In brief

Delivery mode

SEMESTER ONE

DFP7101A Design for Performance Practice A (20 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7101A Design for Performance Practice 1A introduces students to the fundamental philosophies and practices required by Designers for Performance: to interrogate and contexualise design problems, to determine and develop creative solutions and to communicate outcomes with clarity. Students study a variety of design approaches in focused project-based classes; Realism; Costume Design; Design Research; and Design, Architecture, Performance Fashion and Art (DAPFA). Designing within a studio environment encourages a continuum of peer/teacher review.

Content
Through design classes, exercises and projects, students analyse a series of given design briefs and apply creative exploration, experimentation and problem solving to arrive at design solutions. Students apply text, design and performance analysis theories and concepts to their design research and development. As the projects evolve, students learn to evaluate, edit and revise their design choices, developments, communications and solutions. Through Design, Architecture, Performance Fashion and Art (DAPFA) projects, students investigate the social, historical and socio-cultural contexts of costume and scenography that inform design for performance practice, including: text analysis, performance analysis, space, light and character exploration, and their relationship to broader arts and design influences. Dramaturgical enquiry is a major component of these explorations and involves dramaturgical analysis of the text, space, light, character and performance in relation to making meaning in performance.

SEMESTER TWO

DFP7101B Design for Performance Practice B (20 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7101B Design for Performance Practice 1B advances students’ knowledge and understanding of the philosophies and practices required by performance-designers, and supports their capacity to interrogate and contexualise design problems, to determine and develop creative design solutions and to communicate outcomes with clarity and accuracy. Students study a variety of design approaches in focused project-based classes: Stylisation; Costume/Prop Design; Design, Architecture, Performance, Fashion and Art (DAPFA), and design research, theories and contexts. Completed design projects are subject to a formative critique by peers and teachers.

Content
Through design classes, exercises and projects, students analyse a series of given design briefs and apply creative exploration, experimentation and problem solving to arrive at design solutions. Students apply text, design and performance analysis theories and concepts to design research and development. As the projects evolve, students learn to evaluate, edit and revise their choices, developments, communications and solutions. Through these projects, students investigate the social, historical and cultural contexts of costume and scenography that inform design for performance practice, including: text analysis, performance analysis, dramaturgical enquiry, space, light and character exploration, noting their relationship to broader arts and their influence on ‘meaning-making’ in performance.

SEMESTER ONE

DFP7103A Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration (10 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7103A Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration A introduces students to the fundamental collaboration techniques and practices required by performance-designers through engagement with the fabrication process in production workshops and in rehearsals, and by taking on crew roles as part of a team in the NIDA Play Production program.

Content 
Through engagement with the realisation of productions, students are able to reflect on the nature of their contribution to a collaborative art form and the specific focus and roles each of the disciplines bring to this collaboration. Design students gain practical experience through assignments such as Set/Props or Costume Design Assistant on a Play Production Program production. Students collaborate on the realisation of a design element/s under the supervision of the Designer and Department course leaders, and then take on a live performance crew role through technical rehearsals and the season of the production.

SEMESTER TWO

DFP7103B Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration B (10 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7103B Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration B identifies and develops the collaboration techniques and practices required by performance-designers through engagement with the fabrication process in production workshops and in rehearsals, and continues their learning by taking on specific crewing roles as part of a team in the NIDA Play Production program. Design students are assigned to work as a Set/Props or Costume Design Assistant on a Play Production Program production.

Content 
Building on their learning from the previous subject, and through further engagement with the realisation of productions, students are able to reflect on the nature of their contribution to a collaborative art form and the specific focus and roles each of the disciplines bring to this collaboration. Students collaborate on the realisation of a design element/s under the supervision of the Designer and Department course leaders, and then take on a live performance crew role through technical rehearsals and the season of the production.

SEMESTER ONE 

COM7101A Performance and Ideas (10 credit points)

Subject Purpose
In Semester One of the first year ‘Performance and Ideas’ gives students a theoretical, critical and experiential understanding of key contexts, forms and conventions based on a chronological framework that supports an understanding of the Western theatrical canon. The subject supports student’s abilities to actively relate various historic practices of the Western theatrical canon to their own performance-based disciplines as 21st century artists.

