Theatre & Performative Practices
Our BA (Hons) Theatre & Performative Practices degree at University College Cork (UCC) is a window to the exciting world of theatre and performance. Our programme explores the world of theatre and the wide spectrum of performance: such as dance, outdoor performance, and music theatre.
| Award Name | Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) |
|---|---|
| NFQ Classification | Major |
| Awarding Body | National University of Ireland |
| NFQ Level | Level 8 NFQ |
| Award Name | NFQ Classification | Awarding Body | NFQ Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) | Major | National University of Ireland | Level 8 NFQ |
Duration
3 years or 4 Years.
Specific Subjects or course requirements
Leaving Certificate entry requirements:
At least six subjects must be presented. Minimum grade H5 in two subjects and minimum grade O6/H7 in four other subjects. English and Irish are requirements for all programmes unless the applicant is exempt from Irish. Applicants will need to meet the following minimum entry requirements:
English O6/H7
Irish O6/H7
Other Language O6/H7
Additional requirements:
All applicants are required to pass an Admission Interview and will be called for this automatically once the application is made through the CAO. The Admission Interview is usually held in March and again in April and May of the incoming year.
Students who wish to take Theatre & Performative Practices with Music must first apply through the CAO for Theatre & Performative Practices (CK112). In addition to the normal CAO requirements, such students must also satisfy the Professor of Music and the College that they are capable of successfully completing the Music component of the programme by taking and passing a Music test. Music tests happen in April – please contact the Music Department at music@ucc.ie to book your test.
Additional Requirements
There are further subject-specific requirements for subjects on offer through the BA in Arts. You can find out details on subject-specific entry requirements in the Academic Programme Catalogue.
Béaloideas (Group 5)
Students wishing to select Béaloideas should normally have a minimum grade H4 in Irish in the Leaving Certificate examination (or equivalent). Lectures are through the medium of Irish.
French (Group 4)
A Student will not normally be allowed to select French unless they have attained a pass standard in French in the Leaving Certificate Examination (or equivalent).
German (Group 3)
Students wishing to select German Non Beginners should have a minimum grade H4 in German in the Leaving Certificate Examination (or equivalent). Students wishing to take German (Beginners) are recommended to have a minimum of grade H3 in another modern continental language, or Irish, or Latin, or Greek, in the Leaving Certificate Examination (or equivalent). Students will be accepted to the Beginners group only if they have no prior German, or if they have reached a level no higher than Junior Certificate German.
Italian (Group 6a)
Students wishing to take Beginners’ Italian are recommended to have a minimum of grade H4 in another modern continental language, or Irish, or Latin, or Greek in the Leaving Certificate examination (or equivalent). Students wishing to take Non-Beginners’ Italian are recommended to have a minimum of grade H4 in Italian in the Leaving Certificate examination (or equivalent).
Mathematics (Group 3)
Students who wish to take Mathematics must have achieved at least a H3 in Mathematics in the Leaving Certificate Examination (or equivalent).
Spanish (Group 6b)
Students wishing to take Beginners’ Spanish must have obtained a minimum grade H4 in the Leaving Certificate (or equivalent) in another modern continental language, or Irish, Latin or Greek OR evidence of competence equivalent to Grade H4 in a foreign language other than Spanish. Students who have studied Spanish at second level and obtained a grade below H4 can also join the Beginners’ Spanish course. Students wishing to take Non-Beginners’ Spanish must have obtained a minimum Grade H4 in Spanish in the Leaving Certificate examination (or equivalent).
Leaving Certificate Vocational Progamme LCVP
UCC awards the following points to the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme Link Modules:
Distinction 66 points
Merit 46 points
Pass 28 points
While Link Modules are counted for point scoring purposes they may not be counted as one of the six subjects to satisfy minimum entry requirements.
