The Institution
RESAD is the oldest Spanish theatre school and one of the most prestigious in Europe. Queen Maria Cristina of the Two Sicilies, wife of King Fernando VII, founded the institution, the first in Spain dedicated to “the interesting and difficult art of declamation or scenic performance" and in 1831 the Royal Conservatory of Music and Declamation opened. With different names over the years the Declamation Division of the Royal Conservatory in 1952 definitively became the Royal Academy of Performing Arts (Real Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático). In the decade of the 1970’s several professionals introduced the types of theatrical innovation that were already being implemented in the rest of Europe. Since 1992, the RESAD offers the degree of GRADUATE in Dramatic Art within Higher Education level in three different fields: Acting; Stage Direction and Playwriting; and Set Design. Workshops and seminars in our different disciplines are also offered in our Institution as well as apprenticeship inside and outside RESAD.
Since 1831 the RESAD has trained professionals in the world of theatre through specialized degree programs and a personalized teaching approach enabling students to excel in all theatrical areas and skills. Each degree follows a four-year program. The teaching is fundamentally practical, but also includes a theoretical and artistic approach. It combines both a creative and philosophical approach on the one hand, and a technical and professional vision on the other. |
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Resources and services
Our modern building, inaugurated in 1998, hosts two full theaters: Sala García Lorca, a 100 seat black box, and Sala Valle Inclán, a 500 seat for larger productions, as well as two extra venues for smaller productions. In addition to classrooms, rehearsal spaces and construction workshops, RESAD hosts a costume collection and a library housing one of Spain’s best collections on theater literature. Our installations allow to fulfill our mission as a mainly theatre practice-based learning institution and facilitator of theatre experiences and performance events open to the audience.
RESAD includes 6 teaching departments (Movement, Voice, Design, Directing, Playwriting and Acting), together with the Production, Publishing and International Relations Departments, a faculty of more than 70 lectures and professors and a prime location in the centre of Madrid near the Retiro Park makes RESAD a privilege place to study. Madrid is the capital of Spain and one of the largest Spanish cities. It has an estimated population of six and a half million inhabitants (counting the residents of the metropolitan area) and is considered one of the cities that offer the best quality of life in the world. The headquarters of the most important government bodies, such as the General Courts and the Ministries are in MADRID, as well as being the place where the King and the President of Spain officially reside. Besides that, you can find an intense cultural life, being the home of important museums such as El Prado y Reina Sofía, famous old theatres such as Teatro María Guerrero, Teatro de la Comedia or the Opera House, as well as contemporary venues such as Teatro Valle Inclán or Sala Cuarta Pared, and many, many other young and vibrant small venues which make Madrid one of the most exciting creative scenes in Europe. Theatre and nightlife are also at their best here! |
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Mission Statement
The Real Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático (RESAD) is one of the oldest Performing Arts training institutions of Higher Education in the world. Founded in 1831 for almost two hundred years RESAD has been the place where actors have been trained and, for three decades, also directors, playwrights, set designers and costume and lighting designers. In addition to being a high-performance training centre, it is also a space for creation, where more than seventy shows are generated per year; full productions that are presented in the two theatres part of our facilities. For three decades, RESAD has also developed a significant editing work allowing the publication of countless theatrical and theoretical texts. In addition to its commitment to education in the fields of theatre history, performance theory and practice, contemporary creation, as well as the conservation and dissemination of our theatrical heritage, RESAD is also dedicated to developing research and promoting pedagogy and innovation in the stage field. One of our priorities in the management at the head of this institution is to open RESAD abroad and maintain a constant dialogue with society, the creative network and professional scene, to strengthen links with our graduates and with other artistic or university institutions, both national and international, and to seek formulas to enrich ourselves through contact and exchange among artistic disciplines. Pablo Iglesias Simón. Director |
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Statement of Contribution to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
RESAD is committed to providing accessible and equitable living, learning and working environments free from discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, age, sex (including pregnancy), political affiliation, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or disability. |
Since 1992, RESAD offers three degrees within Spanish Regulation on Artistic Teachings in Higher Education. The qualification corresponds to the European Qualifications Framework level 6. November 19, 2020, the new Law of Education LOMLOE was approved in the Congress of Deputies. This law restates the official recognition of the qualification awarded as Graduate Degree in Dramatic Art. On successful graduation from the programme, the graduate obtains his/her Title as Graduate in Dramatic Art within one of the three specialities that are imparted at RESAD:
At the end of their studies, Graduates in Dramatic Art specializing in Acting must have acquired the following specific competences:
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Mastering the expressive resources required in acting.
