Stage and Production Management MA - 2024/5

Awarding body

University of Surrey

Teaching institute

University of Surrey

Framework

FHEQ Level 7

Final award and programme/pathway title

MA Stage and Production Management

Subsidiary award(s)

Award Title
PGDip Stage and Production Management
PGCert Stage and Production Management

Modes of study

Route code Credits and ECTS Credits
Full-time PRC63025 180 credits and 90 ECTS credits

QAA Subject benchmark statement (if applicable)

Dance, Drama and Performance

Other internal and / or external reference points

N/A

Faculty and Department / School

Faculty of Arts, Business and Social Sciences - Guildford School of Acting

Programme Leader

SMALLEY Michael (GSA)

Date of production/revision of spec

21/12/2024

Educational aims of the programme

  • To empower graduates to become multiskilled, confident and proactive professionals who are employable globally in the creative industries and beyond with the requisite skills, knowledge, and techniques to understand and shape their professions.
  • To challenge students' understanding of, and instil their responsibility to shape, a more sustainable future society
  • To prepare students to assume managerial roles in the global creative industries, or to pursue further academic study, by developing knowledge and skills, agility, resourcefulness and resilience
  • To enable confident, critical, and creative use of a full range of digital technologies for information, communication, and problem-solving in creative contexts
  • To emphasise the international outlook of the creative industries industry to nurture respect for diversity and develop awareness of global challenges
  • To provide students with high quality experiential learning by integrating and balancing research-led and practice-based education
  • To provide an in-depth understanding of the dynamics of the global creative industries, and equip students with the professional as well as academic skills and capabilities to become resourceful change makers and future leaders
  • To inspire and motivate students to unlock their full potential and make a positive difference in the global creative industries
  • To empower students with critical thinking skills and knowledge to appreciate current issues and trends in the global creative industries and the ability to influence their future directions
  • To inspire future generations of leaders to create, lead, innovate, challenge and change the global creative industries for the better
  • To develop graduates who are resourceful, independent, reflective thinkers and lifelong learners to become successful, globally competitive leaders in their chosen professions in the creative industries
  • To develop graduates who can utilise creativity to build innovative solutions to problems
  • To develop graduates with honed soft skills who are effective communicators and team players.

Programme learning outcomes

Attributes Developed Awards Ref.
Conduct independent research that generates critical awareness of current problems and/or new insights into the global creative industries. KCT MA Employability, Global & Cultural, Digital, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Deploy a wide range of practical and professional skills in order to autonomously plan and fulfil technical theatre management roles at a professional level. KPT PGDip, MA Employability, Sustainability, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Demonstrate mastery over communication strategies, through a variety of media types, ensuring clarity of communication for industrial, academic, and general audiences. PT PGCert, PGDip, MA Employability, Digital, Global & Cultural
Critically evaluate professional methodologies through reflective practice to reflexively develop personal development and critiques of the global creative industries. CT MA Employability, Global & Cultural, Sustainability, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Demonstrate a systematic understanding of management theory and use this knowledge to enhance teamwork both as a team member and leader. KPT PGDip, MA Employability, Sustainability, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Formulate appropriate strategies to integrate knowledge of the global creative industries with professional development and employment goals. CPT PGDip, MA Employability, Global & Cultural, Sustainability, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Construct and manage suitable strategies to implement and advance sustainable production practices. KPT PGCert, PGDip, MA Employability, Sustainability, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Autonomously develop original solutions to complex issues within creative contexts. KCPT PGCert, PGDip, MA Employability, Digital, Sustainability, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Develop mastery over, and critically evaluate, the use of appropriate digital technologies to contribute to the development of the global creative industries. KPT PGCert, PGDip, MA Employability, Digital, Sustainability, Global & Cultural, Resourcefulness & Resilience
Construct and manage suitable strategies to implement and advance safe, healthy and resilient working practices. KPT PGCert, PGDip, MA Employability, Sustainability

Attributes Developed

C - Cognitive/analytical

K - Subject knowledge

T - Transferable skills

P - Professional/Practical skills

Programme structure

Full-time

This Master's Degree programme is studied full-time over one academic year, consisting of 180 credits at FHEQ level 7. All modules are 15, 30, 45 or 60 credits and are either semester based or year-long. GSA delivers its provision across three teaching blocks, within the University of Surrey’s existing semester structure.
Possible exit awards include:
- Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits)
- Postgraduate Certificate (60 credits)

Programme Adjustments (if applicable)

