Roxanne Korda

Music PhD

Roxanne was previously a secondary school physics teacher, having studied physics and philosophy. Roxanne wanted to explore the possibility of conveying concepts of science through theatre and performance, so she decided to pursue a Master's in Music and then a PhD at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire   

Thesis Title: ‘LIBRETTISING’ SCIENCE: Using operatic narrative and performance to re-present scientific thought in an investigation of new methods towards developing contemporary opera.

“I believe theatre is a powerful and accessible way to share complex concepts of physics with wider communities, shaping understandings of the world through emotion and narrative.  

Whilst studying my MMusic at Birmingham City University, I collaborated with a composition student to create a new opera about physics. During this process, I worked with a director from the school of acting and learned about the field of practice-based research. Before joining the Conservatoire, I was not aware of this area at all, but after finding out about this potential path of study, I decided to pursue a PhD in performance.

Doing a PhD allowed me time to really understand the meaning of the questions I was asking and explore new methods to uncover knowledge. I have always been keen to continue to learn, and love directing my learning, so a PhD felt like a natural fit to allow a self-directed and thorough exploration of my passion.  

Having studied physics and philosophy, and worked as a secondary school physics teacher, I wanted to find a way to merge my pre-existing knowledge in science with my future path of performance research.  

I think that theatre is an ideal platform to portray the most powerful concepts of science and allows us to approach them in an emotional and narrative-driven direction. I’m interested in how this can open theories of science to a wider community and help others to feel connected to scientific research which shapes our understanding of the world.  

The research community in the Conservatoire and across BCU has been welcoming and provided platforms for me to present my research as it has progressed. This has been excellent to help me with securing and developing research concepts throughout my PhD journey.  

When I joined BCU, I was welcomed into the PGR studio, given support and guidance through the PGCert, and became a student representative. This all provided me with a solid background when starting my PhD.  

During my PhD, I have had the opportunity to collaborate with fellow postgraduate students, whose work was focused on related disciplines. In theatre, collaboration is key, so being in a place where I could access expertise in other fields was important. I’ve had lots of opportunities to present my work at conferences and take up training and placement programmes to develop professionally.  

I have developed more skills in independent research and broadened my knowledge base around my subject. I have also been exposed to many other artists and developed collaborations with other researchers in related fields. This has encouraged me to include more lateral thinking in my approach to research and be more inclusive in the way I approach answering research questions.  

My proudest moment has been in passing my Viva. This was an extremely validating experience, where I was able to express my findings and knowledge to a willing and interested panel. It helped me to feel more confident about my work and to see that there may be a future for this research. 

To anyone considering doing a PhD, I would say to seek out potential collaborators as soon as possible, get to know the technical staff, and take time to interrogate your research questions before diving into your project too quickly.  

In the future, I want to continue working in academia, finding ways to present scientific knowledge to theatre audiences, and helping more people to feel connected to the ways we can understand the beautiful and mind-blowing world we live in.  

I am currently working as a Research Assistant on the ‘That’s Me! Eliminating barriers to postgraduate research study in the West Midlands’ project, investigating accessibility of Open Access materials and developing an Open Access Strategy for the university. 

For me, “IAMBCU” represents my identity as a collaborative, interdisciplinary, and enthusiastic researcher, seeking new ways for communities to understand our environment through performance."