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Participating in the creation and interpretation of the score and/or character through the mastery of different acting techniques.
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Interacting with the rest of the languages in the performance.
Studying to conceive and support the personal creative process, both in terms of work methodology and aesthetic renovation.
The professional profile defined by the specialization of Acting corresponds to that of an artist, a creator, performer and communicator of signs who uses himself/herself as an instrument, involving all his expressive resources, body, voice and his cognitive and emotional resources, and is able to put them at the service of the production. He or she develops a personal artistic vision that combines with that of the other artists participating in a common artistic project. This professional will be also qualified for the exercise of research and teaching.
At the end of their studies, Graduates in Dramatic Art specializing in Stage Direction and Playwriting must have acquired the following specific competences:
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Conceiving stage proposals around which performances are based, generating and analysing the different concepts, texts and images and evaluating their representative properties and aesthetic quality.
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Designing the composition of the performance by using all the necessary aesthetic and technical knowledge of the different languages involved in the performance.
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Planning and guiding the general process for producing the show, applying the appropriate work methodology.
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Inquiring in order to conceive and support a personal creative process, both in terms of work methodology and aesthetic renovation.
- Using different methods for studying the performance event.
The professional profile defined by the specialization of Stage Direction and Dramaturgy corresponds to that of an artist who considers the process of theatrical creation as a whole and understands, uses, coordinates and manages the various languages that participate in the creation of a show. Develops a personal artistic project while, with the possible collaboration of artists and specialists, harmonizes and arranges the different elements of scenic creation in a given space and time, trying to elicit emotions, sensations and ideas in the viewer through the word and the image. This professional will be trained to carry out research and teaching.
At the end of their studies, Graduates in Dramatic Art specializing in Set Design must have acquired the following specific competences:
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Conceiving ideas and proposals that form the basis of the creation of the design, exploring the dynamics of the space, the human body and light and evaluating their representative properties and aesthetic quality.
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Planning of the composition of the design by using the technical and representation procedures learned.
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Planning and monitoring the materialization of the creative process, applying the appropriate work methodology.
Studying to conceive and support the personal creative process, both in terms of the work methodology and the student’s aesthetic development. At the end of their studies, Graduates in Dramatic Art specializing in Set Design must have acquired the following specific competences:
-
Conceiving ideas and proposals that form the basis of the creation of the design, exploring the dynamics of the space, the human body and light and evaluating their representative properties and aesthetic quality.
-
Planning of the composition of the design by using the technical and representation procedures learned.
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Planning and monitoring the materialization of the creative process, applying the appropriate work methodology.
- Using different methods for studying the performance event.
The professional profile defined by the specialization of Scenography corresponds to that of an artist, thinker and communicator of images who basically uses the language of both the space and the objects and beings that inhabit it. He or she develops a personal artistic vision that is combined with that of other artists participating in a common artistic project or communication goal.
The programmes at RESAD are described in the Order 1856 of June 9, 2016, from the Education Council in the Community of Madrid, which endorses the authorization and the implementation of RESAD’s School Curricula Project as a Public Institution for Artistic Teaching of Dramatic Art in Higher Education. These curricula recognize different programme options within the three specialities you can study at the School.
Acting in Text-Based Theatre
Acting in Physical Theatre
Acting in Musical Theatre
Stage Direction
Playwriting
Set Design
Admission in each of the study programmes is organised according to the Admission Regulations of the School (Real Decreto 628/2022, June 10) given by The Regional Council of Education in the Community of Madrid, which are endorsed by the RESAD for each coming academic year. http://resad.es/acceso.htm
Following the entrance exams – one first exam is common tests for all specializations, and a second one, a specific audition for each of the programmes – every July new students are admitted at RESAD. To be eligible for the entrance exams, the candidates must hold an accredited Secondary School Degree. All those students who wish to access Higher Education in Artistic Teachings and are not in possession of the Bachelor’s Degree nor have passed the University entrance exam for those over 25 years of age have the possibility of taking a maturity test. To be able to register the candidate must be 18 years old or older, within the year in which the exams are held.
