Course overview
The MA Performance Design course explores scenography and performance-making from various perspectives informed by current research and innovative practices, including immersive and participatory forms of performance design, design-led performance, audience experience and contemporary spectatorship.
On this course, you'll experiment with the creative application of design elements, including space, light, sound, costume and digital media, discovering how to shape live performance and generate meaningful experiences for contemporary audiences.
This course allows you to extend your own creative practice through developing an understanding of the theories and concepts of scenography and designing for live performance.
You’ll use our specialist facilities to explore the performance experiences that can be created with space, light, objects, costume, sound, projection and other digital technologies like virtual and mixed reality, creating original performance work that is design-led.
You’ll work collaboratively to create dynamic cutting-edge work and you’ll develop skills in documentation and reflection so that you can develop your individual creative practice.
You’ll devise and carry out an independent research project into an aspect of performance design that interests you. You’ll also examine contemporary performance practices, from immersive and participatory experiences to site-specific work staged outside of traditional theatre spaces and locate these within their wider social and cultural contexts.
Leeds has a thriving cultural scene, and is home to contemporary performance events like Light Night, Compass Festival and Transform Festival. Our industry connections allow you to work closely with local organisations such as Leeds Playhouse, Opera North, IOU and innovative artists in the field of performance design. Recently, students have worked with: Imitating the Dog, ZU-UK, Quarantine, Louise Ann Wilson, David Shearing, Julie Rose Bower, Freddie Wulf, Lucy Thornett, Rosie Elnile, Max Johns and Naomi Kuyck-Cohen.
View our students' work
Find out more about our Performance Design students’ work and the fantastic achievements of our graduates.
View more of our students' work on Instagram.
The staff on this course are at the forefront of the study of scenography, especially at postgraduate levels (Masters and PhD). They have researched and published on how scenography makes a distinct contribution to performance both on and off the stage. Their books such as The Cambridge Introduction to Scenography (2009), Light (2013), and Scenography Expanded (2017) are used widely by educators, researchers and creative professionals around the world.
Read the course staff profiles:
- Professor Joslin McKinney, Professor of Scenography
- Professor Scott Palmer, Professor of Light and Performance
- Dr Yaron Shyldkrot, Lecturer in Scenography and Design-led Performance
Specialist facilities
Our School is based in stage@leeds, a purpose-built landmark building that sits at the heart of campus. As our student, you’ll have access to its two professional standard, publicly licensed theatres: the main space seats 180 and is equipped with the latest technologies, and the theatre studio provides a technically advanced performance research facility.
stage@leeds hosts a range of work by students and visiting theatre companies all year round. Within the building you’ll also find rehearsal rooms, two black-box studios, costume construction and wardrobe stores, a design studio, a scenic workshop, computer aided design facilities and video-editing and sound recording.
Take a tour of our School
Join current student, Eva, on a tour of our building and its specialist facilities to get a feel for life as a student in the School.
In addition to stage@leeds, Leeds University Library is one of the UK’s major academic research libraries, and has extensive holdings to support your studies, including Special Collections offering a huge range of rare books, manuscripts and art. You’ll have access to materials relating to Red Ladder, Leeds Playhouse, Phoenix Dance Theatre, and more.
Explore Leeds
Discover our campus, facilities and accommodation with our 360 virtual experience platform.
With immersive 360 experiences, image galleries, virtual tours, videos and day-in-the-life content, you can take a personalised, interactive tour of campus and explore the University's academic, social and residential environments from anywhere in the world.
You can get a feel for what it's really like to live, learn and belong at the University of Leeds – all from the comfort of home.
Course details and modules
You’ll study compulsory modules designed to advance your practical and creative skills, as well as giving you a solid base of theoretical knowledge and high level research skills. You'll gain a sophisticated understanding of concepts and practices informed by knowledge at the forefront of the discipline of Performance Design, and you will use this understanding to further your own creative practice, working collaboratively and individually. You will develop skills in reflection on and the critical evaluation of your own work and that of others, as well as skills in research to devise and carry out your own research project in an area of your choice.
You'll also choose one module from a range of optional modules, giving you the ability to tailor your studies to suit your individual interests and career ambitions. Depending on your optional module choice, you’ll have the chance to develop your creative practice, collaborate with your fellow students on other postgraduate programmes or deepen your understanding of contemporary arts experiences, practices and audiences.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study fewer modules in each year.
Course structure
The list shown below represents typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our terms and conditions.
Year 1 compulsory modules
| Module Name | Credits |
|---|---|
| Performance Design Praxis | 60 |
| Independent Research Project (MA) | 60 |
| Critical Concepts in Performance Design | 30 |
Year 1 optional modules (selection of typical options shown below)
| Module Name | Credits |
|---|---|
| Performance and Collaborative Enterprise | 30 |
| Digital and Intermedial Storytelling | 30 |
| The Costumed Body: Performance, Performativity and Politics | 30 |
Learning and teaching
We use a range of different teaching and learning methods to help you develop your skills.
