What you'll study
The Devised Theatre and Performance MA offers an intense, practice-based research programme at arthaus.berlin, an international training and research centre located in Berlin, Germany that combines the vision of a holistic teaching philosophy with the creative research of a performance laboratory.
At the core of arthaus.berlin’s approach is the practice of embodiment – the lived interconnectedness of body and world – as a pathway to personal authenticity, creative autonomy, and artistic originality, as a pre-condition to defining your role and purpose as a creator of original work.
Towards the end of the year you can choose to extend your studies into a second year, by switching to the Advanced Devising Practice MFA.
Why choose this course?
Expert training
Our experienced facilitation team will support your journey throughout the programme by sharing their expertise through movement, improvisation, voice and performative research sessions. Well-integrated encounters with guest facilitators will link your studio research to contemporary theatre practice.
Unique approach
Students are introduced to an array of physical performative languages, delving deeply into lab work with voice, text, spatial construction and ensemble dynamics. You will undertake expressive documentation via painting, drawing and installation, including exploration of the work of post-modern performance makers.
Independent learning
You will have regular devising time to develop a practice of creating original work. Your performative autonomy will be strengthened through critical reflection on your process and projects, with feedback meetings conducted with facilitators and colleagues.
Experience Berlin
You will work in Berlin, Germany, a renowned international meeting place for artists of all kinds. Green, edgy, upbeat, and laid-back all at once, Berlin is a dynamic backdrop for cultural and creative practices. The city offers an eclectic array of venues perfectly suited to diverse artistic and performative endeavours.
Course breakdown
Informed by the work of renowned practitioners including Lecoq and Grotowski and enriched by the principles of the Unfold Method and Alexander Technique, arthaus.berlin’s unique approach is at the forefront of contemporary European performance pedagogy.
Module 1 - The Poetic Body
Studio research centres on pre-performative embodiment practices. Regular movement, body and voice work sessions create the foundation for explorations into playfulness, the Neutral Mask, and physical identification with and transposition of the natural world into visible form.
Weekly group devising experiments are focused on the collaborative process and investigating the link between practice and form.
Module 2 - Embodied Writing
Embodied writing at arthaus.berlin combines three strands: developing an awareness of somatic sensing, developing a creative resonance practice of generating work via multiple modalities, and embedding work in a contextual relationship to contemporary performance discourses.
Students explore current methodologies and debates within the arts and investigate how their own work is linked to those influences and dynamics.
Module 3 - From Life to Art
Regular movement, body and voice practice continues, and studio research turns towards the construction of dramatic spaces and performance.
Investigation into rhythm, structure, composition and dynamics as they manifest in architecture, music, painting and poetry form the matrix for longer-form group devising projects. Animality, chorus and mask work are explored as entry points to the creation of characters and text.
Module 4 - Independent Research Project
Students finish the course by creating an independent research project, equivalent to a dissertation or thesis, effectively sharing the discoveries of their practical and theoretical questions and explorations over the course of the degree.
Students are invited to create work in whatever form best serves their research – this could include live performances, workshops, exhibitions/installations, performance lectures, or digital work.
How to join
This MA programme is exclusively taught at arthaus.berlin in Berlin, Germany.
Entry Requirements
Applicants for Masters Programmes will be expected to have a good undergraduate degree in a related subject area. The college also encourages applications from those without formal qualifications who may be accepted on the basis of professional experience.
Applications are now open for September 2025.
Applications remain open until the course is full. However, we understand the unique circumstances of international applicants and accept their late applications to our postgraduate programmes until 31 July.
Application Guidance
As part of your online application, you will be asked to to provide a detailed, handwritten personal statement of motivation expressing why you are interested in studying on the course. You are also asked to submit a comprehensive CV, evidence of prior training and qualifications, and a letter of recommendation from a former colleague, director, or training institute.
Interview and portfolio
Once we receive your application materials, you may be invited to an online interview. This interview is not an online audition, so you do not need to prepare material for it. The online interview is an opportunity to open a dialogue with the Program Directors at arthaus.berlin, and a chance for you to ask any questions you may have about the training, whether pedagogical or logistical. It is also an opportunity for us to find out more about you, your background, and your interest in working with us. After the interview, you may be invited to submit examples or links to your own performative/creative work to share with the course admissions team.
You may also apply directly for this course at arthaus.berlin
Course Summary
Duration
MA 12 Months
Mode of study
Full time
Start date
September 2025
Course Type
Postgraduate Course
Course Fees (2024 Entry)
MA Devised Theatre and Performance
£17916