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Email academic.registry@tcd.ieThe MFA in Stage Design for Lighting Design, Costume Design and Set Design is a one-year practical programme for professionals looking to explore their creativity and passion for stage design and specialise in their chosen field.
The MFA in Stage Design brings together a cohort of designers from the fields of set design, costume design and lighting design to create a collaborative learning environment in which to explore their own stage design processes.
The course is run alongside the MFA in Playwriting, MFA in Theatre Producing and the MFA in Theatre Directing. Students on all three programmes work together to develop a shared understanding of contemporary theatre practice and to think creatively and critically about the making of innovative theatre work.
In addition to classes, workshops and design projects, the Course Director of Stage Design will offer individual and group tuition. This is a key feature of The Lir’s training and works to advance the students’ learning, challenge ideas and build resilience in a supported environment. In combination with masterclasses with visiting practitioners, students will graduate with a strong awareness of the theatre industry, a network of emerging theatre professionals and a strong collaborative skill set to bring to their work.
Professional placements and observation of work in development are a key feature of the programme, and all students will showcase their own work publicly at the culmination of the course.
If you have a passion for theatre, stage design and creative collaboration, you should consider the MFA in Stage Design. Set and Costume Design applicants may come from other disciplines but with a knowledge of stage design. Lighting Design candidates will need a working technical knowledge of theatre lighting.
This programme allows students to specialise in or combine stage design disciplines (set and costume design, set and lighting design etc.) and is tailored to provide talented individuals with the necessary skills to pursue a career in professional theatre and related industries.
Students elect to take this course either full-time (12 months) or part-time (24 months).
Full-time students take modules in Theatre in Context (10 ECTS), Contemporary Theatre Practice (10 ECTS), and two elective modules (20 ECTS x 2) in the first two terms, and Production Design (30 ECTS) in the third term and subsequent summer months.
Students who elect to take the course part-time ordinarily complete:
- Year 1: Theatre in Context (10 ECTS), Contemporary Theatre Practice (10 ECTS); 2 elective modules (20 ECTS x 2) - Year 2: Production Design (30 ECTS)
The final Production Design module will be taught by an ongoing series of individual tutorials.
Students will take two core modules:
- Theatre in Context & Contemporary Theatre Practice: enables students to become conversant in the styles, forms, theories and practices that constitute contemporary theatre making in Ireland and abroad.
- Production Design: individual supervision of two placements as assistant to a professional designer, and realisation of a design for public viewing in one of The Lir’s studios.
Students will choose 2 elective modules majoring in 1 design module and minoring in another module. Elective modules are: Set Design Workshop, Costume Design Workshop, Lighting Design Workshop, Dramaturgy for Stage Design.
MFA Stage Design (Lighting) Graduate Pedro Pacheco chats to us about his experience doing the MFA in Stage Design (Set, Costume &/or Lighting).
September 2025
Gavin O'Donoghue, Director of Actor Training and Postgraduate Programmes
31st March 2025
Applicants must fill out all the information required on the online form, which includes the submission of two references, one academic and a professional reference, copies of the transcripts of previously completed education levels, and a CV.
In addition, applicants are also required to upload a copy of the following documents separately, within the Additional Documents section:
a) Letter of application – a letter that outlines the applicant’s theatre education and design experience to date. This may also include experience in other areas of theatre, especially work in technical theatre. Ideally, applicants will have some experience in their chosen major to be accepted on to the course or otherwise demonstrate previous engagement with the performing arts or a passion for adapting their skillset to their chosen discipline. Candidates for the Lighting Design Major must have technical experience in the field.
b) Statement of purpose – a statement outlining the applicant’s ambitions in terms of stage design. Applicants should describe the role of theatre in their life, justify the choice of a career as a designer in their chosen major, and why they wish to pursue further education.
c) Portfolio – a portfolio of the applicant’s theatre work to date, including visual accounts of work processes and finished pieces, as well as illustration of the conceptualising and research work developed (sketches, swatches, model boxes, technical plans, etc).
All applicants to Trinity are required to provide official evidence of proficiency in the English language. Applicants to this course are required to meet Band B (Standard Entry) English language requirements for their application to be considered for shortlisting to the programme. For more details of qualifications that meet Band B, see the English Language Requirements page here.
For a full list of postgraduate fees, click here.
To apply, click on the relevant Apply Link below
Register your interest in studying at Ireland’s leading university, Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin.
