Conservatoire for Dance and Drama
The Conservatoire for Dance and Drama is a higher education provider registered with the Office for Students and a formal collaboration among six member schools who are committed to the delivery of world leading education and specialist vocational training in the performing arts.
Located at the heart of three vibrant cultural centres in London, Bristol and Leeds, the Conservatoire schools are Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Central School of Ballet, London Contemporary Dance School, National Centre for Circus Arts, Northern School of Contemporary Dance and Rambert School. We train the performing artists and production professionals of the future: actors, circus artists, dancers, stage managers, technical theatre practitioners, choreographers and directors.
Within the Conservatoire there is a balance between the art forms of dance, drama and circus arts, and between classical and contemporary styles. Internationally renowned centres of training, our schools are also creative laboratories: we bring in national and international artists to work with our students and support emerging writers, directors and choreographers in creating and showcasing new work.
Students at our schools value the immersive experience of conservatoire training and its unparalleled access to the performing arts industries, and student satisfaction and teaching are rated consistently highly in the National Student Survey. Each school has an established record of training its students to a professional standard, with excellent employment rates in the fields of dance, drama or circus. Together, we provide a pipeline of expertly-trained performing arts professionals working in the UK’s lucrative creative industries and helping to build the UK’s international reputation.
As a publicly-funded institution registered with the Office for Students, our UK and EU students are eligible for government loans and grants (Student Finance) in the same way as students from any other university, as well as financial support provided by the Conservatoire and the individual schools. We recruit on the basis of talent and potential, irrespective of background, and we audition or interview every eligible applicant.