Content
Throughout this subject students will:
Examine a range of historical movements and practitioners in the Western theatrical canon, identifying specific forms, conventions and practices
Develop an understanding of industry practices across a range of performance disciplines relating to various conventions and forms within the canon
Interpret and engage with artistic ideas in both practical and conceptual realisation from the perspective of their specific performance discipline
Explore and reflect on how aspects of a theatrical form and context inform practices in related disciplines.

SEMESTER TWO - COM7101B PERFORMANCE AND IDEAS (10 credit points)

COM7101B Performance and Ideas investigates different performance texts to create an understanding of the development of modernity from the 19th to the 20th century. The course looks at different art forms and looks at movements and ideas that structure contemporary performance practice. We also will make the “now” present through postmodern and contemporary readings and recent productions, specifically focusing on students’ own practice.

COM7101B Performance and Ideas asks three main questions:
* What is modernity?
* What is the drive towards truth or realistic illusion?
* In what ways does this tradition influence our meaning making and our
practice today?

SEMESTER ONE

COM7102A Introduction to Collaboration (5 credit points)

Subject Purpose
The subject introduces the students to the principles of collaboration, which includes defining collaboration and creativity and examining how ethics, values and behaviours of collaboration are generated. Students investigate notions of ownership, agreement, creative conflict and how to generate ideas and create innovative practice. These investigations provide a foundation for creative collaborative projects undertaken in second year and beyond.

Content
Throughout this learning period students will
* Investigate various theories and practices for creative collaboration in the cultural sector
* Apply collaborative practices to the development of new and interdisciplinary work
* Work empathetically, to a shared vision
* Apply discipline expertise to a collaborative project
* Evaluate and reflect on process and performance

SEMESTER TWO

COM7102B Introduction to Collaboration (5 credit points)

COM7102B Introduction to Collaboration builds upon the principles of collaboration, skills and conceptual tasks featured in COM7102A Introduction to Collaboration. In this subject those preparatory tasks are now realised through practice in a Group Collaborative Project.

In brief

You will:

• work collaboratively with students from the directing course
• continue working on set, costume and lighting designs
• be introduced to film and events design

Delivery mode

• Classes
• Studio work
• Participating in NIDA film projects

SEMESTER ONE

DFP7201A Design for Performance Practice A (20 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7201A Design for Performance Practice A is the primary design subject for set, costume and lighting oriented design disciplines in the BFA course. It consolidates skills and knowledge development in design for performance, applying these skills with increasing complexity of design thinking to concept development and decision-making and problem-solving processes in diverse theatre forms, while collaborating with either student or guest directors. Students’ learning is consolidated through two projects: a Multi-Scene Set and Costume Design project, and a Hybrid Costume Design.

Content
Through design classes, exercises and projects, students analyse a series of given design briefs and apply an increasingly advanced creative exploration, experimentation and problem solving to arrive at effective design solutions. Students apply text, design and performance analysis theories and concepts to design research and development. As the projects evolve, students learn to evaluate, revise and develop their design choices, developments, solutions and communications strategies. In collaboration with a director students will examine and explore design methodologies and apply these methodologies to the design of a fully realised production. Dramaturgical enquiry is a major component of these projects, and involves effective and detailed scenographic analysis of the text, space, light, character and performance in relation to making meaning in performance. These projects are supported by examinations of Design, Architecture, Performance Fashion, and Art (DAPFA) research, theories and contexts. Through DAPFA classes students investigate the social, historical and cultural contexts of scenography that inform design for performance practice, including text analysis, performance analysis, space, light and character exploration, and its relationship to broader arts, architectural, fashion and design influences. Designing within a studio environment encourages a continuum of peer/teacher review. Completed design projects are presented to the group and subject to a formative critique by peers and teachers.

SEMESTER TWO

DFP7201B Design for Performance Practice B (20 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7201B Design for Performance Practice B consolidates skills and knowledge development in design for performance, applying these skills with increasing complexity of design thinking to concept development and decision-making and problem-solving processes, while collaborating with either student or guest directors in two distinct projects, Open Text Drama and Music Theatre. Dramaturgical enquiry is a major component of these explorations and involves scenographic analysis of the text, space, light, character and performance in relation to making meaning in performance.