To be able to study in RESAD two requirements must be met: 1. Pass the audition process and obtain one of the places offered, which will be distributed in order of the grade obtained in the exam. 2. Be in possession of the required Degree.
RESAD has 350 students in total, maximum rate of 14 students per class.
There is a legal framework for the recognition of other studies, non-formal education or informal learning, as well as professional experience in the field. Every year the Dirección General de Universidades y Enseñanzas Artísiticas Superiores from the Regional Council of Education in the Community of Madrid issues the instructions for the academic year, which explains the process, the criteria, and the specific arrangements for the recognition of prior learning.
The graduates in any of the programmes in RESAD are eligible for further studies at Postgraduate Level (Master and Doctorate).
Here you can find the individual educational components, courses units (subjects) that form the different programmes in RESAD. These subjects are presented in alphabetical order. The following are the list of acronyms used and their description:
Area of specialisation:
— ITT (Interpretación en el Teatro Textual) – Acting in Text-Based Theatre
— ITG (Interpretación en el Teatro Gestual) – Acting in Physical Theatre
— ITM (Interpretación en el Teatro Musical) – Acting in Musical Theatre
Subject type:
— FB (Formación Básica) – Core subject
— OE (Obligatoria de Especialidad) – Compulsory in the specialisation
Subject nature:
— P – Practical
— T – Theoretical
— TPT – Theoretical and Practical
ECTS Grade | Spanish Grade | ECTS Appreciation | Spanish Appreciation |
A+ | 10 | Honours | Matrícula de Honor |
A | 9,00-9,99 | Excellent | Sobresaliente |
B | 7,00-8,99 | Very Good | Notable |
C | 5-6,99 | Good | Suficiente |
D | 5-6,99 | Good | Suficiente |
E | 5-6,99 | Good | Suficiente |
F | <5 | Failure | Insuficiente |
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GRADE DISTRIBUTION TABLE
(2018-2020 statistics)
ECTS Grade | Spanish Grade | ECTS Appreciation | Students (% per subject) |
A+ | 10 | Honours | 3% |
A | 9,00-9,99 | Excellent | 40% |
B | 7,00-8,99 | Very Good | 44% |
C | 5-6,99 | Good | 12% |
D | <5 | Failure | 1% |
Average score - graduated students | STUDENTS 150 |
GOOD 5 - 7 |
VERY GOOD 7 - 9 |
EXCELLENT 9 - 10 |
HONOR |
Acting in Text-based Theatre | 32% | 4% | 96% | ||
Acting in Physical Theatre | 19% | 3% | 97% | ||
Acting in Musical Theatre | 16% | 100% | |||
Playwriting | 9% | 18% | 76% | 6% | |
Stage Direction | 10% | 5% | 95% | ||
Set Design | 14% | 100% | |||
TOTAL (2018-2020) |
100% | 4% | 95% | 1% |
Recognition procedures and transfer of credits for outgoing students
Through the Academic Organization Commission (COA), RESAD will directly approve, without the student’s mediation, the automatic recognition of the learning results recorded in the transcript of grades sent by the host institution, and according to the following protocol: guidance by the responsible person within the students’ speciality teaching department prior to their mobility, monitoring of the activities during the mobility period that may affect the learning agreement and recognition and conversion of grades (certificate of records) obtained at the destination institution after the mobility.
The European supplement to the degree (SET) is a document that accompanies the university degrees of official status and validity throughout the national territory, with information unified for whole Europe, customized for every college entitled, on their studies, the results obtained, acquired professional skills and the level of your qualification in the national system of higher education. Its fundamental objective is to facilitate the recognition of the academic curriculum of the entitled in companies and foreign and national institutions.
Following the instruction given by Spanish legislation Real Decreto 22/2015, January 23 [https://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2015/02/07/pdfs/BOE-A-2015-1158.pdf] RESAD is working with the Dirección General de Universidades y Enseñanzas Artísiticas Superiores in Regional Council of Education in the Community of Madrid in the implementation of European Title Supplement.