Costume for Performance BA (Hons)

University of the Arts London

BA (Hons) Costume for Performance is for students who are interested in designing and making costume for performance. This includes theatre, film, music and television, as well as more specialised performances. Our excellent workshops, teaching by industry practitioners and work placement opportunities will help you to succeed as a designer and maker of costume, working to support and transform performance.

What can you expect?

BA (Hons) Costume for Performance integrates the demands of interpreting a performance with specialised design and craft skills. You will explore cultural and historical contexts of the subject and so enhance the design and realisation of you practical work.

The success of the production depends upon the joint efforts of specialised designers and makers working together with the director and performers. Students on this course have the advantage of being able to work with students from the related disciplines of 3D effects and hair, make-up and prosthetics. Students have the opportunity to do a short work placement in the industry, and there are several industry-facing projects within the course. The course currently has a relationship with the Royal Ballet School where students have the opportunity to do work placements in the Costume Department. All the subject tutors teaching on the course are practitioners with extensive experience of the industry.

London College of Fashion undergraduate courses develop your personal and professional skills. On this course you will develop skills in your discipline until you are an independent creative thinker. Your skills will make you capable of making an effective contribution to this sector of the fashion industry. We embed Personal and Professional Development (PPD) skills in all units on every course. Speaker programmes with contributions from alumni and members of industry are a part of many courses. We encourage graduates who wish to continue their education at postgraduate level to progress to suitable courses within the College, the University or elsewhere.

Many graduates prefer to seek employment as soon as they have completed their undergraduate studies. Recent graduates from this course have gone on to work as designers, makers and supervisors in film, television, theatre, music promotions, opera and fashion. Recent examples of employers include the English National Opera, New York Met, Glyndebourne, Jasper Conran, RSC, ENO, and BBC Vision.

This course is based in Lime Grove in Shepherd's Bush, which is west of Holland Park and Notting Hill. Tucked away in a quiet street our Lime Grove campus is a beautiful brick building with rustic windows and high ceilings. Nearby Portobello Road market is the world’s largest antiques market and adjacent Shepherd’s Bush Market is full of vibrant fabrics, fresh produce, furniture and falafel. Make-up, prosthetics and photography facilities can be found at Lime Grove, along with media labs.

About London College of Fashion

London College of Fashion, UAL, has been nurturing creative talent for over a century, offering courses in all things fashion. We nurture every student’s distinctive voice, teaching them how to challenge and define the future of fashion through cutting-edge media approaches across all channels: broadcast, print, digital, interactive, experiential – and experimental. Through teaching, specialist research, and collaborative work, we empower our students to think differently, using fashion to examine the past, build a sustainable future, and improve the way we live.