Drama by Practice as Research - PhD drafted

Program Overview

The Practice as Research (PaR) PhD in Drama at Kent allows students to explore their research through performance and a written dissertation. Fully supported by expert supervisors, students can engage in groundbreaking topics within diverse theatre and performance domains. With excellent facilities, a supportive academic community, and access to prestigious theatre archives, the program prepares students for careers in academia, arts organizations, and beyond.

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

You can undertake Practice as Research (PaR) in a variety of forms and in diverse subjects. Throughout you will be fully supported by a team of specialist supervisors. Through a PaR PhD you explore and interrogate your research by undertaking practice and producing a performative output, as well as by producing a written dissertation of up to 40,000 words which is examined through a viva. We welcome enquiries on any topic and form of practice. During your time at Kent you will have a minimum of two supervisors who will support and guide you through your academic and professional development. You will meet regularly with your supervisor(s) who will not only guide your research but will also help you to identify areas where you may require further training or support. A series of reviews will take place throughout your studies in order to ensure that your research stays on track and that you have all the necessary support and resources required to successfully complete it. Current PhDs reflect our diversity, with topics including actor training, autism, East Asian comedy, community theatre, Absurdism, live art, Shakespeare, translation and adaptation, Greek theatre, Grotowski, stand-up, eighteenth-century acting, neurodivergent performance, and accessibility. Recent and ongoing Practice as Research projects include: ‘Selfless Language: Acting Coordination Method Leading to Act of Speech’, ‘Minna Canth from Finnish to English: Feminist Translation of Nineteenth Century Social Realist Drama’, ‘Translating 18th Century Actresses Acting Techniques Into a Modern Performance Context’, and ‘The Burning Method: A Performance-Based Analysis of Jerzy Grotowski’s Book Towards a Poor Theatre’. Scholarship opportunities may include the Vice Chancellor’s Research Scholarship (GTA) and the Consortium of the Humanities and the Arts South-East England (CHASE) collaborative doctoral award.

Assessment:

The program culminates in a written dissertation of up to 40,000 words which is examined through a viva.

Teaching:

Throughout your time at Kent you will be supported by two experienced PhD supervisors who you will meet each month (or every two months for part-time students). In these meetings you will have the opportunity to discuss, debate, and develop your ideas in exciting new directions. As well as supporting the development of your PhD, your supervisors are also there to guide you in your wider career development. Beyond your supervisory team you will also be supported by the wider School of Arts community. You will join one (or more) of the School’s four Research Groups and will have the opportunity, in both the regular meetings and larger annual symposia, to share your research, network within and outside your discipline, and hear about the range of research taking place both within the School and beyond. The University also provides excellent support for your studies through the Graduate School and its Researcher Development Programme for research students. This free programme is mapped to the national Researcher Development Framework and covers a diverse range of topics, including subject-specific research skills, research management, personal effectiveness, communication skills, networking and teamworking, and career management. A programme of Research Seminars takes place throughout the year which students are encouraged to attend. The seminars will be relevant to Drama and Theatre students but also to students studying History of Art, Film and Media Studies. Work-in-Progress sessions offer the opportunity for you to present your work to a small group of peers. They are a key part of academic life and give you an opportunity to practice your presentation skills in an informal and supportive way. The School also hosts an annual Postgraduate Research Symposium which provides a platform for students to present their work in a conference setting.

Careers:

Many of our PhD students have gone on to have successful careers as academics both in the UK and internationally. Others have used their PhDs to develop their artistic practice in new directions, whilst many have also gone on to work in the Arts, Culture and Heritage sector: gaining professional positions in museums, archives, the media, and theatre. We are proud that Drama at Kent has a reputation in the theatre industry for producing innovative, creative and passionate graduates. We work closely with the two major regional theatres on our doorstep: the Gulbenkian and the Marlowe theatres. We also have relationships with companies including the Globe, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and Bobby Baker, as well as working with a range of public sector organisations including local schools, NHS services, specialist schools, and prisons. Company Gabrielle Moletta, Moving Memory, The Chekhov Collective, the bi-annual Autism Arts Festival and the monthly Funny Rabbit Comedy club are just a few examples of the creative practice associated with Drama at Kent. Based in the cultural city of Canterbury, we are less than one hour from London by train and forty minutes from the Eurotunnel making us close to both London and Europe. Drama PhD students are based in the School of Arts’ award-winning Jarman building where you will find two of professional studio spaces, social spaces and a dedicated postgraduate study hub. A short walk from the Jarman building is the Little Tich in which you will find our 112-seat Aphra Theatre (a courtyard-gallery theatre space) and the Lumley Theatre: a flexible and adaptable black-box studio. The newly expanded Templeman Library is nationally renowned for its unique theatre archives which include the Melville collection of Victorian and Edwardian melodrama; the Reading-Raynor collection of mid-twentieth century playbills; the Drummond pantomime collection; the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive; the Jacques Copeau Archive and the British Grotowski collection.

The 2024/25 annual tuition fees for this course are: Full-time Part-time UK £9,800 £4,900 EU £18,600 £9,300 International £18,600 £9,300 For students continuing on this programme fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.