Key details
Dr David Hockham
Associate Head of School - Student Success, Academic Portfolio Lead - Drama, Music and Sound Production
David works as a production manager and producer internationally, currently touring with Dead Rabbits Theatre and their award-winning 'My Love Lies Frozen in the Ice' and Arts Council supported 'Tiger Lady' which won ‘Best Immersive Performance’ at the Edinburgh Fringe 2022. Touring throughout the UK and Canada (2023).
Production credits include Red Shift's Jonathan Holloway & Hong Kong's Chung Ying theatre's adaptation of Jekyll and Hyde (2015) and Blood for Blood (2016), multiple works for Guildford's international music festival (2013 - 2015), Blind Summit's Puppetry Monologues (2013) and he has run his own theatre company 'Lost Banditos' (2008 2010).
Since 2018, David produces community-engaged workshop and performance programmes while considering the role a university might play within the local community. In doing so he has been building a network of community links to embed the university's Bathway Theatre into its locality. His work includes being UK partner in Open European Societies EU Open for Citizens programme, looking to tackle racism and xenophobia (2018 - 2021) co-producing a trans-national conference with the European Reminiscence Network in February 2019. David was also lead on local community programme What About Us: Empowering Community Voices, co-produced with partners. For up to date information see Bathway Theatre.
David has managed his professional career alongside teaching and developing courses in production and technical theatre since September 2009; first for the University of Surrey and, from September 2015, the University of Greenwich. He has taught across bachelor's and master's degree courses where modules have included teaching in: digital performance, practice-based research, technical theatre, design, scenography, marketing and production skills. Since 2018 he has managed and produced the Bathway Theatre Company, a University of Greenwich student company of fifteen who each year now head to the Edinburgh Fringe to perform a fully realised performance. David has production managed a range of student work from large scale musical theatre at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre (Guildford) for the Guildford School of Acting, to intimate one-on-one experiences for theatre and performance students, dissertation work including practice-based research and independent projects. He has managed work across disciplines including dance, digital performance, film, theatre musical theatre, music and composition.
David has designed lighting and staging for festivals and research projects which have ranged from digital site-specific works, interactive projection mapping, dancing the digital double and dance for mature dancers. He has directed laboratory performances and site-specific work.
David completed his PhD in June 2022 from the Institute of Education which looked at the ways we teach vocational-technical education within HE, with a particular focus on technical theatre drawing on person-centred theories from education, psychology and sociology and synthesising this with concepts from scenography. This led to a set of recommendations for curriculum developers and pedagogues which he integrates into his work within the School of Stage and Screen in his role as Associate Head of School - Student Success
Responsibilities within the university
- Theatre Manager
- Module Leader for Scenography Production and Technical Theatre, Accredited Technical Theatre Practice and Digital Performance
- Bathway Theatre Network Producer
- Member of the Faculty Operating Group, Curators' Group
- Co-Founding Member of Research Group CLEI Co-Creating Liveness in Embodies Immersion
- Member of the Drama Theatre and Performance Research Group
- Technical Team Leader
- Line Manager
- First Aider
- DSE assessor
- Fire Warden
- Local Health and Safety Officer
- Chair of the LGBT staff Community
Awards
- Best Immersive Theatre Performance (2022) – Theatre Weekly for Tiger Lady. Dead Rabbits Theatre.
- Greenwich Excellence Award (2021) – University of Greenwich, awarded to the LGBT+ Staff Community where David is co-vice chair
- Outstanding achievement in Knowledge Exchange (2021) – University of Greenwich, jointly awarded with Professor Tracey Reynolds
- Outstanding achievement in Enterprise (2019) - University of Greenwich
- Les Enfants Terribles Greenwich Partnership Award (2019) for My Love Lies Frozen in the Ice – Dead Rabbits Theatre Company
- Short-listed for the Student-Led Teaching Awards 2018, (2019) University of Greenwich
Recognition
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- Member of the International Federation of Theatre Research’s Theatrical Event working group
- Collaborations Champion for the National Centre for Academic and Cultural Exchange
Research / Scholarly interests
David is interested in how we teach vocational practices within universities and his PhD thesis, completed in 2022, develops a learning scenographic lens to discuss technical theatre within Higher Education. His PhD compares approaches to vocational training across institutions which provides recommendations for the HE sector.
This work uses Dreier's person-centred approach to re-consider Lave and Wenger's communities of practice in order to remove the idea that communities are a homogenous group of people. Instead, David argues that we are all different, each having unique complex lives which affect how and what we do.
David's recent articles are co-written with local organisations and scholars from across the institutions, combining the person centred framework emerging from his PhD with wider scholarship including on post-colonial theory. In doing so, David is interested in the role of universities and civic life.
David is interested in community practice, vocational training, storytelling, devising, technical theatre, producing, event and production management.
Key funded projects
- Steps2Digitaltech: Bridging Communities (2020-2023) Funded By The Mercers Company
- Open European Societies (2018-2021) Funded by Europe For Citizens
- Get In Formation (2020) Funded By the Arts Council
- What About Us: Empowering Community Voices (2019) Co-Funded by Greenwich Council, University of Greenwich and the Arts Council
The projects above fold in knowledge exchange, outreach, community engagement, theatre and performance, research and teaching and learning. They include a programme of events ranging from community open days to large scale conferences, workshops and performances, the programmes were designed to reach under-represented local communities.
Recent publications
Articles
In Progress
Reports
Performance Research
PhD available for Download Hockham, David; (2022) What are the Implications for HEI Pedagogy and Learning when Production and Technical Theatre Practices are Re-orientated as Practices of Scenography? Investigating Technical Theatre Training, in Higher Education Institutions (HEI) levels 4-6 within the United Kingdom (UK). Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London). |
Presentations
- Hockham, D (2022) “Wild Frontiers: Learning in Higher Education Institutions. TAPRA – Essex 13th September 2022
- Hockham, D (2022) “The Question is not what can the university do for us? The question is what can we do for the university” Scenography, Oral History and championing other’s expertise. University of Greenwich 3 Day Symposium. [accessed at youtube 3:42:45 – 4:01:05] 11th April 22
- Smith, L & Hockham D (2021) Working & Studying with disabilities: personal perspectives; celebrating dyslexia awareness week Online Lunch and Learn Session
- Hockham, D & Wallis, J (2021) HEI Theatre Practice: A unique performance method in a nexus of practices. The International Federation of Theatre Research Conference (IFTR) 12th-16th July
- Hockham, D (2019) "The question is not what can the university do for us? The question is what can we do for the university?" A 'connected curriculum' approach to diversifying our pedagogy and practice. University of Greenwich, Diversity + Inclusivity Conference, 19 October 2019
- Hockham, D & Zigomo P (2019) Becoming Civic Centred: A Case Study of the University of Greenwich's Bathway Theatre based in Woolwich. Drama Theatre and Performance Research Group Lecture, 14 November 2019
- Bowes, Hockham, Oxley & Wallis (2019) Embedding a professional critical response. Shift Conference, University of Greenwich. January 2019
- Hockham (2018) How Should We Be Training Technical Theatre Technicians in the 21st Century? Shift Conference, University of Greenwich. 5 January 2018
- Hockham (2018) 'Assessing in the swamp: Technical Theatre Practice, not just doing the drains.' Symposium 'Innovations in Assessment for Drama, Performing Arts & Musical Theatre' at Anglia Ruskin University