BFA Live Experience Design & Production
Design and produce unforgettable live experiences - from concerts to immersive art installations, sports and theatre, and beyond.
Live Experience Design & Production isn’t just a degree - it’s your launchpad into the global entertainment industry.
Through a unique partnership between Pennsylvania College of Art & Design [PCA&D] and the Academy of Live Technology at Rock Lititz, this four-year BFA combines creative foundations with hands-on, industry-driven learning. Master everything from storytelling and design to audio, lighting, staging, and production management - preparing you to thrive in the fast-paced world of live events.
Why choose
this course?
Split your time between PCA&D’s downtown Lancaster campus and the Rock Lititz campus - home to world-class touring productions. Learn alongside the companies powering the entertainment industry, gaining immersive experience in the very spaces where global concerts, festivals, and experiences are designed, built, and launched.
From your first semester, you’ll work with professional gear and spaces programming lights, building stages, and designing immersive visuals. You’ll spend your practical learning in industry-leading studio spaces, giving you immediate, hands-on experience in the fast-paced world of live experience production.
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This course fuses creative thinking with technical know-how. Combining design, storytelling, and production technology across lighting, sound, visuals, and staging. Whether you’re shaping a festival stage or delivering a global livestream, you’ll gain the skills to take bold ideas from concept to curtain call.
Learn from industry pros and get hands-on through internships, senior studios, and real-world projects. You’ll graduate ready to jump into live music, sports, corporate, and immersive events - with the skills, connections, and confidence to thrive in live experience production.
Course content
On the BFA in Live Experience Design & Production, you’ll learn the technical, design, and management areas of live events including production, lighting design and technology, live sound, and live visuals. You’ll also learn the business of live events in areas like theater, live music, concert touring, and corporate and sporting events.
Through a core curriculum in art & design history, theory, technology, hands-on studio work, and practical field experience, you’ll gain foundational knowledge of the skills used in experience design.
You’ll gain professional experience at an internship site and complete a year-long senior studio, culminating in the creation of an interactive experiential environment as part of PCA&D’s Senior Show.
Find out more about your classes and modules in PCA&D’s Academic Catalogue.
Associate of Arts Degree
You can also choose to study Live Experience Design & Production as an Associate of Arts Degree [AA] in two years, rather than the full four years at BFA.
The AA Degree curriculum encompasses the first two years of the BFA Degree. It provides students with foundation skills in art and design as well as the first level in the Design and Production sequence with an emphasis on creative technology.
The AA Degree provides a credential option for students who may not require the full BFA degree.
Interested in BFA Live Experience Design & Production?
Careers & Employability
BFA Live Experience Design & Production strikes a balance between theory and practice, preparing you to be a creative, contemplative problem-solver and experience designer. Through teamwork and mentorship, you’ll acquire firsthand experience, knowledge of the industry, and concrete skills you can carry with you into a wide range of professional practices after graduation.
On receiving your BFA in Live Experience Design & Production from PCA&D, you’ll be prepared for roles like:
- Production Manager
- Tour Manager
- Lighting Programmer
- Sound Engineer
- Stage Manager
- Lighting Designer
- Video & Content Designer
- Artist Liaison
- Experience Designer
- Technical Manager
- Video Production Manager
The Live Experience Design and Production program and community pushes your limits while offering support and real-world connections. Whether you’re serious about live events or want to experience and find if it’s the right fit for you, this is the place to be.
Facilities
The PCA&D campus is situated in the heart of Lancaster city’s exciting arts district. Whilst studying at PCA&D, you can utilise specialist creative spaces, photography studios, digital media labs, printmaking, painting, and sculpture studios.
The College is centered in a bustling and vibrant community that boasts more than 125 arts venues including galleries, museums, theaters, concert stages, poetry sites, and public art installations.
The Rock Lititz campus offers a range of cutting-edge learning spaces including computer labs, classrooms, and breakout spaces, giving you dedicated space to learn the theory before bringing it to life with hands-on, practical learning in our industry-standard dedicated teaching studios.
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