BA (Hons) World Performance

If you’re looking for a practical drama degree that goes beyond traditional approaches, BA (Hons) World Performance offers an intensive, hands-on training that embraces diverse perspectives.

This course gives you the opportunity to train, create, and perform in an exciting range of global theatre practices. You’ll explore Western and non-Western acting techniques alongside performance traditions from around the world, developing a deeper understanding of storytelling through different cultural perspectives.

The course combines practical theatre training with a broad exploration of international performance styles, from World Music to Commedia Dell’Arte and Balinese Kecak. You’ll also be introduced to the basics of filmmaking and backstage roles such as theatre production and set design. In your final year, you’ll apply the techniques you’ve learned in three technically-supported productions.

The course is designed for curious, ambitious creatives who are eager to explore the world’s rich performance traditions. Throughout the course, you’ll be encouraged to discover your own artistic voice and challenge conventions. By the time you graduate, you’ll have developed as a performer and theatre-maker with the artistic and technical skills to create innovative and culturally-informed work.

We offer a broad range of scholarships and bursaries to support your studies with us. EU students are eligible for the Undergraduate EU Scholarship, which offers a discount of £5,000 on annual tuition fees for each year of study. International students from non-EU countries could be eligible for a International Undergraduate Scholarship worth £5,000. To explore our full range of scholarships and check your eligibility, visit the University of Essex scholarships and funding page.

As a World Performance student, you’ll have opportunities to:

• Develop a strong foundation in acting, movement, voice and articulation, alongside global performance styles such as Balinese Kecak, Kathakali, Capoeira, Biomechanics, Commedia Dell’Arte, and non-Western Character work.
• Cultivate a deep understanding of theatre around the world and learn to adopt an intercultural approach to examining theatre in its social, political, and cultural contexts.
• Learn about World Music and singing, and explore how music influences performance and storytelling across cultures.
• Work with visiting international artists, who lead workshops in theatre traditions from around the world. Past examples include Butoh, Chinese Opera, African Performance and Drumming, Kabuki, Brazilian Theare, Shakespeare in a Global Context, and Thai Theatre.
• Learn the basics of production and media, including filmmaking, lighting, set design, and theatre production.
• Perform in three technically-supported productions at our campus theatre, applying the techniques you’ve learned in text-work, multicultural approaches, and political theatre.
• Choose to study abroad for a term or attend a summer programme at one of our partner institutions.
• Take part in a showcase in Central London and film a showreel to promote yourself to the industry.

From 2026-27, this course will be taught at our Colchester Campus. This campus is situated in 200 acres of parkland surrounded by beautiful countryside, with Colchester city centre just down the road. We're currently undertaking work to create bespoke East 15 studio spaces and other specialist facilities at this campus.

View more undergraduate courses from East 15 Acting School, including further Actor training programs as well as behind the scenes courses in Creative Producing and Stage Management.

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

From autumn 2026, all East 15 Acting School courses currently delivered at the Southend Campus will move to the Colchester Campus.

The campus is set within 200 acres of parkland and located just two miles from the historic city centre of Colchester, England's oldest recorded development. The campus is easily reached from London and Stansted Airport in under one hour.

The Colchester Campus is home to some great facilities, including the 200-seat Lakeside Theatre and the landmark Albert Sloman Library. Other facilities include the Silberrad Student Centre, a selection of cafes, restaurants and street food outlets, the SU bar, social spaces, the sports centre and gym, and a food market on Thursdays.

There is also a range of accommodation options which are within a walking distance of campus facilities.

We're undertaking work to create bespoke East 15 studio spaces and other specialist facilities at Colchester. In the meantime, you can take a virtual tour of the campus and accommodation facilities.

Your future

Graduates of this course are equipped not only to succeed as performers, but also to pursue careers as directors, facilitators, producers, and researchers for theatre, film and TV. With a deep understanding of performance traditions from diverse cultures, they are capable of working creatively and collaboratively anywhere in the world.

Successful alumni have performed in major productions in the West End, appeared in theatres such as Birmingham Rep, and featured in films and TV shows both in the UK and internationally. Many graduates have founded theatre companies, taking their productions to renowned venues and festivals like the Edinburgh Fringe and Camden Fringe, as well as international stages.

“I have had unique opportunities to meet and work with expert practitioners from around the world and to learn skills that will set me apart from other drama school graduates. I would recommend East 15 and its courses to any student looking for contemporary training for the theatre of today – the industry is changing and East 15 has their finger firmly on the pulse.”

Natalie Bradbury, BA World Performance

UK entry requirements

Applicants will need to be successful in an interview. Applicants should also have, or expect to have:

• A-levels: DD/EEE, or 48 UCAS tariff points from a minimum of 2 full A-levels.
• BTEC: MP, or 48 UCAS tariff points from a minimum of the equivalent of 2 full A-levels.
• Combined qualifications on the UCAS tariff: 48 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 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 NORTH MACEDONIA 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

At East 15, our training draws upon over 60 years of tradition combined with a keen sense of the world of stage and screen today. Our carefully selected modules will give you the chance to explore and develop your specialist training.

The BA (Hons) World Performance course provides a comprehensive, hands-on training in global performance traditions. Your learning will take place through lectures, workshops, seminars, written work, and practical performance projects.

In Year 1, you'll build a strong foundation in acting, voice, movement, and music while exploring a variety of performance techniques. Year 2 focuses on developing specific techniques with visiting international artists, alongside modules on production and media. In your final year, you'll apply your learning in theatrical productions and prepare to enter the industry as a professional.

Our carefully selected modules will give you the chance to explore and develop your specialist training.

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’ll lay the groundwork for your training, learning both traditional and global performance techniques. You will:

• Engage in classes in Acting, as well as Voice, Movement, Singing, and Music.
• Examine and experiment with different performance forms that integrate music and theatre. These can include including Western styles such as opera and choral performance, and non-Western styles such as Kathakali, African Drumming, and Samba.
• Explore a variety of performance forms and practitioners from around the world.
• Begin experimenting with your creative interests, connecting different cultural influences, music-making, and collaborations with peers.
• Develop research and writing skills through academic tasks and original investigations into the social, political and cultural contexts of theatre traditions.

Year 2

In your second year, you will deepen your practical skills and develop your knowledge and practice in different performance traditions. You will:

• Train intensively in specific techniques that may include Kathakali, Balinese Dance-Drama, Storytelling, Clowning, Commedia Dell’Arte, and non-Western Character Work.
• Work with two visiting international artists specialising in techniques such as Butoh, Chinese Opera, African Performance and Drumming, Kabuki, Puppet Theatre, Brazilian Theare, Shakespeare in a Global Context, Thai Theatre etc.
• Build fundamental skills in media and production, including filmmaking, screenwriting, lighting, set design, and theatre production.
• Develop and produce a short film from conception to scriptwriting, filming, editing and final screening.

Year 3

Your final year is focused on collaborative projects where you apply the techniques you have learned throughout your course. You will:

• Perform in three technically-supported productions, one per term, at our campus theatre, incorporating the techniques and approaches you learned on the course.
• Participate in a showcase in London to an invited audience
• Film a showreel intended to promote your work to industry.
• Prepare to launch your professional career, with industry-led workshops in audition and interview techniques, CV-writing, self-managing etc.