Content 
Through design classes, exercises and projects, students continue to analyse a series of given design texts and briefs and apply creative exploration, experimentation and problem solving to arrive at effective design solutions. Students apply text, design and performance analysis theories and concepts to complex design research and development. As the projects evolve, students learn to evaluate, revise and develop their design choices, developments, communications and solutions. In collaboration with a director students will examine and explore design methodologies and apply these methodologies to the design of a fully realised production. The primary relationship between director and designer is explored through project-based conceptual design exercises that increase in complexity. Collaborative problem solving is at the forefront of these design investigations where a design proposal is generated through discussion and mutual agreement. The resulting concept is then tested through the use of sketch and scale models and design renderings. Designing within a studio environment encourages a continuum of peer/teacher review. On each project the creative teams of director, set and costume designer (and lighting designer when available) present the results of their collaboration and conceptual development to their peers and tutors in a formal presentation.

SEMESTER ONE

DFP7203A Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration A (10 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7202A Interdisciplinary Collaboration A is focused on design elements and theories relating to design for the screen. It comprises of three projects which lead the students to a working knowledge of mise-en-scène and screen language through the study of film genres and the elements in set and costume design, cinematography, post production and animation techniques, and from the birth of cinema to the present day.

Content
Through the intense collaborative realisation of screen projects and productions, and the study of cinematic genres and the elements of mise-en-scène, students will develop an understanding of the key creative parameters of a screen production. They will continue to develop dexterity in crew roles and relationships and will practice in art department on a short form screen production, including working as art director under the leadership of a D3 student production designer. Students will analyse, break down, and design screen scripts using storyboards and other already-established visual communication techniques to communicate their design intention to all stakeholders, will prepare and manage art department budgets and schedules, and will work in art department crew roles in preproduction and shoot. Students will articulate an understanding of screen design methodologies and reflect on how these compare to other forms of performance design. Assessable projects are highly collaborative, and include a hypothetical screen design project (Screen Design), a team-based design project (Art Direction) and a theory and analysis subject (Mise-en-Scène).

DFP7203B Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration A (10 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7203B Interdisciplinary Collaboration B is comprised of a significant team-based project in which second year design students work as Art Directors to a third year designer (Production Designer) in the realisation of a screen project. Founded on learning in the previous subject, students will complete the realisation of a significant screen design production that is intensely collaborative across disciplines.

Content
Through the intense collaborative realisation of screen and live performance productions students will practice their understanding of the roles, responsibilities, processes, management and effective realisation of the design. They will take instruction from the student designer, undertake script analysis and research, prepare design visualisations, prepare and manage art department and design budgets and schedules, perform on-set and backstage technical and crew roles, collaborate and communicate with all stakeholders, and source, build and coordinate design elements towards effective realisation of the design.

SEMESTER ONE

COM7201A Performance and Ideas (10 credit points)

Subject Purpose
Semester One of the second year of ‘Performance and Ideas’ builds on students’ theoretical, critical and experiential understandings of key contexts, forms and conventions of the Western theatrical canon and the various social, intercultural and political influences that shaped it in the mid to late 20th and early 21st century.
Building on COM7101A & COM7101B, it supports students’ ability to actively relate these various historic practices to their own performance-based disciplines as 21st century artists.

Content
Throughout this subject students will:
Synthesise their understanding of the relationship, correspondence and variance of different forms of theatrical and screen storytelling
Develop an understanding of industry practices across a range of performance disciplines relating to various conventions and forms of the 20th and 21st centuries
Interpret and engage with artistic ideas in both practical and conceptual realisation from the perspective of their specific performance discipline
Examine a range of ideological, theoretical and practical frameworks through which contemporary performance can be understood.

SEMESTER TWO

COM7201B Performance and Ideas (10 credit points)

COM7101B Contemporary Issues in Performing Arts asks four main questions:
What is the contemporary? What is the “now” and how do we theorise the present?
What is the response of the theatre to pressing issues of the day?
What is performance practice’s role in contemporary society?
What are alternative modes of contemporary performing arts?

Equally this subject investigates broader questions:
What is the role of performance practice in social and political questions?
We will look at a range of contemporary debates of the theatre that are pressing to the art form now.
How do we address futures thinking and predictive scenario development for imagined constructs?

