BADC: STANDARD COURSE
Friday 27th March – Friday 3rd April 2026
Develop your dramatic combat skills to the next level on this training retreat in a beautiful
country house in Aldeburgh. This is your heroic training montage.
Eat, sleep and breathe your training time – then have the proper downtime to compliment it.
After a highly successful residency course for a private theatre company, we are delighted to be
returning here for 2026 – hopefully with you!
–
Dramatic Combat Training
On this intensive course you will study swordplay and unarmed combat techniques, building a
transferable toolkit of professional skills that will serve you in all of your future dramatic projects.
Over eight days of training you will develop your partner work, physical accuracy and retention
of choreography, while making choices of characterisation, tension and pacing. The week
culminates with delivering a scripted scene that integrates armed and unarmed choreography in
your British Academy of Dramatic Combat (BADC) performance test.
The BADC is the longest-established training academy in the world, with an online Training and
Certification Record of your actor-combatant status. BADC qualifications are recognised by
Spotlight and Equity as the industry standard of training expected of professional performers.
Training is open to participants aged 18+. No other entry requirements or previous experience
required.
“Our course went really well, and the setting definitely contributed to that.
BADC Workshop Participant at Crag Pit 2024
The sun bathed communal spaces meant everyone wanted to
hang out and got to know each other very quickly…
Team spirit really grew”
Residential Course
Get the best benefit from your training by having an intensive day of classes, then rest, relax and socialise with your coursemates in the evening – all with zero commute time.For classes we have an indoor training space with underfloor heating, a courtyard pavilion, and huge lawn for training in the sun. If the weather is fine the beach is just a 20 minute walk away. With a large living room, leafy trees and quiet nooks for reading and journaling, we strive to have the best quality of both training and rest time. Course fee includes three meals a day, with our House Manager to prepare the evening meal and keep everything running smoothly.
SCHEDULE
Fri 27th March: arrival in morning, training 14.00 – 17.30
Sat 28th March: training 09.30 – 17.30
Sun 29th March: training 09.30 – 17.30
Mon 30th March: training 09.30 – 17.30
Tues 31st March: training 09.30 – 17.30
Weds 1st April: training 09.30 – 17.30
Thurs 2nd April: training 09.30 – 17.30
Fri 3rd April: training 09.30 – 17.30
GETTING THERE
We are staying in the beautiful coastal town of Aldeburgh, rich in history, serving incredible fish & chips, and home to composer Benjamin Britten.
By train: the nearest train station is Saxmundham, 1 hour 50 min from London Liverpool Street, where we will pick you up.
By car: there is ample parking space on site to bring your own vehicle.
WHAT’S INCLUDED
- 8 days training in Sword and unarmed dramatic combat
- BADC Standard Level examination, with chance to attain industry-recognised professional certification
- 8 days accommodation
Bedding and linens - 3 meals a day, with evening meal fully catered
- On-site House Manager / Chef
Meet Your Instructor
Robin Hellier is a certified Teacher with the British Academy of Dramatic Combat, a Fight & Intimacy Director for stage and screen, and a Fight / Special Action performer.
He is a tutor on the BA Acting and Fight Performance and the MA Acting for Digital Media courses at East 15, and is a dramatic combat teacher at ArtsEd and Metfilm School London.
Recent stage credits include: The Three Musketeers (Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre), REVENGE: After the Levoyah (UK tour, Soho Theatre London), A Streetcar Named Desire (Lyceum Edinburgh), Romeo & Juliet (Bard in the Botanics), and The Crowning of Poppea (Hampstead Garden Opera). Recent screen credits include: We Few Survivors (Mocap), Let’s Get Out of the City (Hiccup), Kill Your Lover (Switchblade Cinema) and Boudica (Boudeg Ltd).
EARLY BIRD DEADLINE 31ST JANUARY
A £100 deposit is required to secure your spot. Full payment is required four weeks before the
course start date.
Cancellation policy
Up to four weeks before the course start date: full refund of deposit and fee paid.
Within four weeks of course start date: 50% refund of deposit and fee paid.
Once the course has started there are no refunds.
Private Room
£800 (£690 EARLY BIRD)
Catering included
All of the private rooms come with a comfy bed and a writing desk so you can wind down from the hard day in peace.
There are two private rooms with ensuite bathrooms and one on the ground floor with ensuite bathroom and wheelchair access. Please message us early to request one of these rooms as they will be given on a first come first serve basis.
Bed linen, towels, catering and wifi all included.
To apply please fill out the form here
Shared Room
£650 (£550 EARLY BIRD)
Catering Included
You will be sharing with one other person. This is the perfect low cost option, especially if you are applying as a pair! Please let us know if you would prefer a double bed or a twin room. There will be a shared bathroom with either one or two others rooms.
Bed linen, towels, catering and wifi all included.
To apply please fill out the form here
The Shepherd Hut
£650 (£550 EARLY BIRD)
Catering Included
This is a private room inside our Shepherds Hut for the price of a shared room. It is warm and smells of cedar, there is electricity running to it and a double bed with a small desk. The bathroom is inside the house, a stones throw from the front of the hut.
Bed linen, towels, catering and wifi all included.
To apply please fill out the form here
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