BA Acting

East 15 Acting School's BA (Hons) Acting develops your individual talent, imagination and skill so that you graduate as a creative, proactive and collaborative practitioner, ready for a career in the performance arts industries.

From the start of your course, you will be introduced to the basic methods and theories of acting, particularly the work of Konstantin Stanislavsky, Sanford Meisner and Rudolf Laban. You will work in small groups supervised by our professionally experienced staff.

In the first and second years, you will advance your knowledge and versatility as an actor through a step-by-step process. In your final year, the focus shifts to professional development. You will concentrate on adapting your skills to work with a range of visiting directors and other visiting professionals.

Our acting training is centred on exploration. You will experience a wide range of rehearsal techniques, learning technical skills and applying them to diverse acting challenges. Upon graduation, you will be a knowledgeable, professional actor, with a unique creative approach and a solid process.

Acting is a choice, not just a dream.

This course is taught at our Loughton Campus.

East 15 Acting School also offers a popular one-year programme focused on the fundamentals of acting. Our full range of undergraduate courses also includes programmes tailored to specific performance disciplines, as well as courses in Creative Producing and Stage Management.

EU and international students are encouraged to explore our BA Acting (International), which is tailored to prepare international students for careers in acting.

Our expert staff

Our training is by professionals and for professionals, allowing our graduates to work successfully across the globe.

Our international, outstanding teaching faculty is made up of professionals from all areas of live and recorded performance.

Learn more about our staff here.

Specialist facilities

Our Loughton Campus is perfectly located, providing access to both the rich, cultural diversity of London and an attractive and peaceful setting in which to study.

We are just a five-minute walk from London Underground station, Debden, where you can travel in only thirty minutes to Central London, West End theatres and mainline train stations including the Eurostar.

We have three sites at our Loughton Campus – Hatfields, Roding House and Unit Four. Hatfields is a beautiful Georgian dower house, set in five acres of lawns with orchards, flowerbeds and a small lake, providing an idyllic atmosphere for study, relaxation and performance.

Just a short walk from Hatfields is Roding House, a £1.3 million facility containing 10 rehearsal rooms, a green room/café, a sound recording studio and a video editing suite, and our costume department.

Next to Roding House, Unit Four is a £1.5 million facility which is home to the Stage & Production Management department. The Unit contains a large workshop, paint shop, prop shop, prop storage facilities and teaching spaces.

Our on-site Corbett Theatre is named in honour of Harry H Corbett, a key member of Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop and early benefactor of East 15. It is used extensively for student productions and is a practical training hub for our BA Stage and Production Management students.

The building is a medieval tithe barn that was dismantled and transported to Hatfields in the 1960s. These unusual origins create a unique performance space with a special atmosphere. Renovated to include full technical facilities, tiered seating for 130 people and fitted dressing rooms, the theatre provides an excellent resource for public productions, while the adjacent Bar and Café provides a social meeting point for students and staff.

Your future

East 15's BA (Hons) Acting graduates are known, and often cast, for their boldness, versatility and professional commitment as actors. Graduates regularly appear in stage, film, TV, radio and voice productions, working all over the world, as well as with prestigious British companies including our National Theatres, Royal Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare's Globe, Manchester Royal Exchange, BBC, ITV and in London’s West End. Notable graduates from the BA (Hons) Acting programme include Patricia Allison, Kiell Smith-Bynoe, Clint Dyer and Daniel Ezra. For more graduate success stories, visit our Alumni page. /p>

“Everyone here has something positive to offer and East 15 allows everyone, no matter who they are, to express themselves and contribute to their art.”

Daniel Ezra, BA Acting

UK entry requirements

Applicants will need to submit a video audition and, if successful, complete a recall audition/workshop. Applicants should also have, or expect to have:

• A-levels: EE, or 32 UCAS tariff points from a minimum of 2 full A-levels.
• BTEC: PP, or 32 UCAS tariff points from a minimum of the equivalent of 2 full A-levels.
• Combined qualifications on the UCAS tariff: 32 UCAS tariff points from a minimum of 2 full A levels or equivalent. Tariff point offers may be made if you are taking a qualification, or mixture of qualifications, from the list on our undergraduate application information page.
• T-levels: Pass with E in core .
• IB: two Higher Level certificates with 33
• IB Career-related Programme: We consider combinations of IB Diploma Programme courses with BTECs or other qualifications.

