UNDERGRADUATE
COURSES
ACT
Fusing acting and vocal techniques in pursuit of dynamic performance excellence
MAKE
Creating the next generation of pioneering theatre makers & creatives
MOVE
Synthesising movement technique and physical practice toward total embodiment​
COLLABORATE
Celebrating the individual within the ensemble and harnessing the power of community
Approach to Training
Teaching is delivered in small groups (approx. 14 students) and you’ll receive ongoing individual constructive feedback as well as holistic, developmental and pastoral support from the Training Team.
The main components of your training are:
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Practitioner led studio work
Collaborative research-led projects
Masterclasses
Seminars
Rehearsals
Performances
Showcases
Films
Feedback tutorials
Self-guided learning
There are also numerous enhancement opportunities which serve to widen your perspective, enhance your professional engagement and physically and mentally prepare you for the training ahead.
Each student body has multiple reps to cover various areas of student life.
BUBBLE REPS: Responsible for passing information between the training group and their Course Leader.
SOCIAL REPS: Responsible for organising a range of fully-inclusive social events.
There are a range of Monkey Socials scheduled throughout the academic year including:
the Fourth Monkey Launch Party; Monkey and a Mic nights; Christmas Boat Party; and Monkey Quiz nights.
BA (Hons) Acting
Course Overview
Our BA (Hons) Acting degree courses are designed and delivered by experienced, professional actors, directors, theatre makers, practitioners and scholars who are passionate about actor training and have a wealth of domestic and international experience. The courses continue to be shaped by their ongoing work within the industry and their knowledge of the most relevant techniques.
We work and train with an emphasis on the ensemble.
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Prepare for a career in theatre, film and performance as you undertake world-renowned, interdisciplinary actor training.
Develop as an actor with depth and professional integrity.
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Devise, create and produce bold and original work.
Course Delivery
You’ll work in the studios of The Monkey House on your timetable of classes, workshops, seminars, rehearsals and performances.
Each day you’ll challenge and enhance your skillset - developing the capacity, dexterity and performance fitness (mental and physical) required for professional acting work.
Alongside introductions to key artistic, socio-political, and philosophical principles, you’ll have multiple live and screen performance opportunities, including a West End venue for your final year industry showcase.
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At Fourth Monkey, we celebrate the individual. We offer you the opportunity to develop your expressive and interpretive skills as an actor and push you to discover and embrace your unique voice.
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You will graduate with the necessary skills to work in classical and contemporary theatre, television, film, radio and the digital world, as well as being an accomplished artist in your own right. Students are entitled to full Equity status upon graduation and qualify for inclusion on Graduate Spotlight as a key part of their professional progression to industry.
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The BA (Hons) Acting degree is built upon the four pillars of the Fourth Monkey training philosophy: 
ACT. MAKE. MOVE. COLLABORATE.
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The Fourth Monkey BA courses are truly multi-disciplinary. In your preparations for digital and screen performance, you'll be trained in motion capture and stage combat; learn the art of screen-writing; develop a professional voice-reel; and produce a short film - all before shooting your graduate showreel scenes.
You'll prepare for your contemporary and classical stage productions with a study of theatrical methodologies and techniques from all over the world including Grotowski, Suzuki and Butoh.
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We deliver unique and innovative actor training, underpinned by the Meisner and Lecoq methods, that produces employable and proactive artists into the industry.
Course Progression
Often imitated but never surpassed, our BA (Hons) Acting courses prepare you for a successful and sustainable career in the arts.
The learning pathway has been forged with your future in mind which is why our actors graduate feeling confident and ready to carry the fire with them into the industry.
Starting with the fundamental elements of performance and culminating in an array of live and recorded performances, your journey to becoming a professional actor begins at Fourth Monkey.
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Level 4
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In the first two study blocks of your training, you will encounter the fundamentals of acting and creating work for both stage and digital performance through multidisciplinary studio practice. Your training will be embodied and far-reaching, exploring work through an international, multidisciplinary, and multicultural lens. Focused equitably on both stage and screen you will embark on a learning journey that encompasses Fourth Monkey’s four key pillars of learning with the focus on developing employable skills as an actor, mover, vocal artist and collaborative creative maker across all industry mediums.
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Level 5
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In these two study blocks you can expect to expand and continue to develop your core skills, but also to acquire a more advanced expressive range and technical capacity in different media. You will be required to apply these skills to interpreting and generating more complex material for performance, take more responsibility for your development and encounter more sophisticated practices and styles, alongside beginning to test your skills against the requirements of professional contexts and structures. A higher level of practical independence is expected, and the balance of taught classes and sessions is weighted more to rehearsal sessions for performance, within which you will be expected to actively bring together all your skills from your studio practice.
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Level 6
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In the final two study blocks you can expect to shape and present yourself and your skills in both live and digital performance in a variety of public and professional contexts to industry. This culminates in your industry showcase in a central London venue and the compilation of your professional portfolio. Your portfolio will incorporate your showreels and voice reel whilst you will also undertake professional preparation sessions with leading industry figures from agents to casting directors, voice-over agents to motion-capture specialists, intimacy coordinators to headshot photographers whilst also undertaking your stage combat examination as part of your training journey. You will be expected to adapt your personal process and approach to meet the demands of varying professional practitioners, directors, and environments and to independently conceive, develop and realise your own original work for both live performance and film. Performances will be open to the public, and you will be working with external professional directors and engaging with industry gatekeepers as you launch your professional career.