There'll be weekly practical sessions in our specialist theatre spaces. Some of the practical sessions are led by staff and/or visiting artists and researchers. For some of the sessions you will be working independently in a self-directed capacity. We’ll encourage you to take creative risks and push the boundaries of what design can do. We’ll support you in documenting and reflecting on your work so that you can develop depth and quality in your creative work. Throughout practical sessions, you’ll be supported by specialist theatre technicians.
We use lectures to present some of the key concepts and practices in contemporary performance design practice and research. In seminars, you will learn in small groups and take an active role in discussion and critical evaluation of ideas. You’ll usually be asked to prepare for seminars by reading and viewing material. Reading widely and critically, while developing your own opinions through essays, presentations and proposals, is an important part of your learning. In addition to the module sessions, students can benefit from working with staff to develop their academic skills. If you are returning to study after a period of work or you are studying for the first time in the UK, this can be especially helpful.
In several modules, we’ll also use 1:1 tutorials so that we can focus exclusively on your work and needs. This is especially useful as part of the Independent Research Project.
Teaching on the course is predominantly through face-to-face activity, but we use a virtual learning environment to support and extend face-to-face learning.
On this course, you’ll be taught by our expert academics, from lecturers through to professors. You may also be taught by industry professionals with years of experience, as well as trained postgraduate researchers, connecting you to some of the brightest minds on campus.
Assessment
The assessment methods you experience will vary depending on the particular module. To allow you to develop skills in a range of areas, assessment methods will include essays, performances, visual documentation, verbal presentations and critical evaluations.
The assessments are devised to take account of the future careers of our students, for example, Critical Concepts in Performance Design culminates in a visual and verbal presentation that is modelled on a postgraduate research conference, and Performance Design Praxis includes public performance alongside documentation, reflection and presentation on your development as a practitioner.
All assessments at Masters level will ask you to develop your own ideas through critically engaging with and evaluating contemporary debates and practices in the field.
We’ll let you know at the start of each module what you need to produce for assessment, how the work will be marked, and how we will ensure fair and transparent marking processes.
Applying
Entry requirements
You’ll need a bachelor degree with a 2:1 (hons) or equivalent qualification, preferably in a Performance Design related degree specialising in one of the following subjects indicated under 'Performance Design related subjects'.
We'll also consider applicants with relevant experience, an interest in performance design or coming from an area of expertise to which performance design is complementary, such as the ones listed under ‘Other areas’.
We welcome applicants from a diverse range of subject disciplines, so please do not hesitate to apply if your subject is not listed.
All applicants will be required to respond to the questions in the supporting statement section of the online application form to explain why you wish to study this particular course and your career plans. Relevant professional experience may also be considered. We may request additional documentation to inform our decision.
You will also be required to submit digital documentation of your previous creative practice.
Performance Design related subjects
- Theatre
- Dance
- Live Art.
Other areas
- Architecture
- Design
- Media & Technology
- Arts & Humanities.
International
Our admissions team are experienced in considering a wide range of international qualifications. If you wish to discuss whether your qualifications will meet the necessary entry criteria, contact the School’s admissions team.
You can also check the accepted qualifications for your country or region.
English language requirements
IELTS 6.5 overall, with no less than 6.0 in any component. For other English qualifications, read English language equivalent qualifications.
Improve your English
International students who do not meet the English language requirements for this programme may be able to study our postgraduate pre-sessional English course, to help improve your English language level.
This pre-sessional course is designed with a progression route to your degree programme and you’ll learn academic English in the context of your subject area. To find out more, read Language for Arts and Humanities (6 weeks) and Language for Social Science and Arts: Arts and Humanities (10 weeks).
We also offer online pre-sessionals alongside our on-campus pre-sessionals. Find out more about our six week online pre-sessional and our 10 week online pre-sessional.
You can also study pre-sessionals for longer periods – read about our postgraduate pre-sessional English courses.
How to apply
Please see our How to Apply page for information about application deadlines.
The ‘Apply’ link at the top of this page will take you to information on applying for taught programmes and to the University's online application system.
If you intend to apply for funding, we advise you to submit an application for your chosen course as early as possible and at least one month before any scholarship deadline.
If you're unsure about the application process, contact the admissions team for help.
Documents and information you'll need
- A copy of your degree certificate and transcripts, or a partial transcript if you’re still studying (please submit an official English translation where the original is not in English)
- Your approved English language test* (if applicable)
- A personal statement in response to the questions asked in the supporting statement section of the application form
- A full up-to-date CV
- Any previous UK CAS, visa and BRP documents if you’re an international applicant who has previously studied in the UK on a Tier 4/ Student Visa.
* Applicants who have not yet completed an approved English language test may apply for a Masters course prior to taking a test.
Personal Statement requirements
Please summarise your reasons for applying to this particular programme of study. Your response can include details of your previous study/work experience relevant to the programme and career ambitions. Your response can provide us with important information on your suitability for the course, so please complete carefully.
