REHEARSAL AND PERFORMANCE - 2025/6

Module Overview

This year long module introduces students to the process of casting, rehearsing, and performing Musical Theatre at a professional level. Across three separate projects students will undertake showings of work that has been realized in the rehearsal room and also a public performance of a fully realized and resourced piece of musical theatre with a creative team. Alongside this, students will also reflect on their studies in the form of a journal that aims to link the technical skills classes with the first of the two Musical Theatre Projects.

Module provider

Guildford School of Acting

Module Leader

SCRIVENS Nicholas (GSA)

Number of Credits: 30

ECTS Credits: 15

Framework: FHEQ Level 7

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Year long

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

N/A

Module content

Musical Theatre Project 1

In the first term students will take part in a rehearsal process that focuses on how a text is created by an ensemble of actors and creative team. This is usually made up of various scenes and songs with a theme or could also be an abridged version of a full musical. The work in rehearsal will encompass acting, singing and dance, as well as requiring a large degree of autonomy in terms of the independent study a student should bring to the project. The project itself will be of a different style and genre to Musical Theatre project 2 ¿ enabling a range of materials and styles to be studied as part of the project. The assessment for this is formative and enables the student to build on this work in the next project which forms part of the formal assessment for the module. Throughout this module students are expected to keep notes and journal their work each week ¿ making links between their technical study in acting, voice, dance and singing and the project itself.

Musical Theatre Project 2

Building on the work in the first term, students will take part in a second rehearsal process, this time fully assessed. The work will be delivered in a rehearsal room format and the students will be expected to demonstrate a wide range of technical skills and apply them to the text and the score. As stated above the project will be a different style and genre to Musical Theatre Project 1, enabling a wide range of styles to be studied in the rehearsal room. The assessment for this is summative. At the end of the process students should have aimed to have completed the journal that spans both projects and be ready to submit it for assessment at the conclusion of Musical Theatre Project 2.

Journal

The journal that accompanies this module should aim to reflect on the rehearsal periods, moments of insight and challenge within the process and how students have negotiated these challenges and applied learned skills from their other technical classes in acting, voice, singing and dance. The student is also encouraged to reflect on the differences between the two projects stylistically and the challenges that different genres of Musical Theatre can present.

Public Performance

In the third term students will present a fully realized public performance with a creative team and full production support. The Musical is assessed both on the work and contribution in rehearsal and in performance during the run of the production.

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate practically their comprehension and progression.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

Formative assessment

The formative assessment for this module takes place in Teaching Block 1 and is applied to Musical Theatre Project 1. Students will receive feedback on their work in rehearsal mainly with some comments (if applicable) on the peer-to-peer showing of the work.

Summative Assessment & Feedback

The summative assessment of the module is in four parts.

• Musical Theatre Project 2 


• Musical Theatre Rehearsal (Public Performance) 


• Musical Theatre Performance (Public Performance)


• Musical Theatre Project Journal Written (Min 3000 words)

Module aims

• Develop skills learned in technical classes and consolidate them in a series of performance driven workshops, rehearsals and performances. Performances are both internal and public facing.
• Develop a strong understanding and demonstration of ensemble practice in a professional rehearsal and performance environment.
• Demonstrate a strong personal approach and technique in performance, negotiating the demands of a series of public and peer to peer performances.
• Develop a strong sense of autonomy in terms of personal vocal, dance, acting and professional practice in and around rehearsal. Focusing on the application of technique into learned score and text.

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:

Enable students to experience and reflect on their process in a fully realized rehearsal setting. To that end the piece falls into three components.

1. REHEARSAL

Throughout the first two terms Musical Theatre Project 1 and Musical Theatre Project 2 will form a significant part of timetabled hours. These rehearsals aim not to be so much a performance but a series of workshops and classes where the text and score are realized as they would be for a full production.

2. REFLECTION

Students are continuously asked to reflect on their work and see the link between the rehearsal room and the technical skills classes that they undertake. To that end the Journal that accompanies both Musical Theatre Project 1 and Musical Theatre Project 2 should aim to reflect on personal progress and these links. There is no upper word count as this will vary from student to student ¿ but it is unlikely that the journal would be under 3000 words.

3. PUBLIC PERFORMANCE

Students will be guided through a complete rehearsal process and series of public performances of a Musical. The process will aim to replicate as closely as possible that which would be encountered in a professional theatre production. Students will be expected to audition and play as cast and contribute to the rehearsal process fully. The public performance is also marked as part of the formative assessment of the module.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: MUTM050

Other information

Digital Capability

Students are encouraged to use current media such as email, virtual meeting and communications software, for appropriate use in communication, recording and team working. Students will utilize the University¿s VLE (Surrey Learn), and a range of Digital media platforms for appropriate use in communication, administration, scheduling, and reporting. Students are encouraged to use digital media in their research and in their realization of the character and development of their journal.

Employability

Employability is at the core of this module. Employability is embedded in teaching, learning and assessment. The skill base embedded in the module enables students to acquire the technical skills needed to gain employment as a Musical Theatre performer working through a range of styles and also giving another showcase opportunity for industry stakeholders and contacts to see the students in a live public performance at the end of the third term of study.

Global & Cultural Capabilities

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 characters and communities they will be portraying as a professional actors-in-training. 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

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, most full-time staff are Mental Health First Aid trained and can give advice and guidance on where to seek further help again, enabling students to take control of their learning and any barriers to learning. The process of casting and realizing performance encourages students to understand the complexities of sustaining and responding to life as theatre performer and through their journal process and contextualize their understanding.

Sustainability

Students are encouraged to contextualize 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 recognize a sense of shared responsibility. Students are encouraged to reflect on the values, perceptions, and actions of their own, of others and of characters they are portraying in rehearsal and performance, and the impact this has on audiences. Sustainability in all GSA productions is of paramount importance and across the building GSA is committed to sustaining the best possible practice in rehearsal and performance. Students are also encouraged to engage with the sustainability targets of a production and contribute to finding solutions throughout the module

Programmes this module appears in

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 2025/6 academic year.