarily (but not exclusively) at post-A Level or equivalent students who are embarking on the very first steps in their drama school training journey.
The CertHE Acting & Theatre Making course aims to establish the foundations for fearless, connected and imaginative artists who are employable, knowledgeable and ready as both actors and theatre makers to take the next steps in professional vocational training.
The CertHE Acting & Theatre Making course offers innovative and inclusive training to empower and develop those embarking on their creative journey through experiential acting technique, movement, voice and collaborative theatre making.
The CertHE Acting & Theatre Making is validated by Falmouth University. This means that our students are able to access Student Finance to pay the fees, making Fourth Monkey training accessible and affordable to those who wish to explore life at a drama school, in advance of further vocational training at a higher level.
Training on the CertHE encourages connections between training disciplines, practices and activities within the field of performance and creation. There is no academic written work, instead students “learn by doing” in a range of professional vocational classes, workshops, performance projects and presentations using Fourth Monkey’s unique thematic training structure of ACT, MAKE, MOVE, COLLABORATE.
Below is an outline of the key features of the CertHE Acting & Theatre Making course:
• Foundation-level training for post-A Level or equivalent performers and theatre makers
• “Learn through doing” – professional vocational classes, workshops, performance projects and presentations, rather than academic written work
• Accredited by Fourth Monkey’s degree awarding partner, Falmouth University
• Access to Student Finance to pay course fees
“I loved it, found myself as an artist and person, … I’ve changed so much and I can’t stress how important that was for me.” – Simrita Khela, Fourth Monkey Alumnus 2020.
Digital and social media is an exciting and fast-growing sphere of marketing. If you want to be a part of it, our BA/BSc (Hons) Digital Marketing & Social Media course will make you an expert in this evolving industry.
On this course, taught at UCA Epsom's Business School for the Creative Industries, you will discover the constantly moving nature of digital marketing and social media, and gain the tools to think quickly and creatively to meet the demands of both technology and customer behaviour.
You will become an expert marketeer and a highly effective social media user, able to understand the role of the influencer and how to target your core audiences.
You have the option to complete a Professional Practice Year as part of this course. If you choose this route, you’ll spend two years learning in our Business School for the Creative Industries, before putting what you’ve learned into practice as part of a year-long work placement, and then returning to the Business School for your fourth and final year of study.
This full time course is designed for 16-18 year olds who aspire to make musical theatre their professional career; be it working in the West End, performing for companies, cruises, cabaret shows, the list goes on. There are many options for a professional career in musical theatre and this two-year course will predominantly focus on singing and acting skills for Musical theatre (both ensemble and one to one lessons) but will also provide the high quality dance training needed to set solid foundations in commercial dance, street dance, jazz, ballet, contemporary, tap, Latin, choreography, and much more.
Working in partnership with Stamford College we place teaching and learning at the heart of what we do, all of our staff are still working in the industry to ensure our students get current training that is relevant and effective. Our staff work in many areas in the industry including choreographing for X Factor, West End and The Royal Ballet and have performed in all areas of the industry, including West End musicals such as 42nd Street, Wicked, Chicago, Sweet Charity, along with many commercial artists like Anne-Marie, Zara Larsson, Rita Ora, and Camila Cabello.
During each year of training our dancers can audition to take part in main stage and showcase performances at Move It London (UK biggest dance convention attracting an audience of 70,000), CYD? Super Convention, Mass Movement and perform in a variety of UK venues as part of our Winter Tour. All students will also take part in termly shows. Alongside these performances throughout the course, students will study four mandatory modules as follows:
- Performing arts skills development
- The performing arts industry
- Personal performing arts profile
- Collaborative performing arts project
Once the BTEC Extended Diploma qualification is completed the students then have the opportunity to audition for a Higher Education course; enabling the performers to complete their training fully qualified and ready for the industry.
Our BTEC in Dance is run in partnership with Stamford College therefore course fees are fully funded and the awarding body for the qualification is Pearson.
This full time course is designed for 16-18 year olds who aspire to make dance their professional career; be it working in the West End, dancing for companies, cruises, cabaret shows, or even dancing alongside their favourite pop artist. There are many options for a professional career in dance and this two-year course will provide the high quality dance training needed to set solid foundations in commercial dance, street dance, jazz, musical theatre, ballet, contemporary, tap, Latin, singing, acting, choreography, community dance, fitness and much more.
Working in partnership with Stamford College we place teaching and learning at the heart of what we do, all of our staff are still working in the industry to ensure our students get current training that is relevant and effective. Our staff work in many areas in the industry including choreographing for X Factor, West End and The Royal Ballet and have performed in all areas of the industry, including West End musicals such as 42nd Street, Wicked, Chicago, Sweet Charity, along with many commercial artists like Anne-Marie, Zara Larsson, Rita Ora, and Camila Cabello.
During each year of training our dancers can audition to take part in main stage and showcase performances at Move It London (UK biggest dance convention attracting an audience of 70,000), CYD? Super Convention, Mass Movement and perform in a variety of UK venues as part of our Winter Tour. All students will also take part in termly shows. Alongside these performances throughout the course, students will study four mandatory modules as follows:
- Performing arts skills development
- The performing arts industry
- Personal performing arts profile
- Collaborative performing arts project
- Once the BTEC Extended Diploma qualification is completed the students then have the opportunity to audition for a Higher Education course; enabling the dancers to complete their training fully qualified and ready for the industry.
Our BTEC in Dance is run in partnership with Stamford College therefore course fees are fully funded and the awarding body for the qualification is Pearson.
From the edgiest of fashion editorials to creating Hollywood glamour for the red carpet, you’ll create beauty masterpieces on our innovative BA (Hons) Make-up and Hair Design course.
This course will teach you everything you need to know about the beauty industry, from products to publications, collaborating with creative directors and advertisers to working with high-profile clients.
You’ll be able to create, refine and present your work in style with our extensive facilities and collaborate with peers. As you study, you'll develop your in-depth industry knowledge, practical skills and individual signature style so that, by the time you graduate, you’ll have a rich portfolio of work to set you up in your career.
Preparing graduates for successful careers underpins everything we do, and all students on this course will be offered an industry placement anywhere between two weeks and a year in length, depending on their individual needs. We’ll draw on our wide range of contacts within the creative industries to ensure you’re offered opportunities that align with your interests and future career aspirations.
The BA (Hons) Dance and Drama degree at Edinburgh College is an intensive industry training course delivered by Kingston University. Challenge your potential as you immerse yourself in the art of theatre and performance through a range of techniques. This is a university-level course that will ensure you are prepared to an industry standard to progress into a career as a portfolio artist.
You will develop a range of transferable skills to equip you for the demands of a competitive world. Actors and performers have a massive influence on society and this course aims to show you how you can become a part of that influence. You will critically engage in industry practices and learn how to take a simple performance idea and bring it to life. Throughout the course, you will gain essential experience in professional environments and make crucial connections with industry professionals.
Performing Arts Studio Scotland (PASS) has a range of exceptional professional facilities including the Pass studio theatre as well as dance, acting and aerial studios. Many of the BA Performances take place in external venues such as Festival Theatre Studio, Traverse Theatre and Assembly Roxy.
