3 years of training | 8 students per year
Our training program allows students to dream and create, while also giving them the tools to make their ideas become reality. To this end, we create a synergy between the reflective, creative, and technical aspects of scenographic practice, so that each facet feeds the others.
Costumes for 7 Stories designed by Erika Parra Bernal (Set and Costume Design, 3rd year, Palmira, Colombia). Shown: costume sketch and finished costume for Percy, character played by Evelyn Wiebe (Acting, 2019, Waterloo, ON)
7 Stories by Morris Panych, directed by Philip Akin presented by the Graduating Class in Acting, Production Design and Technical Arts, and Set and Costume Design, in December 2018
Photo by Maxime Côté
Costume shop at the Monument-National, the School's second campus
Photo by David Ospina
Set up of the exhibition by 2nd-year students in Set and Costume Design. The exhibition showcases copper etchings and 3D-printed maquettes.
Make up class for Set and Costume Design students
Student and teacher in Set and Costume Design
Set maquette created by Joline Rath (Set and Costume Design, 2020, Saskatoon, SK) for a class project on Woyzeck by Georg Büchner
Costumes for Orlando designed by Adriana Bogaard (Set and Costume Design, 2016). Shown: costume sketch and finished costume for Sasha, character played by Maddalena Vallecchi Williams (Acting, 2016).
Orlando by Virginia Woolf, adapted by Sarah Ruhl, directed by Eda Holmes (Directing, 1996), presented by the Graduating Class of 2016 in Acting, Production Design and Technical Arts, and Set and Costume Design in December 2015
Photo by Maxime Côté
Costume sketch by Wendy Kim Pires (Set and Costume Design, 2020, Vendargues, France) for a class project on circus costumes
APPLICATION FORM
Fill out the online application form and pay the registration fee before January 31. We’ll be in touch to let you know about the next steps.
You must be at least 18 years old as of December 31 of the year of entry at NTS.
The admission is currently open to applicants from outside Canada. However, at any time during the application process, the program director reserves the right to refuse an application if the health context is deemed too uncertain to accommodate international students.
PROJECT
Candidates have one month to design the set and costumes of a play to be chosen by the admissions committee. Instructions are sent after the application deadline.
INTERVIEW
Candidates who pass this initial step are invited to an interview during which they are asked to present a portfolio of recent art or theatrical work (originals strongly preferred).
If you are considering applying to the Set and Costume Design program, you can watch two classes that were open to applicants and get a glimpse of the training available.
NTS offers highly individualized training. As such, the curriculum is subject to change, following the latest developments in technology, new artistic practices, and the needs of the unique group of artists making up each class. Our training is always anchored in the field, related to the 20 student shows created each year.
Students are introduced to the language related to the design of space and costumes. They acquire the tools that will allow them to better design and communicate their ideas; classes in carpentry, sewing, 3D model making and technical drawing amongst others. They carry out set and costume design projects, and also collaborate on student productions as members of the hairdressing, make-up, dressing, stage painting, and props teams.
The 2nd year opens up the horizons of scenography by tackling circus, cinema and exhibition scenography. Students integrate the concepts learned in 1st year through various projects. Specifically, they create and realize their first designs for the public productions of 2nd year students in Acting and Interpretation (French section).
Each student designs the sets or costumes for the graduating class shows of the French and English sections, under the guidance of various professional directors. For each of these productions, the student is individually mentored by a professional designer. The 3rd year also includes classes in project management, video integration, and career management, as well as meetings with various artists from the theatre and visual arts sectors.
SCENO is the annual exhibition of the second-year Set and Costume Design students. It is an immersion into the world of design, in all its forms.
SCENO highlight areas of learning that aren’t immediately visible in the final designs, but are crucial to the designer’s training.
The collection of creations highlights the fascinating world of design, as taught at NTS through courses on materials and textiles, patina, sewing, makeup, hair styling, drawing, painting, as well as studying the history of clothing, architecture and lighting, and of course, set and costume design.
Since graduating from the National Theatre School of Canada (Set and Costume Design, 2002), Stéphane Longpré has worked on over a hundred shows as a scenographer, props designer, and assistant scenographer.
Read the bio
Our students are taught and mentored by renowned professional artists.
They share a wealth of theatre experience from across Canada and around the world. NTS has an overall ratio of two instructors per student. Our group of teaching artists varies each year according to student needs.
Micheline Chevrier
Director, artistic director and dramaturge. She has worked at such theatres as The Shaw Festival, the National Arts Centre, Canadian Stage, and many more. She received a Betty Mitchell Award, two Capital Critics Awards, a Dora Mavor Moore Award, and a META.
Pierre-Étienne Locas (Set and Costume Design, 2005)
Pierre-Etienne Locas graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada in 2005 and designs sets, costumes and props for the stage.
He also teaches and leads various design, computer graphics and artistic installations projects.
Theatre credits include: Caligula (TNM), Dance me (BJM), Le chant de Sainte-Carmen de la main (Spectra), Don Giovanni (Montreal Opera), La délivrance (Théâtre d'Aujourd'hui), Le déclin de l'empire américain (PàP), Yellow Moon (Manufacture), Le Joker (Quat'sous), Trahison (Rideau Vert), The Madonna Painter (Centaur), Le vrai Monde (Duceppe), Fame (JPR), The Droplet (Riks Teatret - Oslo/Norway).
Tamara Marie Kucheran (Set and Costume Design, 2000)
Tamara is a graduate of the University of Victoria (BFA with Distinction) and the National Theatre School of Canada. Tamara has had the privilege of working with some of the world's top theatre professionals on stages across Canada including the Stratford and Shaw Festivals.
Recent designs include set and costume for The Color Purple (Neptune Theatre), costume for How He Lied to Her Husband and Man of Destiny (Shaw Festival), set and costume for Salt Baby (The Belfry Theatre), and Cabaret (Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre). Tamara is a recipient of the prestigious Virginia and Myrtle Cooper Award in Costume Design (2017).
Read the Frequently Asked Questions
CONTACT OUR REGISTRATION OFFICE
514-842-7954, ext. 134
The National Theatre School: 1 art school, 9 professional training programs