SEMESTER ONE

COM7203A Student-Led Projects (5 credit points)

Subject Purpose
Student-led Projects is a common subject across all disciplines involving second-year students in which each team shapes an artistic vision for presentation drawing on the individual strengths, knowledge and ability of each member to problem-solve in the development and realization of the collaborative endeavour.

Content
Throughout this learning period students will:
Apply collaborative practices to the development of new and interdisciplinary work
Work empathetically, to a shared vision
Apply discipline expertise to a collective project
Evaluate and reflect on process and performance

SEMESTER TWO

COM7203B Student-Led Projects (5 credit points)

COM7203A Student-led Projects and COM7203B Student-led Projects derive from the theoretical and methodological frameworks explored in COM7102 Introduction to Collaboration. Student-led Projects is a common subject across all disciplines involving second-year students from every discipline. Students self-select their collaborative teams and are encouraged to achieve cross cohort representation. Together each team shapes an idea for presentation drawing on the individual strengths, knowledge and ability of each member to problem-solve in the development and realization of the collaborative endeavour. Collaborative groups request input from staff or external mentors as or when it is required. Co- ordination of this subject and trouble shooting is provided by the subject coordinator with assistance from a designated point of contact from each discipline within NIDA. In COM7203B Student-led Projects students build on the collaborative practice project established in COM7203A Student-led Projects by bringing the project to realization. Students present their work in this semester and finalise their peer review through group evaluation.

In brief

• Work collaboratively with students from the directing course
• Work collaboratively with technical students on lighting and video projects
• Design for film in industry music videos and short film projects
• Design for graduate director play productions and the NIDA graduate exhibition

Delivery mode

• Classes
• Studio work
• Liaising with industry professionals
• Participating in NIDA films, events and productions

SEMESTER ONE

DFP7301A Design for Performance Practice A (30 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7301A Design for Performance Practice 3A consolidates concept development, decision-making and problem-solving skills and knowledge development in design for performance, with a progressive shift of emphasis to effective collaboration on devised staged productions. The subject is the primary design and concept development subject for set, costume and lighting oriented design disciplines in the BFA course.

Content
Throughout this learning period students will examine and explore alternate design methodologies, and apply these to the design of fully-realised devised productions. They will analyse and interpret the text and context, and work with collaborators to explore design concepts, and create visualisations. Utilising a range of analogue and digital visualisation techniques to accomplish diverse design communications, students investigate script analysis, concept creation and visualisation of sets, costumes, lighting and video designs. They will develop specialist expertise in a discipline-specific context, and undertake critical evaluation and reflection of the work of self and that of others. Exhibition designers work as a team to design and fully realise an exhibition, either as a collective design exhibition, or a broader exhibition of selected NIDA student work, displaying multi- course content. This subject is the primary design and concept development subject for set, costume and lighting oriented design disciplines in the BFA course. The subject supports two projects; Devised Work 1: Set, Costume, Lighting, Projection and Video – collaboration with BFA TTSM) and Devised Work 2: Set, Costume, Makeup – collaboration with MFA Directors and VET Makeup.

SEMESTER TWO

DFP7301B Design for Performance Practice B (30 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7301B Design for Performance Practice B extends design concept development, decision-making and problem-solving skills and knowledge development in the realisation of live productions. The first - Directors’ Designers’ Graduation Productions (DDGP) focuses on the effective collaboration within a fully-staged work directed by a student or guest director. Each creative team also collaborates with other teams to present the production as part of a collection of short plays in a season in a shared space.

Content
Throughout this learning period students will examine, explore and extend the use of design methodologies and apply these to the design of fully-realised production/s. Through analysis and development of the text and context, they will work with collaborators, exploring design concepts and creating visualisations as part of design development. Students will utilise a variety of visualisation and documentation techniques to accomplish a range of diverse communications appropriate for live performance, installation and exhibition design. Further, they will collaborate and communicate with all stake-holders in performance and exhibition making throughout design realisation. Developing specialist expertise in a range of discipline-specific contexts, they undertake critical evaluation, analysis and reflection of the work of self and that of others. In this subject, students develop their ability to work successfully as part of an individual creative team as well as their ability to collaborate and negotiate as part of a collective. This subject is the primary design and concept development subject for set, costume and lighting oriented design disciplines in the BFA course.