International & EU entry requirements

We accept a wide range of qualifications from applicants studying in the EU and other countries. Get in touch with any questions you may have about the qualifications we accept. Remember to tell us about the qualifications you have already completed or are currently taking.

AFGHANISTAN ALBANIA ALGERIA ANDORRA ANGOLA ANTIGUA AND BARBUADA ARGENTINA ARMENIA ARUBA AUSTRALIA AUSTRIA AZERBAIJAN BAHAMAS BAHRAIN BANGLADESH BARBADOS BELARUS (BYELORUSSIA) BELGIUM BELIZE BENIN BERMUDA BHUTAN BOLIVIA BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA BOTSWANA BRAZIL BRUNEI BULGARIA BURKINA FASO BURUNDI CAMBODIA (KAMPUCHEA, KHMER R) CAMEROON CANADA CAPE VERDE ISLANDS CENTRAL AFRICAN REP CHAD CHILE CHINA COLOMBIA COMOROS CONGO CONGO (DEM REB, ZAIRE) COSTA RICA CROATIA CUBA CYPRUS CZECH REPUBLIC DENMARK DJIBOUTI DOMINICA DOMINICAN REP EAST TIMOR ECUADOR EGYPT EL SALVADOR EQUATORIAL GUINEA ERITREA ESTONIA ETHIOPIA (ABYSSINIA) FIJI FINLAND FRANCE GABON GAMBIA GEORGIA GERMANY GHANA GIBRALTAR GILBERT ISLANDS (KIRIBATI) GREECE GRENADA GUATEMALA GUIANA, FRENCH GUINEA GUINEA BISSAU GUYANA HAITI HONDURAS HONG KONG HUNGARY ICELAND INDIA INDONESIA IRAN (ISLAMIC REP) IRAQ IRELAND, REP ISRAEL ITALY IVORY COAST JAMAICA JAPAN JORDAN KAZAKHSTAN KENYA KOREA SOUTH KOSOVO KUWAIT KYRGYZSTAN (KIRGIZIA) LAOS LATVIA LEBANON LESOTHO LIBERIA LIBYA LIECHTENSTEIN LITHUANIA LUXEMBOURG MACEDONIA. ALSO SKOPJE MADAGASCAR (MALAGASY REP) MALAWI MALAYSIA MALDIVE ISLANDS MALI MALTA MARSHALL ISLANDS MAURITANIA MAURITIUS MEXICO MOLDOVA MONACO MONGOLIA, OUTER MONTENEGRO MONTSERRAT MOROCCO MOZAMBIQUE MYANMAR (formerly Burma) NAMIBIA NAURU NEPAL NETHERLANDS (HOLLAND) NEW ZEALAND NICARAGUA NIGER NIGERIA NORWAY OMAN (MUSCAT AND OMAN) PAKISTAN PALESTINE PANAMA PAPUA NEW GUINEA PARAGUAY PERU PHILIPPINES POLAND PORTUGAL (MADEIRA, AZORES) QATAR ROMANIA RUSSIA RWANDA SAMOA (WESTERN) SAN MARINO SAUDI ARABIA SENEGAL SERBIA SEYCHELLES SIERRA LEONE SINGAPORE SLOVAKIA SLOVENIA SOLOMON ISLANDS SOMALI REPUBLIC SOUTH AFRICA SOUTH GEORGE & STH SANDWICH IS SOUTH SUDAN SPAIN SRI LANKA (CEYLON) ST. KITTS AND NEVIS ST. LUCIA ST. VINCENT SUDAN SURINAM SWAZILAND SWEDEN SWITZERLAND SYRIA TAIWAN TAJIKISTAN TANZANIA THAILAND TOGO TONGA TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO TUNISIA TURKEY TURKMENISTAN TUVALU, ALSO ELLICE ISLANDS UGANDA UKRAINE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES UNITED STATES URUGUAY UZBEKISTAN VANUATU VENEZUELA VIETNAM, SOC REP YEMEN (PDR,ADEN,SOCOTRA) ZAMBIA ZIMBABWE

Sorry, the entry requirements for the country that you have selected are not available here. Please contact our Undergraduate Admissions team at ugquery@essex.ac.uk to request the entry requirements for this country.

