Acting [with Foundation Year]

Reach your potential on this practice-based course designed to build your creative skills including live performance, screen acting and motion capture.

Grow into a confident and versatile performer. Focus on fundamental acting skills, voice and movement, screen acting, and how to rehearse for a full production.

Work with experienced directors, experiment with physical theatre, learn about new performance technologies, and extend your experience with screen acting and classical text.

In your final year, our Immersive Performance module and Showcase will allow you to demonstrate your high-level skills in acting.

Why ARU?

• Train in professional-standard facilities including our 260-seater Mumford Theatre

• Gain experience with new technologies and alternative platforms to become a dynamic and responsive actor

• Develop your technical and production skills in specialist facilities for recorded and live performance

• Graduate with a professional CV, headshots and showreel

• Collaborate with other creative students, experienced tutors, community partners and industry professionals

• Get involved with Cambridge's many acting troupes and events

Course Modules

Year 1

• Foundation in Humanities, English, Media, Social Sciences and Education

Year 2

• Studio Performance

• Voice and Movement

• Introduction to Screen Acting

• Fundamentals for Acting

• Into ARU

Year 3

• Ruskin Module (15 credits)

• Performance Project

• Physical Theatre

• Performance Technologies

• Performing Shakespeare

• Storytelling on Screen: Collaborative Project

• Directing and Choreography *

Year 4

• Immersive Performance

• Showcase

• Creative Industries Major Project

You’ll show your progress through a variety of methods that reflect the skills and knowledge you’ll need as both a practitioner and critic, able to both make work and analyse it. These will test your ability, technique, creativity and production skills, and involve both collaborative practice and individual work.

They include: live or mediated performance; process in creating performance (e.g rehearsals, collaborative skills, and professional conduct); rationales for performance; technical production work; critical reflection; essays; portfolios; design plans (e.g. lighting, sound, costume, shooting scripts for video); reviews; practical demonstrations; workshop facilitation; and oral presentations / examinations.