SEMESTER ONE

DFP7303A Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration A (15 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7303A Interdisciplinary Collaboration 3A comprises of learning which supports complex and demanding projects which mimic collaborative industry processes across disciplines, and have realised outcomes. Working as creative teams of directors, set, properties, costume designers and lighting designers, each student team collaborates with an artist, musician, or band to conceive and produce a music video, which may have a public web and televisual release.

Content
Throughout this learning period students will examine, explore and expand design methodologies and apply these to a design of fully realised production/s using collaborative practices. They will analyse and develop the text and context of a work with collaborators, exploring design concepts and creating visualisations of complex design ideas, useful for a range of stakeholder engagements. A variety of analogue and digital visualisation techniques support student to accomplish communications through script analysis, concept creation and visualisation of sets, costumes, lighting and video designs. Whilst developing specialist expertise in a range of discipline-specific contexts, they undertake critical evaluation and reflection of the work of self and that of others. The subject enables two projects: Project 1 involves working as a production designer within a team of other production designers to develop, design and realise a Short Film. Project 2 involves the student designers collaborating with the student directors to produce a music video/s.

SEMESTER TWO

DFP7303B Design for Performance Interdisciplinary Collaboration B (15 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7303B Interdisciplinary Collaboration B comprises of complex and demanding collaborative projects, which reflect industry practices. Working as creative teams of directors, set, properties, costume designers and lighting designers, each student team collaborates with an artist, musician, or band to produce a music video which may have a public web and televisual release. In this subject students will complete design exercises that are intensely collaborative across disciplines and have realised outcomes.

Content
Throughout this learning period students will collaborate within specialist teams to inform original design outcomes and communicate effectively with all stake-holders using original designed documentation, from conception to realisation. Students will define, coordinate and work to crew roles and responsibilities, using specialist expertise in a discipline-specific context. They will undertake critical evaluation and reflection of the work of self and that of others. The subject enables two projects: Project 1 is a continuation of the design and realisation of the Semester 1 Short Film and involves working as a production designer within a team of other production designers. Project 2 is a continuation of the design and realisation of the Semester 1 Music Videos and continues the collaboration of student designers with the student directors to shoot and post- produce several music videos.

SEMESTER ONE

DFP7304A DESIGN FOR PERFORMANCE PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE (5 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7304A Design for Performance Professional Practice introduces designers to an overview of the driving forces that have determined the national creative landscape, identifying the history of the key state and national arts organisations and current trends. Students will be given a raft of tools to enable them to embark upon a successful career as arts professionals and negotiate the demands of establishing themselves as a small business. These will include a basic knowledge of financial and risk management, business and project planning frameworks and an ability to market themselves and the projects they create.

Content
Throughout this learning period students will gain a rudimentary understanding of how to negotiate contracts including the fundamentals of ownership and copyright. They will identify sources of funding and how to apply for grants and sponsorship, how to apply for jobs and how to protect their rights within the Industrial Relations landscape. Students will learn about Workplace Health and Safety, and its intrinsic relationship to other areas of the course and the everyday practice of a designer, and understand the pathways to liability, how to obtain insurance and when it is applicable. Further they will undertake a self-directed analysis of the body of work by a professional designer of their choice, reflecting on the design vocabulary the designer has used to express different ideas and how this language has shifted and evolved over the course of their careers.

SEMESTER TWO

DFP7304B Design for Performance Professional Practice B (5 credit points)

Subject Purpose
DFP7304B Professional Practice 3B assists the graduating designer to set up a small business, as well as launching them into the profession through a professional work placement. This subject enables students to embark upon a successful career as arts professionals and to negotiate the demands of establishing themselves as a small business. These include setting up a small business, financial and risk management, business and project-planning frameworks and an ability to market themselves and the projects they create.

Content
As part of the BFA professional work placement students work with a professional designer/theatre maker as mentor allowing them to observe their professional’s practice and process, and to engage with the professional design process through development and realisation. Whilst attached to the professional designer students assist in one or all aspects of design creation: during the creative development, through realisation working with varying makers and stake-holders responsible for build of the design and the production. They also have the opportunity to follow the various creative team processes, including those of producers, actors and technical management in resolving the design and the demands of the production as a whole. DFP7304B Professional Practice 3B introduces students to the professional knowledge and tools needed to enter the profession, and enables them to operate as a freelance artist and to launch and develop their own practice.

