| Music Theatre (Advancing the Art of the Triple Threat) is a new stream within the Bachelor of Applied Music. Designed predominantly for people wishing to pursue a professional career in musical theatre, drama or community theatre, the course focuses on expert tuition in training the ‘triple threat’ (voice/acting/dance). Extensive production opportunities are provided as well as the option to develop performer toolkits, including video/audio show reels and individual CD projects utilising the Institute’s state-of-the-art audio production facilities. The relationship between music, movement and drama/text is at the core of the program. The course will investigate both the role of the performing artist as re-creator and creator. As ‘re-creators’, the course will provide ample opportunities to perform songs from the established musical theatre repertoire in a variety of formats. As ‘creators’, the course will emphasise the importance of imagination in self-devised material relevant to cabaret, club and related entertainment opportunities. The Acting component of the course moves from a holistic approach to solving theatrical problems with an introduction to text translation through aspects of the actor’s craft-voice, text, movement and characterisation and culminating in monologue and dialogue scene work. The Dance component concentrates on sequentially developing skills in modern, jazz and tap. Students entering the course with strong background skills in classical and ballet will be able to build upon their accomplishments in this style. Vocal performance deals effectively with both legitimate and chest-voice extension styles of delivery and interpretation. Particular emphasis is given to studying the contemporary Broadway and West End literature, including the works of such composers and lyricists as Jason Robert Brown, John LaChiusa, William Finn, Stephen Schwartz, Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens. An audition (including a dance component), monologue, interview and short musicianship test are required for entry into this course. The Centre also offers a Certificate in Music Theatre delivered over one semester two nights per week. |
