Talentroom.com at AndrewManson.com Theatrical Actors Agents, acting agents who aim to focus and encourage actors

Scroll or 'click' on your area of interest.

The auditioning process to obtain entry into an accredited Drama School can be extremely rigorous with some colleges holding intensive in-house weekends involving workshops and improvisations. There is usually a fee for auditioning. Potential students are asked to prepare two contrasting pieces (one classical, one modern) for a 'panel' of judges and whilst the team will not be expecting the student to present a fully rounded portrayal of the characters they have chosen, they will be looking to see a feeling for the language and that the student has an understanding of the chosen pieces. It is therefore imperative that audition speeches are chosen with great care. There are various books containing standard speeches which are very useful but reading many different plays will give a fully rounded picture of an author's style and also a character's development making it easier to interpret a speech 'lifted' from the text.^TOP^

Most Drama Schools offer a three year course and a one year post-graduate course with a few offering both acting and musical theatre options. The course will involve classes in movement, voice, breathing, dialects and accents as well as text work, improvisation classes and often stage combat and various physical theatre styles. Camera work is often overlooked on these courses with limited time being apportioned to the medium in which most actors will want to work in, Film & TV.^TOP^

During the first year of training, scenes from plays and devised pieces will be presented at the end of each term with full productions of plays being produced during the second and third years. It is during the final year that casting directors and agents are invited to see these shows and students' work.^TOP^

The various classes combined can be invaluable to teach the 'technique' of acting, voice production and movement but cannot make you a good actor. Often the cosseting of three years with the same group of people does nothing to prepare the student for life as an actor in the 'real world' overlooking the fact that 'training' actually begins when the actor leaves Drama School.^TOP^

Bear in mind the high fees charged for entry to Drama School; grants are increasingly difficult to obtain and living expenses are often not taken into account. Three years is a long time to subsidise training. There is no guarantee that you will obtain work (paid or unpaid) at the end of this time.^TOP^

There are also part-time and evening classes, private tuition, summer schools and more intensive, shorter courses - these do not result in a professional qualification and can be looked down upon by others within the profession particularly at the beginning of a career. ^TOP^

It is advisable to undergo some form of training if for no other reason than to understand how to approach a text and to learn the rigorous disciplines demanded of an actor working within the business.^TOP^

Books about: Acting

2 Plays for Student Actors

100 Monologues : An Audition Sourcebook...

The Los Angeles Agent Book

RELATED LINKS

Conference of Drama Schools - UK

Talentroom.com at AndrewManson.com