NIDA uses direct application to the provider via the NIDA website.

Interview dates for the 2023 intake will be announced after applications open.

PREPARE FOR YOUR INTERVIEW

The application process for the Bachelor of Fine Arts (Design for Performance) consists of two rounds:

• Round One – Online Application, including Artist Statement and Portfolio
• Round Two – Interview

Only applicants who are successful in Round One will be invited to an interview.

The following should be prepared in advance and submitted by Dropbox to be discussed at your interview:

If you have questions about these requirements, you can contact the NIDA Design department at design@nida.edu.au

1. ARTIST STATEMENT (completed in Word and submitted as a PDF)

This is a statement that describes the kind of artist you are, your career goals, and what attracts you to the Design for Performance course. This should include your understanding of the role of design in the performance industry (this could include stage, screen, or other emerging platforms). Give us an idea of your previous relevant experience.

Your statement should include one example of live performance you have seen recently, whether in-person or recorded, and describe the design elements (set, costume, lighting, video, etc.), explaining the role they played in making meaning in the performance.
(Max 800 words. Include the Production name, the venue and location, and the Design team’s names if possible. Please include up to 5 images, where possible.)

2.  PORTFOLIO (submitted as a PowerPoint or PDF)

Your digital portfolio should demonstrate your design skills and experiences in the arts. This can include work produced in the workplace, at school, at university, at home, or for leisure. A good portfolio will demonstrate your creativity and passion for the arts, as well as your level of design skill (i.e. drawing, model-making, Photoshop, drafting, or creative making).

It should be simply presented and show your best work – it is better to have fewer examples of higher quality! You will be taking us through your portfolio at the interview.

Some examples of things you can include in your portfolio:

• Production photographs from shows you have worked on.
• Photos, drawings, sketchbooks, paintings, illustrations.
• Creative journals, design developments.
• Any making projects, including models, sculptures, costumes, properties, and scenic art.
• Technical work, including technical drawings, props lists, set lists, schedules and production paperwork that shows how you organise yourself.
• Any other “wild-card” items you that you think show us who you are as an artist!

It must be clearly titled with your name as follows:

fullname_statement_BFADFP_2023

fullname_portfolio_BFADFP_2023

Complete and submit your application.

To complete your application, you must pick your availability to attend an interview by selecting a session on the Application Portal.
Only applicants who are successful in Round One will be invited for interview.

All efforts will be made to give successful Round One applicants their preferred interview date but NIDA cannot guarantee the date and time – it is subject to staff availability

You will be advised by email if you are successful in Round One.

If you are successful, you will receive an invitation for Round Two: This will include confirmation of an interview date.

ON THE INTERVIEW DAY

Some tips:

We know that interviews can be stressful, but we will do our best to make your experience as relaxing and enjoyable as possible.

The interview process is friendly, informal, and open, and is designed to give you the best opportunity to show us your potential and readiness to study at NIDA.

Remember, the more time and effort you put into your application and portfolio, the better prepared you will be, and the more you will enjoy the interview.

You will be advised of the outcome of your interview by email.

NIDA does not require students to have studied any particular subjects at school. However, it is beneficial during their period of study at NIDA for students to have a high level of literacy and to have read widely. A strong working knowledge of subjects such as English and History is helpful to provide an understanding of historical context and literary references in theatre and literature. It is helpful to have an understanding of drama and, if possible, to have attended a range of theatre and films. Applicants for some courses often study Design and Technology, Textiles and Design, or similar subjects such as Art. Knowledge of a language other than English and understanding of other cultures is also beneficial. 

For courses such as Properties and Objects, Staging, Design for Performance, and Technical Theatre and Stage Management there is a need to have some numeracy and basic computing skills. For the Staging and Properties and Objects courses there is a need to be comfortable with basic applied algebra, geometry and physical concepts but memorisation is not required and use of these concepts is very practically focused. 

The minimum age for entry into NIDA’s full-time courses is 18 years. Students are expected to be at least 18 years of age at the commencement of their first year, or within a few months of commencement. In exceptional circumstances this condition may be waived. Applicants must be at least 17 years of age at the time of their audition or interview.

Applications from those 16 years and younger will not be accepted.