QQI FET Applicants General Information
Careers / Further progression
Skills and Careers Information
The UCC Employment and Employability Guide note that University College Cork (UCC) graduates are highly sought-after by employers. Our graduates go on to the widest range of careers after this study. From theatre performance and production to video-making; from stage and screen to arts administration; from teaching at primary and secondary levels to giving workshops in the community; from the social services and youth theatre to digital art and coding: our students succeed. Many students pursue postgraduate study.
You will have an opportunity to elect to study our international pathways and spend your third year abroad. Our partnerships open up opportunities in Denmark, Germany, Malta, France, Canada, the US, Mexico, and beyond, in English or in other languages.
UCC has a long and established theatre tradition and our alumni include some outstanding examples of this tradition, and include:
Cillian Murphy (actor)
Fiona Shaw (actor)
Graham Norton (TV presenter/actor/writer)
Jessica Reagan (National Theatre, London)
John Crowley (theatre & film director)
Lochlainn McKenna (music video director)
Oonagh Kearney (film director)
Ray Scannell (composer/actor Abbey Theatre)
Stefanie Preissner (writer/actor/director)
Thomas Conway (Druid Theatre Co.)
Tom Creed (Festival, Theatre and Opera director)
Postgraduate Study Options
This BA (Hons) degree also qualifies you to explore exciting postgraduate options, at home and abroad. Some UCC options include:
Music (HDip in Arts)
MA Theatre & Performative Practices
MA Music & Cultural History
MA Music - Ethnomusicology
MA Experimental Sound Practice
MA Arts Management & Creative Producing
See the postgraduate study page for CACSSS graduates for more information on a vast array of postgraduate programmes including PhD options for CACSSS graduates.
Further information
Approximate Available Places 3
Find out about the mature entry requirements at https://www.ucc.ie/en/study/undergrad/entryreqs/matureapplicants/
Approximate Available Places Overall 25
Entry 2024 - Restricted Course
Early online application (discounted): Fee €30 Closing Date: 20 January 2024 at 5pm
Normal online application: Fee €45 Closing Date: 1 February 2024 at 5pm
Be sure to complete any action well in advance of closing dates. You should avoid submitting an application close to a closing date. No extensions to closing dates will be allowed and all fees are non-refundable.
Restricted Courses
Applying for a restricted course – you must have applied to CAO by 1 February 2024 at 5pm if you wish to apply for a restricted course. The restricted course must be included on your course choices list by that date, or added to your application using the facility to amend course choices (for a fee of €10) before 1 March at 5pm.
Restricted courses normally require additional assessment procedures, for example, the submission of a portfolio, an oral assessment or interview, or a written assessment. Restricted courses are identified in the handbook by the words “(Restricted - see page 3)" on the same line as the restricted course’s title. Please make sure to acquaint yourself with the additional requirements, if any, of the restricted course(s) that you have applied for and go to page 24 of the 2024 CAO Handbook for more information about interviews and assessments.
Exception: If a restricted course shares the exact same assessment procedures with a course you had applied for by 1 February 2024, you may be permitted to introduce it on a Change of Mind. You should consult with the relevant HEI before introducing such a course.
Mature Applicants
Mature applicants – most HEIs will require mature applicants, who wish to be assessed on mature grounds, to have applied to CAO by 1st February 2024 at 5pm, and include course choices by that date or add them using the facility to amend course choices (for a fee of €10) before 1 March at 5pm. (This restriction does not apply if the applicant wishes to be considered on the basis of school leaving qualifications only.) For more information about applying to CAO on the basis of mature years go to www.cao.ie/mature
Supplementary Admission Routes
Applying for DARE and/or HEAR – to be considered for DARE and/or HEAR, applicants must have registered on the CAO system by 1 February 2024 at 5pm. To apply to DARE, you must answer YES to Question 1 ('Do you wish to be considered for DARE?) on Section A of the fully completed Supplementary Information Form (SIF) by 5pm on 1 March 2024.
