Playwriting and Dramaturgy (Taught)

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

• Theatre Studies at Glasgow is one of the longest-established theatre programmes in the UK. Our internationally renowned reputation for research, practice and teaching – and specialist knowledge of practice-as-research – ensures an ideal environment for the pursuit of Masters study.

• You will work with a mix of professional writers, theatre-makers and world-class scholars, ensuring you engage with a wide variety of practices and that the programme content is relevant and up to date with the latest trends in theatre.

• The programme includes the opportunity for playwrights to develop a major script, through workshops and staged readings with professional actors and directors.

• In addition to masterclasses and workshops with external specialists, the work placement option and visiting speaker series builds on our long-term links and collaborations with an extensive number of theatre practitioners and arts organisations, including the National Theatre of Scotland, the Playwrights’ Studio, the Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA), The Tron and the Citizens’ Theatre.

• You will have access to a range of theatre and production facilities including a black-box studio theatre, rehearsal/workshop space and the large flexible-stage James Arnott theatre seating over 180 spectators, allowing you to enhance and extend your historical and theoretical inquiries through practice.

• The University of Glasgow is home to the Scottish Theatre Archive, a unique collection of contemporary and historical production materials, photographs and ephemera encompassing internationally significant theatre companies such as Untitled Projects and Suspect Culture alongside the personal papers of major artists such as Adrian Howells as well the BBC Radio Scotland and Scottish Society of Playwrights script collections.

PROGRAMME STRUCTURE

Our programme is the only one in Scotland that combines playwriting with dramaturgy. You will undertake core practical playwriting and dramaturgy courses before choosing to specialise in one pathway involving a dramaturgy placement or the creation of a full-length script. You will also produce an independent research-based project over the summer.

Semester 1: September to December
RESEARCH METHODS
PLAYWRITING 1
DEBATING DRAMATURGY

Semester 2: January to March
CONTEMPORARY DRAMATURGICAL PRACTICES

Choose one of the following tracks:
DRAMATURGY PLACEMENT
PLAYWRITING 2

You will also take one of the following over the course of the year:
READING AND INTERPRETING PERFORMANCE
OR a practice-led devising option within Theatre Studies

Summer: April to September
INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PROJECT (DRAMATURGY)