Music at LAMDA

Integrated approach to Music between our courses and our LAMDA Exams
Music is an integral part of the training LAMDA provides on its acting courses and is offered as a qualification via LAMDA Exams.
The BA (Hons) and MFA Professional Acting students also learn how to teach LAMDA Exams in their final year. This is unique to courses offered at LAMDA.

Musical Theatre courses
We offer Postgraduate courses in Musical Theatre designed to enable graduates of this course to be 'triple threat' industry ready Musical Theatre performers.
Students on this course will perform a public-facing musical production and showcase, work with a range of practitioners, develop their skillset across a range of medium including stage, screen and audio, and benefit from a range of vocational skills classes to ensure they leave prepared for professional life.

Music features on all acting courses
All acting students have music and singing classes as part of their skills training, but these are focused on music skills that may be needed to be an actor, and works in 'harmony' with the rest of the timetable.
We include a collaboration with the Screen and Audio department, and much of the first year of our acting courses focus on singing 'as yourself' and finding the connection between a character's speaking voice and their musical voice.
Industry connections and experienced teaching
Students on all of our courses work with specialist practitioners and industry experts. Meet the LAMDA staff & course leaders and recent visiting creatives to find out more.

Musical Theatre productions
Our Musical Theatre courses feature a public-facing musical production and showcase. In the final term, actors from the BA (Hons) and MFA Professional acting courses perform a musical, supported by the Production and Technical Arts students who work as senior production crew on every production across lighting, sound, stage management and more.

LAMDA Exams in Musical Theatre
Learners can choose from a range of performance or communication qualifications. As part of our performance exams, we offer Musical Theatre solo/duo and group exams for aspiring performers as part of a LAMDA qualification.
Our Musical Theatre learners develop their acting skills through song on our Solo/Duo Musical Theatre exam and our Group Musical Theatre exams encourage learners to develop both their musical and acting skills as a group of 3-15 – performing their scenes and songs together as a full cast.

Alumni adventures into Music

Gusta Matthews
Production & Technical Arts graduate Gusta is currently working with English Touring Opera on their Spring 2022 programme.

Hugh Coles
Hugh Coles is currently in Back to the Future: The Musical, and was nominated for an Olivier Award [2022] for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical.

Harry Hadden-Paton
Harry Hadden-Paton is in My Fair Lady at the London Coliseum playing the role Henry Higgins, which he also played at Vivian Beaumont Theater in 2018. At the same theatre he also performed in 2021’s production Flying Over Sunset, with the role Aldous Huxley.

Nkeki Obi-Melekwe
Nkeki Obi-Melekwe studied on the Semester course and played the role of Tina, in the broadway musical of The Tina Turner Musical.

Natasha Chivers
Natasha Chivers is a lighting designer who trained at LAMDA and now works in theatre and dance. Natasha won an Olivier Award in 2007 for Best Lighting Design for Sunday in the Park with George at The Wyndhams Theatre.

Gemma Goggin
Gemma Goggin is currently playing Rosie in Mamma Mia! at the Novello Theatre.

Annie May Fletcher
Annie May Fletcher provided sound design for Carousel, which ran at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre from 25 July – 25 September 2021
Image: Johan Persson

Alexandra Faye Braithwaite
Alexandra Faye Braithwaite was the sound designer for Bloody Elle – A Gig Musical at the Royal Exchange Theatre, playing from 23 June - 17 July 2021
Image: Bloody Elle

Rebecca Frecknall
Rebecca Frecknall won Best Director at the 2022 Olivier Awards for Cabaret at Playhouse Theatre.

Mark Smith
Mark Smith, 2020 LAMDA Graduate was an Assistant Stage Manager for Anything Goes directed by Kathleen Marshall, playing at the Barbican and on tour in the UK and Ireland.
Image: Barbican Theatre

Robert Emms
Robert Emms is an Actor/Musician who played Pythagoras in the BBC One series Atlantis and was in HBO's mini series Chernobyl.

Eric Stroud
Eric Stroud who graduated in 2018 starred in 101 Dalmatians, a new musical at Regents Park Open Air Theatre running from July to August 2022.

Elinor Peregrin
Elinor Peregrin starred in folk-inspired musical The Red Side of the Moon at the Iris Theatre between 12 – 17 July 2021.

Maria Colette Bukley
Maria Colette Bukley is an Assistant Stage Manager. In 2023 Maria is set to be ASM / Bookcover on the UK & Ireland tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat and has previously worked on 9 to 5 The Musical, Cinderella, Oklahoma and Barnum.