Uni links up with acclaimed theatre company Frantic Assembly to offer new master's degree

Aspiring theatre, dance and music practitioners are set to have a unique opportunity to hone their skills from early next year as Coventry University gets ready to launch a new master's degree in collaborative theatre making.

The postgraduate course, which starts in January 2015, will be run by the University's performing arts department in collaboration with acclaimed London-based theatre company Frantic Assembly, and will be the first MA of its kind in the UK.

Students of the new Collaborative Theatre Making MA will experience a combination of practical modules, a performance project led by Frantic Assembly, research events and online learning, and will develop the skills and expertise to prepare them for a career as an independent performer, theatre maker or educator.

The performance project elements of the degree, led by Frantic Assembly, are designed to give students the opportunity to work collaboratively with the company's specialist practitioners on performances, providing valuable industry experience.

Coventry University's collaboration with Frantic Assembly – which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year – comes off the back of a longstanding relationship, which since the mid-nineties has seen performing arts students work closely with the company on theatre making initiatives and workshops.

Over the last three years the collaboration has seen graduates of Coventry's Performing Arts BA degrees revisit the University to work with Frantic Assembly on an intensive week-long project culminating in a one-off show in the city.

Dr Natalie Garrett, principal lecturer in dance and course director for the new master's degree, said:

We're thrilled to be announcing this new link-up and to be building on our relationship with one of the UK's most exciting and dynamic contemporary theatre companies.

Our students and graduates have been fortunate to benefit from Frantic Assembly's expert insight over the years, but this new master's programme will take our collaboration to a new level and will give postgraduate students a unique industry-facing experience and an important edge in the creative industries' competitive job market.

Scott Graham, artistic director at Frantic Assembly, said:

My ambition is that this MA will produce a creative environment where artists are encouraged to think beyond genre and their own areas of expertise in their theatre making. I am always thrilled at what we can all learn from being immersed in the thought processes of our collaborators. This MA provides exciting opportunities for the participant to develop their practice and understanding, to develop a total theatre approach and open up the potential of devising theatre with highly skilled collaborators.

To launch the new Collaborative Theatre Making MA, Coventry University is running a taster workshop in London to give potential students the opportunity to work with Frantic Assembly and find out more about the course.

The three-hour sessions will run on Friday 11th July and will include a two hour workshop led by Scott Graham, followed by a Q&A session with Scott and the course team.

To apply for a place on the taster workshop prospective students should register here, or for further information on the course visit www.coventry.ac.uk/collabtheatre-ma. To find out more about Frantic Assembly visit www.franticassembly.co.uk.