application guide dance and choreography
APPLY FOR THE DANCE AND CHOREOGRAPHY PROGRAMME
In 2025, The Danish National School of Performing Arts will enrol 10 to 12 students into the Bachelor's Programme in Dance and Choreography in Copenhagen. All students are admitted based on an audition.
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Monday, March 17, 2025, at 12.00 (noon)
In order to apply, you have to fill in an online application form in the application system "Studieoptag". You will be asked to create a user account on your first visit. Please note that you cannot send your application by email or post.
When you fill in the online application form, you must:
- Provide the required personal information in the form.
- Attach a recent photo of your face only (to be used in the application process) (max. 150MB).
- Upload the video audition material. The system only accepts mp4, mov and webm. Use your full name and the number of the task (1-4) as the name of the files.
- Upload your CV (text only, no photos or scan) (max. 1 page, PDF).
- Upload a motivational letter (max. 1 page, PDF).
- Upload a description of an art experience you have had as a spectator in the last two years (not something you participated in yourself). It can be a dance performance you have seen, an art exhibition, a theatre play or a concert. Tell us which artwork it was, what your experience of it was and why you chose to refer to this specific experience. (max. 1 page, PDF)
All information must be given in English.
Be sure to upload the materials to the system on time. Large images and especially video files may take a while to upload if the system is busy or the internet connection is weak.
A fee of DKK 600 will be charged when applying for admission. The fee covers expenses of the audition process. When applying online you will be redirected to a payment site. Your application is only valid once the fee has been paid. The application fee is non-refundable once the application deadline has passed.
- 17 March (12:00 noon): Application deadline (including video audition)
- 11 April: First selection
- 8-10 May: Second Audition with attendance in Copenhagen
- 16 May: Final selection
Based on the video audition, the admission committee will invite a maximum of 30 applicants to the second audition. If you go through to the second audition, you will receive all practical information on 11 April at the latest (four weeks before the second audition). Please note that you will have to confirm your attendance. If you are not invited to go through to the second audition, the admission committee will not be able to give individual feedback.
After the second audition, the admission committee will choose 10-12 applicants who will receive an offer of admission to the programme. Applicants will be notified by email with regards to whether they have been admitted or not at the latest during the week following the second audition. Applicants from the second audition that do not receive an offer of admission may ask for feedback from the admission committee.
first audition
The first selection is based on a video audition. The video audition contains four different tasks.
Task #1
The following video shows the first task and also explains briefly the other three tasks. For sake of clarity, tasks 2, 3 and 4 are also explained below, in text.
Task #2
The second task is to learn the phrase presented in the video below and film yourself doing the phrase twice, in one recording with no cuts. You can use the music that is used in the recording that you learn the phrase from or do it in silence but do not use any other music.
TASK #3
The 3rd task is an improvisation of 2 minutes. It should be in silence and include
- variations in speed, including stillness
- travelling in space using the full frame of your recording
TASK #4
The 4th task is to record yourself executing a set piece of choreography that you have choreographed yourself. It should be between 1 and 3 minutes long.
VIDEO FORMATS AND UPLOAD
- All video recordings should be made with a fixed camera position.
- We do not require a professional recording, but the sound and light must be sufficient to be able to assess you. It is best to avoid backlight.
- You should make one video file per task.
- Use your full name and the number of the task as the name of the file.
- All four videos must be uploaded through the application portal at studieoptag.dk
- The video must be in one of the following formats: mp4, mov or webm
- You can upload until the end of the application deadline, but you must be aware that it can take up to 10 minutes to upload the file, so we recommend that you start well in advance.
HOW DOES THE VIDEO AUDITION TAKE PLACE AND WHO SEES THE VIDEO?
- The members of the admissions committee watch the videos individually.
- The videos will not be shown to anyone other than the admission committee.
- The videos are not forwarded to anyone.
- The videos are viewed in their entire length.
- Headphones are used so that the sound is as optimal as possible.
- A large screen is used so that everything appears clearly.
If you have any questions contact studieadm@scenekunstskolen.dk.
Second audition
The second audition takes place over a period of three days. Attendance in Copenhagen is required. All applicants will be joined in one group for some sessions and divided into smaller groups in others. The audition will include:
- technical exercises
- improvisational tasks
- compositional tasks
- group work
- individual interview
A more detailed schedule will be sent out together with the invitation to the second audition.
The admission process and the interviews will be in English. The admission committee will assess the applicants’ level of oral English. If the admission panel is not convinced that an applicant has a sufficient level of English to complete the programme, they might ask for detailed documentation of the applicant’s proficiency in English.
The admission committee consists of the Head of the programme, at least one student representative, a faculty teacher, and an external member, approved by the Danish Ministry of Culture.
The admission committee looks for the following qualities:
- Curiosity to explore the subject area within the framework of the programme.
- Motivation to engage in complex and collective artistic processes and learning environments.
- Ability to articulate your artistic practice.
- Clarity in understanding and executing movement.
- Ability to improvise and to perform.
- Ability to work with concentration and to incorporate feedback.
- Communicative and collaborative skills.
Each applicant need not necessarily possess all the qualities mentioned above. The admission committee will make an overall assessment of the applicants based on the auditions in their entirety. In their selection, the admission committee can take the coherence of the group into consideration.
Please write studieadm@scenekunstskolen.dk if you have questions about the application procedure.
Appeals against the decision of the admission committee can be made via the Principal of the Danish National School of Performing Arts. This must be done within two weeks of receiving the decision. The Principal adjudicates the complaint and provides any further guidance concerning complaint procedures. If the complaint concerns the academic decision on admission to the programme, the decision cannot be appealed further. If the complaint concerns legal issues such as disqualification or compliance with the deadline for submitting applications, the Principal's decision may be appealed via the Minister of Culture within two weeks of receiving the Principal's decision.
