MA Lighting Design & Production

In this intensive, hands-on course, you’ll explore all of the approaches and technical skills that can help you launch a career in lighting design and production.

Hands-on experience comes in the form of several major opportunities to design the lighting for College productions across theatre, opera and musical theatre. You’ll also grow a rich source of contacts from across design and stage management – essential to building a successful career in the industry.

Collaboration is at the heart of this course. In your RWCMD placements or on those with our industry partners, you’ll learn about different creative disciplines and get a real feel for what it’s like to be a member of a production support team – all in readiness for life after graduation.

The course ends with a public exhibition of your cohort’s work in Cardiff and then for four days on London’s South Bank, which includes an industry night for an invited audience of potential employers.

• In this course with hands-on training at its core, you’ll develop and apply your existing knowledge and skills to an advanced specialist field of study at a professional level.
  
• You’ll gain, through the breadth of projects and classwork, a comprehensive understanding of the theoretical and practical principles of designing for theatre, film and TV – making you highly desirable to employers.
  
• Our full-time staff and the visiting lecturers are all practitioners still working in industry, with both national and international profiles. They bring the most current best practices to your training.
  
• As part of our in-house theatre company, you can gain real-world experience throughout the course and get a deep understanding of what working in a live performance environment is really like. Depending on your specialism, you’ll have the chance to design the lighting for a self-directed performance or installation, or work as a lighting designer/assistant on a College or external production. 
  
• You’ll also have the opportunity to secure placements with some of the leading production companies, such as Bad Wolf, BBC Wales and WNO. Our production and design department also offers placements with leading theatre and opera companies across the UK. 
  
• We’re leading the way in state-of-the-art theatre technology, and you’ll have access to all of our facilities, such as our design studio spaces, prop workshops/paint shop, designated CAD studio, editing suites and large-scale construction and scenic art workshops. 
  
• The small cohort size and high level of staff support means that you’re learning in a nurturing and safe working environment. 
  
• Masterclass presentations run throughout the course, delivered by leading international practitioners. Designed to complement individual specialist study needs, these classes allow you to develop a comprehensive appreciation of excellence, multidisciplinary practice and performance collaboration. 
  
• You’ll take part in scheduled visits to local theatre companies, offering additional insight into the industry at work. When major productions visit Cardiff, we’ll try to arrange visits and organise a tour or talk for your cohort.