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Victorian College of the Arts
40 Years of VCA
Short Courses in Acting, Dance and Production
Welcome to the School of Performing Arts, one of Australia’s most prestigious and innovative arts training institutions.
Whether you:
Dream of being an actor, a dancer or behind the scenes?
Have an audition coming up?
Need to refresh or upgrade your skills?
VCA's Performing Arts short courses are designed to give you a realistic insight into the rigour and value of professional industry based training.
Our objective in the courses (including the Acting Studio, Short Courses & Intensives) is to introduce students to the foundation skills of acting and performance making; dance (ballet, contemporary and improvisation) and the many facets behind the scenes.
Courses are conducted in the specially equipped performance studios at the VCA. Students have the opportunity to work with tutors who are industry professionals and skilled teachers, all with strong links to the School of Performing Arts Theatre Practice, Dance or Production courses. This ensures synergy with the teaching processes and philosophy of the undergraduate program.
During their time in the course students are encouraged to build networks of peers and to take advantage of the many theatre and arts event opportunities at the VCA and at other institutions in Melbourne.
Coming Up
Acting Studio Intensive - due to overwhelming success and demand - starting early July!
Our Acting Studio is a wonderful, rigourous and rewarding part-time evening course, which has developed such a strong reputation over the past few years that we’ve run two or three groups concurrently. In response to this we are introducing a semester length studio course, in part to meet this demand and in part to reflect the contemporary acting and performance creation training being pursued in VCA's undergraduate BFA (Theatre Practice) course.
The Studio Intensive is an 18 week / two times per week semester length version of our successful year long program. The course introduces and develops, the essential skills of theatre acting and performance generation that are extended through practice and showings. The curriculum has been designed to reflect the current training being pursued in VCA's undergraduate course. Click here for more information.
Winter School: July 9 - 13
School holiday courses in acting, dance and performance making for adults and secondary students. These courses are suitable for people interested in the performing arts, as well as those considering studying and exploring a career in the industry. Separate courses for secondary students and adults Click here for more information.
VCA Dance Intensive added to Winter School Program: July 9 - 13
Spend the week working with VCA Dance staff and experience a week in the life of a VCA Dance student. Over the week you will be exposed to training in Body Conditioning, Contemporary Dance, Ballet, Choreography and Improv.
Places are limited to 20 participants and to be eligible you must be either a VCE (Yr 11 & 12) dance student or adult (17yrs+) who has previous dance training or experience, equivalent to RAD Elementary level.
Each day runs from 10am until 4pm.
Come and be inspired working with VCA Dance staff in our purpose built dance studios in Southbank.
Reel Acting - Film & TV, starts end of July - very limited places remaining!
A 16 week, acting for Film and TV course; designed to develop emerging actors with the skills, methodologies and knowledge required when working in the Film and TV industries. Offering a rigorous and comprehensive introduction to acting to camera, it will empower actors to become more confident in the skills they bring to the course, whilst developing knowledge of the art-form and industry language and expectations. Click here for more information
Masterclasses in Voice, Dance and Acting
VCA Performing Arts are thrilled to introduce a new series of masterclasses for those in the industry, alumni and others with equivalent training and or practical experience. On offer are: Frankie Armstrong (Voice), Prue Lang & Mathieu Briand (Interdisciplinary Dance Creation) and later in the year we welcome back the inimitable Rowena Balos (Acting, Accents & Shakespeare).
Rowena Balos: Aug/Sept (dates TBC)
“When you are totally inside the moment, there is no fear” (Rowena Balos)
World-renowned master teacher Rowena Balos has taught in some of the most prestigious Acting Studios, Universities and Theatre Companies around the world including New York University, UCLA, The American Conservatory Theatre, The Howard Fine Studio, L.A and the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. In Australia, Rowena has taught at all the major drama schools: VCA, NIDA and WAAPA.
If you want to read what Studio Alumni say about the course or more about our tutors, click on the Feedback link below.
Semester 1 Short Courses: happening now!
An extensive range of introductory and specialist short courses in acting and performance making, dance and production. Courses run throughout the year, over 6-8 weeks or as weekend intensives. Courses include the always popular general acting workshops as well as specialist courses in Voice for Actors, Shakespeare and Acting to Camera, Audition Techniques for F&TV, Voice Over & TV Presenting.
These courses allow you the unique opportunity to be exposed to the contemporary acting and performance practices taught at the School of Performing Arts at VCA.
Minimum age 17 years old
More information
Acting Studio - year long, part-time Foundation course
Audition Preparation Intensives
Contact Course Coordinator
Loraine Little
Short Course Coordinator
School of Performing Arts
T: +61 3 9035 9229
E: vca-perfartshortcourses@unimelb.edu.au
Enrolment Form (pdf file, 339kb)