Discovering What Moves Me...
20 Credits
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​Through international techniques such as Grotowski and Lecoq, you will develop body awareness, visual, aural and spatial awareness and physical and rhythmical co-ordination. These techniques will also promote physical expression, artistic exploration and personal development.
Play!
20 Credits
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The work in this module begins with (your)self and the exploration of who you are with reference to practitioners such as Stanislavski and Meisner, Rodenburg and Houseman.
Consequentially, you will explore:
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Your perception of (your)self
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Your connection to who you are
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Your impulses, intuition and imagination
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Your personal habits and cultural identity
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Comfort and growth zones
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Connection to your true voice
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Skills of improvisation and musicality
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Your work will be underpinned by Fourth Monkey’s multidisciplinary ethos and core principles of exploration and discovery.
Who Am I?
20 Credits
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This module will give you the opportunity to take creative risks, make bold choices and convey your own artistic and creative ideas.
With reference to practitioners such as Decroux and John Wright, the classes in this module will:
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Equip you with a framework for the process of creating your own work
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Aid you to identify the processes which facilitate self-exploration
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Cultivate the confidence to use (your)self to generate creative offers
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Enable you to recognise and evaluate your own individual successes and needs in a variety of contexts
Technique Into Performance
20 Credits
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The classes in this module will focus on transferring acting technique into scene work. It will give you the opportunity to begin developing your ability to make clear character choices, explore character relationship and understand the beginnings of stage craft for performance.
The classes in this module will reference practitioners such as Uta Hagen and Sanford Meisner.
Expressive Exploration
20 Credits
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This module will explore the body as the theatre maker’s tool for physical expression and the actor’s tool for creating character. These contexts will require you to explore making creative offers outside of your habitual responses as well as give you the opportunity to learn how to look after your own body and recognise its individual needs.
This module will also include further international influences such as Butoh and Suzuki.
Creating My Own Work
20 Credits
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This module will afford you the opportunity to collaborate with your peers in small working groups on a self-generated devising project in order to collectively conceive a piece of theatre.
You will explore your own way of working and what you need to do in order to support this work. You will also investigate how you communicate your creative and artistic ideas to an audience and within a professional working environment.
BA (Hons) vs. BA (Hons) Accelerated Degree
The main difference between the BA courses is structure. The Accelerated Degree condenses three years of modules and class content into a more intensive course of study with less holiday period. There are many personal pros and cons to consider when deciding between a two-year or three-year course of study.
Our friendly Admissions Team are always happy to discuss the differences and guide you to the best option for you.
Further Enhancement and Professional Development
As a BA (Hons) Acting student, you’ll benefit from subsidised (and sometimes free) access to our extensive range of enrichment and professional development workshops and short courses.
You’ll also have the chance to become a year group representative. You'll play a vital role in shaping your training and the school during your time here and help us to celebrate the student voice.
CertHE Acting & Theatre Making
Course Overview
Develop your artistry and prepare for the next step in your professional career with the support of our dedicated team of industry professionals and practitioners.
Through this fully funded course, taught by inspiring and experienced tutors, you’ll find your place in the industry and explore and discover a variety of skills.
The CertHE is a rigorous acting foundation course delivered in a collaborative ensemble environment and designed as a solid foundation for onward training journeys.
You’ll learn core skills in acting, movement, voice, performance, creative theatre & filmmaking.
Feed your curiosity, creativity and confidence as a performer and theatre-maker.
Explore a variety of techniques and practices whilst developing your own work.
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Discover your creative potential and find your place in the industry.
Designed for those at the start of their professional acting journey. The training is intensive and full-time with workshops, seminars, rehearsals and performances experienced through the four pillars of the Fourth Monkey training philosophy: 
ACT. MAKE. MOVE. COLLABORATE.
Course Delivery
Our dynamic, full-time training in acting, text, movement and voice, incorporates screen acting, stage craft, audition preparation, puppetry, clown and more all taught by experienced industry professionals in a creative and inclusive learning environment.
You’ll gain real-world industry knowledge alongside practical experience in technique classes, workshops and masterclasses in disciplines such as: Meisner, Uta Hagen, Laban, Lecoq, Screen Acting, Classical & Contemporary Scene Study and Stage Combat.
Unlike other drama school foundation courses, we give you the opportunity to showcase your skills as actors, performers, and creative artists in public performances at the conclusion of the CertHE course.
The CertHE course is delivered at The Monkey House, London. Hours of delivery take place during weekday evenings and Saturday daytime to enable students to support themselves through daytime employment.
Course Progression
Performance Project
Contemporary Play or Ensemble Devised
We ensure that you have all the skills and tools necessary to support your onward professional journey.
Over 90% of our CertHE Acting & Theatre Making students are regularly successful in gaining places on either our own BA (Hons) Acting or other accredited acting courses upon completion of the training.
Enhancement Opportunities
As a CertHE Acting & Theatre Making student, you’ll also benefit from subsidised (and sometimes free) access to our extensive range of enrichment and professional development workshops and short courses.
You’ll also have the chance to become a teaching or year group representative, playing a vital role in shaping your training and the drama school during your time here.
FAQs
We recruit a maximum of 42 students to this course.
