Five students stood in a line reading their scripts in a music class

BA (Hons) Musical Theatre (Top-up)

UCAS CODE: MTTU
  • Study Mode: Full Time
  • Location: High Wycombe
  • Duration: One Year
  • Start Date: September 2025

You can also study this course:

Completed a foundation-level degree, HND, or equivalent qualifications in a relevant performance subject?  Top-up your studies to gain a full bachelor’s degree in Musical Theatre.

Work alongside industry specialists as you develop your skills and abilities through the three essential disciplines: Acting, Dance and Singing. Collaborate, create and gain performance experience from full scale musicals to a graduate showcase. With this musical theatre course you’ll become a confident, creative and self-motivated individual, ready to break into the industry.

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Why study BA (Hons) Musical Theatre (Top-up) at BNU?

On our BA (Hons) Musical Theatre course, we’ll ensure the skills and knowledge you learn make you desirable and a key candidate for future employers. You’ll work alongside industry specialists as you develop your skills and abilities through the three essential disciplines: Acting, Dance and Singing. 

You’ll collaborate, create and gain performance experience from full scale musicals to a graduate showcase. With this course you’ll become a confident, creative and self-motivated individual, ready to break into the Musical Theatre industry.

A top-up degree is the equivalent of the final year of an undergraduate degree, and offers a chance to deepen your knowledge, skills and understanding of your subject, while also getting an internationally-recognised qualification. 

If you have completed a foundation-level degree, HND, or equivalent qualifications in a relevant subject, you can choose to top-up your studies to gain a full bachelor’s degree.

We’ve invested in a range of state-of-the-art facilities to help you bring your ideas to life on the musical theatre degree. You’ll benefit from our dance studios, all of which are bright, open spaces, equipped with;

  • overheard gallery lighting
  • audio playback facilities
  • fully sprung floors
  • floor to ceiling mirrors for rehearsals
  • ballet barres
  • Air conditioning

You will also have access to our drama and performance studios, all are kitted-out with everything you’ll need, including;

  • tiered seating
  • sprung floors
  • lighting and sound systems
  • black-out drapes
  • Props and performance blocks

You’ll also have access to high quality camera equipment, a greenscreen room and lighting rigs and sound recording facilities, all suitable for film and TV screening. As well as this you’ll also have access to our props store where you can find everything you’ll need to bring your performances to life, from costumes and wigs, to lamps and even a coffin.

We also understand that during your time at university, it is also just important to get involved with extra-curricular activities. Our Students’ Union offers a range of free societies and nights out for you to enjoy, from musical theatre society to our yearly festiball event, there is something for everyone. 

This BA (Hons) Musical Theatre is led by a dedicated and experienced course team. Benefit from their industry knowledge and the industry links they bring to the course. Many of our guest lecturers are industry-experts and alongside your lecturers, they’ll nurture your learning and professional development.

As part of the Art, Design and Performance School at BNU, you’ll benefit from a practiced-based course, supported by contextual studies. You’ll also have the opportunity to work collaboratively across the university with other courses, ensuring during your studies you are building a varied network, like you would in the real world. Previous joint projects have seen acting students working with film and TV production, audio and music, set design for stage and screen, costume design and making, and hair and make-up students. We’ll support you to find an approach to Musical Theatre that’s uniquely yours and alongside this set you up with the real-world skills you need to secure Musical Theatre work when you graduate.

We're passionate about giving our students as many opportunities as possible, that’s why often invite industry-professionals and our network of successful alumni in to deliver masterclasses, lecturers and feedback sessions. 

What will I study?

The BA (Hons) Musical Theatre equips you with the fundamentals of musical theatre performance skills, enabling you to emerge with the confidence and creativity to launch a career as a performer.

The notion of the ‘thinking practitioner’ is central to our approach on this course, the ability to understand yourself as a performer and have the confidence to engage creatively and thoughtfully with the industry, and its innovations, is at the heart of our working ethos. 

The course is a high-quality practical training designed to hone your performance skills and stimulate your creative thinking. You’ll focus on acting, singing, and dancing throughout the course. You’ll become a member of our repertory musical theatre company, producing both studio and theatre performances.

Upon graduating from this course you’ll be able to show you are a versatile performer, with valuable industry connections, experience and knowledge towards making your passion a career.

How will I be taught and assessed?

Assessment is varied, catering for different learning styles and enabling students to develop a wide range of academic and performance skills. During your musical theatre classes you will attend tutor-led skills workshops which will enhance your skills in acting, text, ballet, jazz technique, singing and voice.

Learning is largely practical and involving a balance of technical and interpretative skills. Some modules involve group work and others will be focussed on the solo performance.

To achieve the full BA (Hons) in Musical Theatre you’ll need to complete the modules listed, as well as an independent project. 

This will allow you to investigate a topic important to you within musical theatre. You will cover the whole research process, undertaking empirical investigation and analysis. You will be allocated a dissertation supervisor, who will offer support and advice.

The Professional Practice module gives you the opportunity to undertake work-based learning or answer live industry briefs, gaining the practical and transferable skills you need for your career in the creative industries.

Useful Documents

BA (Hons) Musical Theatre Programme Specification

Modules

This provides a guide of the modules that make up your course. You can find more information about how your course is structured on our Academic Advice section.

What are the tuition fees

Home
  • Home, Academic Year 2025 - 2026: £9,535 per year *
International
  • Overseas/International, Academic Year 2025 - 2026: £15,150 per year *

Following the Government’s announcement of 4 November 2024, we will be increasing our full-time undergraduate tuition fees for UK students to £9,535 per year from the start of the 2025/26 academic year. Our part-time fees for UK undergraduate students will increase to £7,145 per annum. Please visit , on the Government’s website, for more information about the changes. 

Tuition fees for Home undergraduate students (including with foundation year) may increase in subsequent years for both new and continuing students in line with an inflationary amount determined by the Government.   

Tuition fees for both new and continuing international students may be subject to an inflationary increase based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the 12-month period to 31 January each year.   

Tuition fees for postgraduate courses and CPD may be subject to an inflationary increase based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the 12-month period to 31 January each year. This increase will apply to both new and continuing students.   

We understand, and really appreciate, the significant financial commitment our students make when they choose to study at BNU. We take our responsibilities to our students very seriously, and are ambitious for each to reach their full potential and succeed in their chosen career. Our fees help us to continue providing our students with a high-quality education, and to invest in the services and facilities which create an excellent student experience at BNU. 

The following factors will be considered by the University when we set the annual fees: measures of inflation such as the retail price indices; projected increases in University costs; and any changes in the level of funding for teaching received from the Government.

Additional course costs and financial support

Most courses will involve some additional costs that are not covered by your fees.
You could benefit from financial support through a bursary or scholarship during your time as a student. For more details visit our financial support, bursaries and scholarships section.

Questions about fees?

If you have any questions about the fees above, contact our Enquiries team by calling 0330 123 2023 or emailing advice@bnu.ac.uk.

What are my career prospects?

Throughout your time with us we’ll support you on the route to your chosen career. We’ll help you to develop crucial skills, encouraging you to become enterprising, employable and good leaders. Our Careers and Employability Team also help you find employment after graduation.

Our BA (Hons) Musical Theatre course will help prepare you for a range of career possibilities, such as:

  • West End productions
  • Touring companies
  • Cruise Ships
  • Small scaled educational tours
  • Film and TV
  • UK and internal entertainment companies
  • Teaching
  • Production

Graduates can also choose to further explore the industry with one of our postgraduate degrees.