N/A

Modules

Opportunities for placements / work related learning / collaborative activity

Associate Tutor(s) / Guest Speakers / Visiting Academics Y
Professional Training Year (PTY) N
Placement(s) (study or work that are not part of PTY) Y Short term placements are available within some modules.
Clinical Placement(s) (that are not part of the PTY scheme) N
Study exchange (Level 5) N
Dual degree N

Other information

Digital Capability
Students will engage with a range of digital technologies, both those that are specific to the global creative industries and those in wider use. These include but are not limited to CAD programs, digital networking and cue playback systems and digital approaches to prompt copies. As young professionals in training, students are encouraged to use current media such as email, virtual meeting and communications software, for appropriate use in communication, collaboration, recording and team working. Students will utilise the University VLE, and a range of Digital media platforms for appropriate use in communication, administration, scheduling, and reporting. Students will also engage with creating Digital Content to secure employment and create their own artistic content. Students will be introduced to these technologies and be asked to critically evaluate their use, understanding the benefits and disadvantages of digital and analogue approaches in various contexts.

Employability
Employability is at the core of this programme. Employability is embedded in teaching, learning and assessment.¿Students receive transferrable employable skills through inbuilt professional development delivered during training by expert staff with practitioner backgrounds. Students will gain employability knowledge and expertise through: authentic practical modes of working in rehearsal and performance mirroring professional practice; independent and collaborative working; the development of critical thinking; the ability to reflect on one¿s own practice and engagement with professional expertise. Engagement with industry stakeholders includes working with freelance professionals on assessed productions, guest speakers and invited associates (who are invited to give specialist training or conduct formative mock interviews and CV workshops). Opportunities for assessed professional placements are also provided within the programme. GSA produces career-ready graduates that are sought after by employers.

Global & Cultural Capabilities
Where possible, students are given the freedom to choose texts which reflect, interact, engage, value and respect their own and lived experiences, skills, perspectives and diversity. Where this is not possible, students are encouraged to reflect on why this may not be possible and whose perspectives are not being considered by the programme. Students are constantly encouraged to reflect the changing world we live in and the current debates in the creative industries. Students are actively encouraged to develop their global, social, historical, and cultural awareness, to share experiences and knowledge from their own backgrounds and cultures¿and to appreciate diverse perspectives. Students are expected to commence the programme with an open mind and a willingness to learn, engage in discussion, and to broaden their understanding of the lived experiences of the varying approaches to the global creative industries they have experienced and will be studying. All modules benefit from an inclusivity ethos and students across their course of study benefit from the oversight of the Director of Equality and Diversity at GSA. Every effort is made to make a range of performances accessible, and students are also encouraged to reach out to the Disability and Neuro-Diversity service within the University of Surrey if they are experiencing barriers to individual learning.

Resourcefulness & Resilience
The process of creating theatrical productions, by its very nature, encourages Resourcefulness and Resilience. Students undertake intensive classes, rehearsals and performance schedules which evolve their skillset through practice, to navigate with uncertainty, to deal with risks and challenges, and to encourage personal considerations of future visions. Real-World working schedules and assessments reflect the kind of resilience and resourcefulness that is needed to effectively work in the global creative industries which, in turn, nurture students' self-management skills. Classes, rehearsals and performances adopt independent and collaborative learning, peer support, problem-solving, communication, independence, perseverance, stamina, self-value and critical thinking, all of which promote resilience and resourcefulness. The classes and the structure of the verbal and written feedback enable students to build a rounded holistic view of their individual process. Students are supported throughout, and beyond, their training by expert staff with practitioner backgrounds, and who are sensitive to the challenges to mental and physical health posed by the global creative industries and can give advice and guidance on where to seek further help within both the industrial and university contexts again, enabling students to take control of their learning and any barriers to learning.

Sustainability
Students are encouraged to contextualise their learning and reflect on their current and future social, cultural, ethical, political, economic, and environmental impact from a personal, professional, and global perspective, and to recognise a sense of shared responsibility. Students are encouraged to reflect on the values, perceptions, and actions of themselves and others, and the impact this has on audiences. All GSA productions are planned and designed to meet high sustainability standards. Props, set design, and costume elements are expected to be re-used and recycled amongst productions. GSA has the strongest commitment to working on productions in the most sustainable way possible. Students receive guidance and training on world-leading frameworks for environmental theatre practice, and are expected to apply these principles in their production work, with sustainable practices forming part of their assessed learning outcomes.

Quality assurance

The Regulations and Codes of Practice for taught programmes can be found at:

https://www.surrey.ac.uk/quality-enhancement-standards

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2024/5 academic year.