The curtain is rising on a compelling new act for musical theatre education in Canada.

Brock University’s Department of Dramatic Arts (DART) is launching the country’s first International Double Degree in Musical Theatre and Education.

“We are thrilled to be building the future of musical theatre education alongside our partners at the University of Portsmouth, offering the opportunity for students to engage in cutting-edge musical theatre training,” says DART Chair and Professor Jennifer Roberts-Smith.

The innovative degree pathway allows Brock students to study in the U.K. at Portsmouth and Portsmouth students to study at Brock during the third year of the program, graduating with two Bachelor of Arts (BA) degrees: in Dramatic Arts from Brock and Musical Theatre from Portsmouth.

Blending courses in music and dramatic arts, the program will prepare students for their future careers with professional training in singing, movement and contemporary musical theatre creation.

“We are equipping the next generation of theatre educators and artists with a high level of practical theatre training as well as critical training in how to teach music and theatre; you need both to produce dynamic musicals in any creative setting,” Roberts-Smith says.

While studying at Brock’s state-of-the-art Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, students will learn and create in a fully equipped professional arts facility that houses a 242-seat theatre, four rehearsal studios, a scenery studio and wardrobe, production and lighting shops.

Roberts-Smith says a key element of the program involves students working alongside leading industry professionals and engaging in work-integrated learning opportunities, notably with Canadian professional theatre company Theatre Aquarius in Hamilton, Ont.

Students will collaborate on the development of a professional musical theatre production through Theatre Aquarius’ National Centre for New Musicals, a transformative force in both Canadian and international theatre.

Mary Francis Moore, Artistic Director of Theatre Aquarius, says education has always been central to the company’s mission and is essential to building a vibrant theatrical future.

“The combination of musical theatre training with education, together with Brock’s partnership with the University of Portsmouth, represents an exciting and much-needed addition to Canada’s post-secondary landscape,” she says. “We see tremendous potential for students to benefit from meaningful engagement with both Canadian and international approaches to musical theatre creation.”

During their time at Brock, students will also help to rewrite the script for theatre education in Canada by participating in the Canada-wide Staging Better Futures/ Mettre en scène de meilleurs avenirs project, which is co-led by DART.

“This new program and our partnership with Theatre Aquarius will continue to shine a spotlight on minoritized voices by supporting reconciliation, equity, anti-racism and access in post-secondary theatre education,” says Roberts-Smith.

Admissions for the new International Double Degree Musical Theatre and Education program are through a workshop-based invitational which includes a vocal audition. More information about the program is available on the DART website.