Please explain why you have chosen to apply for this Masters course at the University of Leeds by answering the following questions in separate numbered paragraphs:
- What areas of this course particularly interest you and why? Have you studied these before? Please explain your reasons for applying to this particular Masters course
- Why do you want to study this course at Leeds? Please comment on aspects such as available resources at the University and in the city, research specialisms within the school or academics you would like to work with.
- What potential themes have you considered for dissertation research?
- How will studying for this course help you to achieve your longer term goals?
- Why do you see this course as a particularly valuable subject to study?
- What skills and experience do you have that have prepared you for this course? You may like to give details of any final year work/projects you have previously undertaken, relevant work experience etc.
Relevant work experience might include: theatre or film set design and production, directing, costume-making, technical theatre, lighting, sound design, projection and digital design, art direction or working in associated areas of the creative and cultural industries.
Next steps
You will need to submit digital documentation of your previous creative practice. This could include designs and realisations for live performance, or it could be designs that indicate your potential to develop ideas for live performance, or it could be evidence of live performance that shows a clear interest in the innovative use of design. You can send us still images or short video clips, but we recommend using formats such as .pdf or .ppt so they can be easily viewed and shared.
Where further information to support the assessment of your application is needed, we may ask for a recent sample of written work.
We do not generally request references, unless further information is required to support the assessment of your application.
Read about visas, immigration and other information in International students. We recommend that international students apply as early as possible to ensure that they have time to apply for their visa.
Admissions policy
University of Leeds Admissions Policy 2027
This course is taught by
School of Performance and Cultural Industries
Contact us
Postgraduate Admissions
Email: pcipg@leeds.ac.uk
Fees
UK: £12,400 (Total)
International: £27,300 (Total)
For fees information for international taught postgraduate students, read Masters fees.
Read more about paying fees and charges.
Part-time fees
Fees for part-time courses are normally calculated based on the number of credits you study in a year compared to the equivalent full-time course. For example, if you study half the course credits in a year, you will pay half the full-time course fees for that year.
Additional cost information
There may be additional costs related to your course or programme of study, or related to being a student at the University of Leeds. Read more on our living costs and budgeting page.
Scholarships and financial support
If you have the talent and drive, we want you to be able to study with us, whatever your financial circumstances. There may be help for students in the form of loans and non-repayable grants from the University and from the government. Learn more about Masters funding.
Scholarships are also available to help fund your Masters. Find out more and check your eligibility below:
Career opportunities
This course will give you the knowledge and skills to become an articulate and creative performance design practitioner. This could include working as a designer or director in theatre, live performance, festivals or the events industry (either within a company or freelance), creating your own performance events or performance company, or working in community arts. Increasingly, the importance of ‘worldmaking’ and designing for audience experience is valued in areas including museums and the heritage industry contexts, commercial and tourism experiences, gaming and XR.
You’ll also gain a range of transferable skills in research, analysis, interpretation and communication, as well as imagination, independence and cultural awareness. This will equip you to work for a variety of roles across the cultural and creative industries, for example, in administration, marketing and management.
There is also a wide variety of careers and employability support available across the University to help you with your career.
Because of the emphasis on research, this course is also good preparation for PhD-level study and teaching.
Reach your potential
Hear from Professor Karen Burland about the School and Faculty support you can access.
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Careers support
At Leeds, we help you to prepare for your future from day one.
Our Careers Service has the global expertise and sector-spanning industry partnerships that, combined, go wel beyond simply helping you get a job. They provide you with the resources you need to upskill and achieve the future you aspire towards – even in the face of lightning-paced change.
- Dedicated Employability Team – meet with our qualified careers consultants and specialist employability and placements officers, on hand to help you choose the right path and develop the skills to get there. They can support with CV and cover letter writing, LinkedIn profile building, mock interviews and navigating AI: get confident with tailored advice and techniques.
- Employability and networking events – get involved in a full range of events, including careers fairs and specialist industry talks with employers who are actively recruiting. You’ll also benefit from mentoring and a supportive careers community, helping you make connections, build your network, and shape your journey as a future professional.
- Skills training – we embed transferable skills training in all our programmes to support your transition to the workplace. Gain expertise employers value, such as communication, problem-solving and research and data analysis.
- MyCareer system – access a dedicated portal where you can book careers appointments, view helpful resources and browse vacancies and events. Access digital tools, including LinkedIn support, video interview preparation, plus global job market and visa guidance. We also offer pre‑arrival support to help you prepare for career planning in the UK and make the most of your time with us.
- Exclusive opportunities – bring your enterprise to market with our award-winning business advice service, Spark. Apply for vacancies only available to our students. And hone your skills further with Leeds University Union, home to volunteering opportunities and over 300 clubs and societies.
Explore more about your employability opportunities at the University of Leeds.
Work placements and industry experience