To apply to HEAR, you must indicate on your CAO application that you wish to apply for HEAR and fully and correctly complete all elements of the online HEAR form by 5pm on 1 March 2024.
Supporting documents for DARE and/or HEAR applicants must be sent to CAO offices before 15 March 2024 at 5pm
Our teaching focuses on three key themes:
Making theatre
Theatre for change
The business of theatre and performance production
You will create and make work: indeed, you usually devise, perform and evaluate your own material, rather than putting on existing plays. You will also learn how theatre can engage with and respond to cultural change. We also look at the business side of theatre production through study and internships.
These core strands of teaching are supported by an exciting voyage into the history of theatre, the kinds of ideas and theories and underpin theatre, and what theatre can do for you, for society, and for culture. This is a broad-based degree, that seeks to leverage your creativity and entrepreneurial spirit, is taught by researchers, makers, and practitioners. Practical workshops and classes, alongside academic study and passionate argument, are at the core of your learning. You will have the chance to perform, create work, direct, and be involved in the technical development of productions as well as debate and examine ideas and theories.
Degree Pathways & Modules
Ultimately there are four possible pathways from CK112 Theatre and Performative Practices and all pathways take the same core modules in Year 1.
Theatre and Performative Practices (Single Subject) - From second year
Theatre and Performative Practices (Joint Subject)
Theatre and Performative Practices (International) - Year 3 is spent abroad
Theatre and Performative Practices (with Music) - From first year
Year 1: All incoming CK112 Theatre and Performative Practices students take a Joint Honours pathway in first year, from either
50% Theatre modules and 50% other Arts subjects
OR
Theatre & Music – 50% Theatre modules & 50% Music modules
Important Note: Students who wish to take Theatre & Performative Practices with Music must also complete the Music audition - details will be provided as part of the Theatre Admission process.
Core modules for all pathways:
DR1005 Performative Writing: Dramaturgy (Part I) (5 credits)
DR1006 Performative Writing: Dramaturgy (Part II) (5 credits)
DR1007 Introduction: Theatre and Performative Practice (10 Credits)
DR1009 Performance in Culture (5 credits)
DR1010 Cultures of Performance Practice (5 credits)
Electives:
Choose two Arts Subjects (15 credits each) from groups 3, 4, 5, & 6. 50% Theatre modules and 50% other Arts subjects pathway
Group
Year 1 Arts Subjects Group Table
3 Archaeology; Chinese Studies; German; Latin; Mathematics; Mathematical Studies; Politics
4 French; Sociology; Studies in Music
5 Economics; English; Greek; Béaloideas; Religions and Global Diversity
6(a)* Geography; Italian
6(b)* Celtic Civilisation; Philosophy; Spanish
*Groups 6(a) and 6(b): Students may not combine Italian with Celtic Civilisation or Philosophy in Year 2. Students may not combine Geography with Celtic Civilisation, Philosophy or Spanish in Year 2.
Theatre and Performative Practices with Music
Year 1 Theatre and Performative Practices with Music students take Theatre and Performative Practices (30 credits) with Music (30 credits) and continue with this joint pathway in second and subsequent years. Students who wish to take Theatre & Performative Practices with Music must also complete the Music audition - details will be provided as part of Theatre Admission process.
Academic Programme Catalogue
See the Academic Programme Catalogue for the complete and up-to-date content for this course. Note that the modules for all courses are subject to change from year-to-year. For complete descriptions of individual modules, see the Book of Modules.
Academic Programme Catalogue
See the Academic Programme Catalogue (https://ucc-ie-public.courseleaf.com/programmes/) for the complete and up-to-date content for this course. Note that the modules for all courses are subject to change from year-to-year. For complete descriptions of individual modules, see the Book of Modules (https://ucc-ie-public.courseleaf.com/modules/)
Contact Details For This Course
Fionn Woodhouse
theatre@ucc.ie
+353 (0)21 490 4229
http://www.ucc.ie/theatre