Education

The University of Chichester is to become the first institute in the UK to have its Dance Science degree course accredited by the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES).

The degree will combine dance practice with scientific research approaches to examine what happens to our bodies and minds when we dance.
 
Offered as "a relatively new discipline", the Dance Science degree will include physiology, psychology and biomechanics as applied to dance practice. Students will then use this knowledge to help improve performance potential, reduce injury risk and enhance wellbeing.
 
Programme Leader for Dance Science at the university, Edel Quin, said: "We are delighted to be the first undergraduate degree in dance science to become a BASES endorsed course. This is a testament to the calibre of our dance science programme, and the unique integration between Dance and Sport and Exercise Science. 
 
"Our programme is a leader in this area of study and this endorsement, together with our existing CIMPSA endorsement and links to Safe in Dance International and the International Association for Dance Medicine & Science, ensures that we are providing our students with the knowledge and skills to meet professional and technical standards for success in dance, dance science or sport and exercise science professions."
 
The course can be studied as a 3-year BSc or a 4-year integrated Masters (MSci) in Dance Science.

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is expanding its partnership scheme with schools across England to five new locations.

It will start working with pupils in Skegness, Coventry, Peterborough, Corby and Hartlepool to help them become more familiar with Shakespeare's work.

The RSC's Associate Schools Programme currently includes 26 areas of structural disadvantage across England, where opportunity in culture and art is low and where educational attainment and employment opportunities lag behind the national average.

The programme reaches 135,000 children and young people each year, helping them to build language skills by engaging with the richness of the Bard’s plays. It also aims to show them the range of job opportunities possible in the theatre sector.

The RSC aims to accelerate language acquisition, raise aspiration and widen creativity and critical thinking. 

A study is under way to assess the programme’s overall impact but teachers have reported that “children who weren't previously meeting expected standards now consistently are – because of how they're taught Shakespeare”, Jacqui O'Hanlon, the RSC's director of learning and national partnership, told the BBC.

RSC actors perform in the schools, as well as at local theatres involved in the programme, and the company trains teachers at participating schools in techniques used by actors and directors in rehearsals.

They guide children in acting, exploring characters and their language choices, and analysing the words to find their meanings.

“The language development of a child by age five is still the greatest predictor of whether that child can escape poverty in later life,” O'Hanlon said.

Children “get really curious about the possibilities of the meaning of particular words, rather than finding them scary or confusing”, she added.

“Time and again it's the children who have struggled with reading and writing who are absolutely captivated by these plays.”

It is precisely the difficulty of Shakespeare's language that can be life-changing, she said.

“It's all about giving the children the tools to decode things. They get a feeling of power. It's like unlocking a secret code. So they feel like they can do anything.”
 

A new apprenticeship programme for technical theatre professionals has been launched to address a shortage in the sector.

The inaugural Regional Theatre Technical Apprenticeship Programme has been initiated by the Mackintosh Foundation in partnership with 13 venues across the UK.

It aims to offer young people a "stepping-stone into the theatre industry" and support the "next generation of technical theatre professionals".

The foundation is funding an apprenticeship at each venue, and applicants can apply through each participating venue's website.

Theatre producer Cameron Mackintosh said: “I started my career sweeping the stage of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and have worked in nearly every department in the theatre from backstage to marketing – except the wardrobe, as my sewing wasn’t good enough!

"Learning how all the elements of a show are put together has been key to my long career as a producer.”

The 13 venues taking part include Bristol Old Vic, Birmingham Hippodrome, Edinburgh Lyceum Theatre, Nottingham Playhouse and Theatre Clwyd.

Goldsmiths, University of London, will be Artsmark Award’s new national delivery partner from the start of the 2023-24 academic year.

Artsmark is the only creative quality standard for schools and education settings in England.

Accredited by Arts Council England, the award is available across three tiers - silver, gold and platinum - to schools in England.

Schools can apply for Artsmark certification by registering online, attending development training and submitting a statement of commitment and impact, with most schools taking up to two years to complete the process.

Artsmark’s website says schools with the accreditation can unlock a number of benefits, including access to professional support, advice and resources to strengthen arts provision, opportunities to train staff and support to help broaden the school’s creative curriculum.

As the new national delivery partner, Goldsmiths will develop “high-quality support and training for our Artsmark schools and education settings, marking a new chapter of collaboration, innovation, and creativity”.

Warden of Goldsmiths Professor Frances Corner says the university is delighted to be supporting the delivery of the programme.  

“This is timely and vital work in a context of economic uncertainty and evidenced inequalities in England’s cultural education landscape, and we are proud of the opportunity to make a difference, inspire ambition, and contribute to social mobility in and through the arts and culture.”

An independent art school is relocating to a new building adjacent to Tate Modern as part of plans to increase access to art education.

The Art Academy London has announced that it will be moving from its current home on Borough High Street to the new Triptych Bankside building in Southwark.

The new site designed by Squire and Partners architects will provide 13,940 square feet across two levels.

It will include nine studios, two galleries, an auditorium, and workshop spaces for local artists and communities.

There will also be a cafe and art supplies shop that will be open to the public.

Art Academy principal Rob Pepper said: "This move will enable us to create many more free places for local children on our Young Artists courses, to scale our support for art teachers nationwide through free professional development courses and to extend our open-access tuition to local charities working with disabled artists.

“On top of all this, we will be able to provide subsidised exhibition spaces and low-cost studios for artists in Zone 1.”

Dr Frances Morris, outgoing director of Tate Modern, added: "What Rob and the team have done with the Art Academy is to take the art school model, which has in many ways become tired and conventional, and create something with enormous potential for lifelong learning that is open and inclusive."

The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama has been awarded £1.35m from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) to develop immersive and digital technologies.

The investment comes ahead of the launch of the school’s Performance Lab, which the schools says will “acts as a catalyst for research and development in theatre and performance in immersive performance and digital technologies”.

“Performance Lab will contribute distinctive new research to enhance the UK’s creative and cultural economy,” Central’s Head of Knowledge Exchange, Professor Bryce Lease, added.

Central School, part of the University of London, will also use the investment to upgrade existing facilities and support its work in a range of areas including sound and audio performance and digital performance training.

UKRI’s investment forms part of a £103m package supporting the higher education sector across England.