English language requirements

If you do not require a student visa to study in the UK then we will assess your English language proficiency/ability at your interview or audition.

English language requirements for applicants whose first language is not English: IELTS 6.0 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each component, or specified score in another equivalent test that we accept.

Details of English language requirements, including component scores, and the tests we accept for applicants who require a Student visa (excluding Nationals of Majority English Speaking Countries) can be found here

If we accept the English component of an international qualification it will be included in the academic levels listed above for the relevant countries.

English language shelf-life

Most English language qualifications have a validity period of 5 years. The validity period of Pearson Test of English, TOEFL and CBSE or CISCE English is 2 years.

If you require a Student visa to study in the UK please see our immigration webpages for the latest Home Office guidance on English language qualifications.

Pre-sessional English courses

If you do not meet our IELTS requirements then you may be able to complete a pre-sessional English pathway that enables you to start your course without retaking IELTS.

Pending English language qualifications

You don’t need to achieve the required level before making your application, but it will be one of the conditions of your offer.

If you cannot find the qualification that you have achieved or are pending, then please email ugquery@essex.ac.uk.

Additional Notes

If you’re an international student, but do not meet the English language or academic requirements for direct admission to this degree, you could prepare and gain entry through a pathway course. Find out more about opportunities available to you at the University of Essex International College

Course structure

The BA (Hons) Acting course is dynamic and unique. Our training draws upon more than 60 years of East 15 traditions, while being continuously updated to stay in tune with latest developments and emerging opportunities in the acting industry.

Each week, you'll receive training in key skills such as voice, movement and singing, alongside practical sessions in the art and craft of acting. Through workshops and small projects, you'll explore topics such as rehearsal techniques, approaches to text, acting honestly under imaginary circumstances, stage and screen craft, and voice acting.

As you progress through the course, you will build upon what you've learned each year, honing your craft to launch your professional career. Progression is carefully sculpted to challenge and support you as you gain skills and experience, steadily growing in aptitude, confidence and mastery of your art.

Our carefully selected modules will enable you to develop a grounded, professional and personal process, equipping you to succeed in a demanding profession.

We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision for you. We'll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities as described on our website and in line with your contract with us. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, we'll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.

Teaching

Year 1

In your first year, you will focus on acting, voice, singing, movement and contextual studies and explore your own creativity through work focussed on co-operation, responsiveness to others and the ensemble. In addition you will:

• Develop the skills required for objective self-assessment, recreating through observation, research and improvisation
• Concentrate on individual character study and work on larger community-based projects with an emphasis on psychological realism

The first year culminates in a unique, large-scale ‘Living History' project, in which you study, understand and live the lives of others through periods of conflict.

Year 2

Your second year is a journey of maturation as study moves from improvisation to text and from the examination of self to the exploration of character. We focus on:

• Technical skills such as movement, voice and singing which are integrated into the work, and you start to build characters independently
• Opportunities to take responsibility for your own creative work and adapt to the differing demands of project and director
• Multiple screen and radio projects throughout the year
• Specific focus on Contemporary British Playwrights, continuously updated to reflect relevant British culture
• Varying work from nineteenth century naturalism, to exploring the textual and psychological complexities of Shakespeare, plus learning to devise and break the fourth wall through projects such as Brecht, Cabaret and Commedia dell'Arte

Year 3

Your final year focuses on understanding the demands of the professional performance industries before you graduate. You deliver a wide variety of plays to extend your performance repertoire, produce performance-tailored short films as well as work with experienced industry professionals in recorded media. Productions enable you to develop advanced acting skills as well as to understand the research demands and commitment required for different roles, and place a strong emphasis on actor contribution within the ensemble.

In addition, specialised professional development workshops help you understand the administrative aspects of your future profession, including:

• Audition technique
• CV and letter writing
• Tax and self-employment
• Marketing and promoting yourself as an actor

You also undertake an Industry Showcase for an invited audience of influential agents, casting directors, film, voiceover, TV and theatre directors. East 15 continually liaises with industry professionals to ensure the format for the event accords with the changing landscape of the industry.