Drama Classes - a Beginner's Guide
Brand New to Drama Classes? Here are eight questions you should ask wherever you choose to study!
Drama Classes in Acting and Musical Theatre, and More for Kids / Teens / Adults
What is the Best Age to Start in Drama Classes?
Our drama program welcomes students beginning at age 7. We find this is an excellent time for students to begin exploring their creativity on stage in a fun, yet focused and progressive environment.
What Are Some of the Benefits of Taking Drama Classes?
Acting classes allow students to safely explore their inner creativity by transforming themselves on stage into the character of the moment! Character study allows the student to discover and implement body language with key physical and emotional traits for confident and persuasive communication with the audience. Speech and vocal skills are a significant focus of the drama program as vocal clarity (without excessive reliance on microphone amplification) is key. Enhanced self-confidence, stage presence, and social skills are all natural benefits of our acting program.
Do I Need to Audition before Enrolling in a Class?
There are no auditions required for class placement in Acting I (ages 7-11) and Acting II (ages 11-18). Students are promoted to Acting III (ages 13-18) by audition/invite. Promotions to Acting III are based not only only talent and skill but also the actor's level of maturity. We love working with students of all backgrounds, from brand new beginners to advanced students.
Auditions will be held for each show that is produced to ensure that each student is cast in a part best representing his/her current skills. All students who audition will receive parts.
What is the Difference between Musical Theatre Classes and Acting Classes?
In our acting program, classes focus almost exclusively on preparing for various non-musical style shows. While there may occasionally be some musical training, that is not the main focus of the class and actors selected for roles requiring song/dance will usually be studying privately with one of our many amazing vocal/dance faculty. Our musical theatre program prepares students to sing and dance on stage to popular showtunes and broadway style musicals. This is combined with a small amount of acting. Many students enjoy taking both classes to maximize their training!
Do You Offer Private Lessons?
Students who wish to focus on developing individual skills such as improving monologues, general stage presence, speech clarity/dialects, audition prep, etc may prefer to enroll privately with one of our theatre faculty members.
What Performance Opportunities do you Offer?
Our theatre students put on productions each Fall and Summer. Performances are held both on campus in our performance halls, as well as in larger-scale theatres. Students also have the opportunity to participate in occasional film productions. Over the past few years our acting, dance, and music departments have come together to produce several films and musicals. See "Luna in Christmasland", an original film written by our Faculty and Staff and "The Night Before New Year's" an original musical written by our Faculty & Staff!
Are Shows Mandatory?
Performance on stage is a large part of every budding actor's training and development! However, we understand that many times students may prefer to work behind the scenes. All theatre students have the option of working of working with lighting, sound, set design, stage management, props, etc. should they prefer this to being in the spotlight!
What are the Qualifications of the Drama & Theatre Teachers?
All of our drama instructors have years of professional industry experience as well as University training in theatre. In addition to their stage experience, our faculty also bring their experience in television and film to our students.
Current Drama & Musical Theatre Class Schedules
What is the Tuition/Cost?
Please click the button below for tuition information for Drama and Musical Theatre classes!
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Questions? Click below to check out our list of Frequently Asked Questions.
Can't find the answers you're looking for? Call, text or email - we're here to help Monday-Thursday 8 AM - 9 PM, Friday 8 AM - 7:30 PM, and Saturday 8 AM - 3 PM.
Please note that during holiday breaks, the office will be open between 9 AM and 5 PM. It is always best to call the office before dropping by the Academy in person during holiday breaks.
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Arrange your first class by contacting us today or click below to enroll online.