There is no maximum age restriction. As a guide to the age distribution at NIDA, the ages of students in undergraduate courses at the start of 2016 ranged from 17 years to early 30s, with the average age being 21.

The average age in the Master of Fine Arts courses is 32, with an age range from early 20s to mid-40s.

Application to NIDA is by direct entry. Applicants apply online via the NIDA website.

NIDA will accept applications for the 2022 intake from 1 June to 29 October 2021.

You must then prepare for your audition or interview, the details of which can be found on the course pages.

Students are at NIDA from 9am to 6pm from Monday to Friday. During production terms students may also be required for rehearsals after hours and on weekends.

Additional time also needs to be allocated to library work, research, preparation for classes and private study. For this reason it is difficult for NIDA students to maintain regular part-time jobs. Studying at NIDA is a big commitment so students need to manage their time and resources carefully.

NIDA offers a conservatoire based method of education and training based around intensive practice-based learning.

There is formal class work, practical instruction, lectures and, for some courses, periods of placements in the arts industry. Each course has dedicated time to discipline-specific immersion, as well as common subjects undertaken by students of all disciplines.

NIDA Play Productions and screen work provides practical learning experiences, giving students the opportunity to apply learnt technical skills. Play productions are an important part of NIDA’s higher education courses with usually five productions being produced each semester.

More detailed information about course structure can be found on the individual course pages. 

NIDA’s award winning campus includes a range of facilities available to students:

• the Parade Theatre, seating over 700 people, is equipped with advanced technology in sound, lighting and scenery
• performance spaces of varying sizes. The Parade Studio, Parade Playhouse, Parade Space and Atrium are also utilised for productions
• the state-of-the-art Reg Grundy Studio is used for film and television recording
• the Rodney Seaborn Library, specialising in the performing arts
• computer-aided design (CAD) and multimedia studios
• rehearsal rooms, teaching spaces and music practice rooms
• and workshops for the manufacture of scenery, properties and costumes.

Due to the highly competitive nature of NIDA’s admissions process, you must enrol for the year for which you have been offered a place. You cannot defer acceptance of a place. If you want to enrol in a subsequent year, you will need to apply again the following year and go through the audition/interview process again. There is no guarantee that you will be offered a place next time.

A first year student who discontinues a course of study during the year and wishes to return the following year, must re-apply for admission to NIDA in the normal manner. There is no guarantee of re-admission.

Application for leave of absence by continuing students must be made in writing with reasons to the Head of Course for consideration and recommendation to the Director. Approval for leave of absence can only be granted by the Director/CEO. It should be noted that approval for leave of absence will only be granted under exceptional circumstances.

See NIDA Student Policies for more information. 

There is an optional annual fee of $40 to join the Student Council of NIDA (SCON).While students are provided with the script of any plays they are involved in as part of the NIDA Production Program, students are encouraged to purchase other scripts and textbooks for subjects such as Performance and Ideas.

Acting students must wear “blacks” to class everyday i.e. leotards, jogging pants, sweat pants, simple black tops or T-shirts, so students need to make sure they have at least a couple of sets of blacks to get themselves through the week. Acting students must also supply their own make-up and soft black shoes.

Scenic Construction and Technologies, Design for Performance, Costume, Properties and Objects, Technical Theatre and Stage Management students are required to purchase specific tools and equipment, which should be considered as lifelong investments. Students using workshop spaces are also required to have closed-toe protective footwear. Technical Theatre and Stage Management students should also have a few sets of “blacks” for working on productions.

Design for Performance students are also expected to purchase their own art equipment, drawing paper, cardboard and other material for models and should allow around $1000 for this each year.

To access NIDA wireless (iWIRE) network, students are required to have access to a Laptop (Windows 7 and later), Macbook (Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard or later) or a Tablet (less than three years old with wireless facility). All the devices should comply with 802.11a/b/g/n WPA-Enterprise security.

For file transfers and data backup, a 500GB hard drive or higher and an 8GB USB stick are also recommended, as is a DVD burner, for optimum visual graphics on your computer(Laptop/MacBook/Desktop etc..) a 1GB dedicated graphics card is recommended but not compulsory.

For a full list of additional costs by course please refer to the NIDA Domestic Undergraduate Student Fees Schedule 2022.